Bishop to ordain 5 men to priesthood

PATERSON  Five men will be ordained to the priesthood in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist here at 9 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 1 by Bishop Kevin Sweeney. The Class of 2020 will be the first in Bishop Sweeney’s episcopacy. The ordination Mass will be livestreamed on the Diocese of Paterson’s website, www.rcdop.org.

During the Rite of Ordination, steeped in the rich traditions of the early Church, he will ordain five men of diverse backgrounds and life experiences as priests.

Bishop Sweeney will ordain the following transitional deacons to the priesthood — Rev. Mr. Joemin Kharlo Chong Parinas, Rev. Mr. Regin Nico Dela Cruz Quintos and Rev. Mr. Armando Diaz Vizcara Jr. of the Philippines; Rev. Mr. Adam Stanislaw Wasowski of Poland; and Rev. Mr. Chris J. Han of South Korea.

For the ordination, a limited number of well-wishers — family, friends, priests and religious of the Diocese, members of the parishes where the deacons have served and the faithful of the Diocese — will be invited to attend as a sign of encouragement to the men receiving the Sacrament of Holy Orders. That is because parishes must follow state mandates to limit the number of congregants at Masses to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Brief biographies of the candidates follow:

Born in Bangued, Abra, Philippines, Rev. Mr. Parinas is the son of Faustina Rechilda Chong Parinas and Carlos Comines Parinas. His parish is Our Lady Queen of Peace (OLMC), Branchville. He was graduated from St. Joseph Minor Seminary (high school), (2009). He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy with a minor in teaching from San Pablo Major Seminary (college), (2013) and a Master of Divinity degree from Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., this year.

Rev. Mr. Parinas’ apostolic experience in seminary included Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary School (2017), McSher­rystown, Pa.; Little Sisters of the Poor (2018), Washington, D.C.; Catholic Charities (2019), Gaithersburg, Md.; St. Rita’s Catholic Church (2020), Blue Ridge Summit, Pa.; and Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish (2020), Fairfield, Pa. Apostolic experiences in the Diocese included St. Francis of Assisi Parish, Haskell (2016–2018) and OLMC (2018–present).

Born in Malolos City in the Province of Bulacan, Philippines, Rev. Mr. Quintos is the son of Rosielyn Dela Cruz and Rizaldy Quintos. His parish is St. Ann, Parsippany. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and communications from St. Paul Semin­ary in Silang Cavite, Philippines (2013) and a Master of Divinity degree and master’s degree in moral theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., this year.

Rev. Mr. Vizcara was born in Manila, Philippines, to Lydia Vizcara and Armando Vizcara Sr. His parish is St. Brendan/St. George, Clifton. He studied at Systems Technology Institute in Makati City, Philippines (2006–10). He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and communications at St. Paul Seminary in Silang, Cavite, Philippines (2013). He studied at San Carlos Seminary in Makati, City, Philippines (2015 –16). He completed his priestly studies at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Em­mits­burg, Md. this year.

His professional/apostolic experiences include being a youth leader at St. Rita de Cascia Parish (2003 –08); a member of the ministry of altar server at St. Rita’s (2003–08); artistic director of Teatro Paolino of St. Paul Seminary (2011 –13); part-time video editor of Shepherd’s Voice Radio and TV production; and an instructor for religion and algebra at Indiana Aerospace University (2013 –14).

Born in Kraków Poland, Rev. Mr. Wasowski is the son of Wieslaw and Maria Wasowski of Krakow. His parish is St. Vincent in Krakow. He earned his Sacred Theology Doctorate in theological sciences and biblical theology at the Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow (2012); a Sacred Theology Licentiate at Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow (2009) and a Master of Theology at Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow (2007).

He also participated in the Biblical-Archaeological Camp in the Holy Land under the direction of Father Tomasz Jelonek and Father Roman Bogacz, (2004, 05, 09); and visiting for research purposes, Studium Biblicum Franciscanum Jerusalem with the faculty of Biblical Sciences and Archeology, Institute of Archeology with Hebrew Uni­versity of Jerusalem, École Biblique et Archéologique Française de Jérusalem, Pontificio Istituto Biblico in Rome, Pontifical Università Gregoriana in Rome, Institut Catholique de Paris, Warsaw University and Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw (2010 –12). He also took part in biblical international scientific conferences in Krakow and in Lviv, Ukraine.

Rev. Mr. Wasowski’s apostolic experience includes: proclamation of the Gospel to the homeless in Krakow led by the Albertine Brothers (2013 –14); accompanying people at the Alzheimer's Center in Warsaw (2012 –13); custody of the Holy Land at the Franciscan Monastery in Emmaus Qubeibeh, Israel to help in the work in the monastery for three months (2009); animator of interpersonal relations at Associazione Arca Comunita Il Chicco, Rome-Ciampino, Italia (2006 –07), animator of the Catholic Charismatic Community at Cistercian Fathers Parish in Krakow (1998 –2012), and as a regular member of the Polish Theological Society in Krakow, Biblical Section, (2009).

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Rev. Mr. Han is the son of the late Francis Han and Veronica Jung of Las Vegas. His home parish is Assumption in Morristown. He attended elementary and middle schools in South Korea (1991 –99) and was graduated from Sierra Vista High School in Las Vegas (2004). He served in the U.S. Marine Corps (2004 –10) and was deployed to Iraq in 2007 for the Operation of Iraqi Freedom. He was honorably discharged with the rank of sergeant. He then attended the University of Las Vegas, where he earned a biology degree in 2013. He completed his priestly studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, where he was ordained to the transitional diaconate.