Eight new priests

PATERSON  Bishop Serratelli ordained eight men as priests of the Diocese of Paterson during Mass on Saturday, May 11 in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist here — the mother church of the Diocese. He challenged these new priests to carry out their priestly ministry “with constant joy and genuine love, attending not to your own concerns, but to those of Jesus Christ.”

The eight new priests are: Father John Rocco Calabro Jr., a native of Summit; Father Andrew Dutko, a native of Westwood; Father Kerwin Timothy M. Gaza, a native of the Philippines; Father Charles Henry Lana Jr., a native of Paterson; Father Dailon Lisabet, a native of Cuba; Father William Alexandre (Alex) Sylvain Nevitt IV, a native of Morristown; Father Artur Prażak, a native of Poland, and Father John Brandi, a Newark native, whom Bishop Serratelli had ordained in 2014 as a permanent deacon of the Diocese. Brandi had served at Assumption Parish, Morristown.

Bishop Serratelli was the principal celebrant of the Mass with numerous priests of the diocese and beyond as concelebrants. Steeped in the traditions of the early Church, the liturgy included the Rite of Ordination of Priests and featured the powerful voices of the Diocesan Choir. Filling St. John’s to capacity were seminarians’ families — some traveling long distances — friends, members of faith communities they have served, and parishioners from around the diocese, who gathered to show their support and pray for the newly-ordained priests. The ordination was streamed live on the Diocesan website, www.rcdop.org.

“On this day, God renews the Paterson Diocese with eight new priests. We are so grateful for the gift of their lives. It is a sign of God’s great love for us and a sign that the Church is alive and strong,” Bishop Serratelli told the congregation.

In his homily, Bishop Serratelli told the eight men, “The Mother Church choose you to be priests. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, you will be configured to Christ, who taught us the way to God.”

“You are to love and live the knowledge of God that comes from Christ, who is the Gospel, in such a way that others will look to you, listen to you and learn of God and have their lives lifted up to heaven,” Bishop Serratelli told the men he was about to ordain as priests.

During his earthly ministry, Jesus selected certain disciples, the Apostles, to “carry out a public ministry in his name on behalf of mankind to work through the priestly office in the Church,” so “that through them and their successors — the bishops — he might continue to exercise his office as teacher, priest and shepherd,” the Bishop said.

“You will exercise the sacred duty of teaching in the name of Christ the teacher, imparting to everyone the Word of God that you yourself have received with joy. Meditating on the law of the Lord, be sure that you see that you believe what you read, that you teach what you believe and that you practice what you teach. In this way, let what you teach be nourishment for the people of God,” said Bishop Serratelli, who urged the newly ordained to help build up and unite the Church by their words and example.

The new priests, the Bishop said, also “exercise Christ’s office of sanctifier” — “the spiritual sacrifice of the faithful made perfect being united to the sacrifice of Jesus, which will be offered through your hands in an unbloody way on the altar in union with the faithful.” Therefore, he told them, “Understand what you do and imitate what you celebrate.”

“Carry out the ministry of Christ, the priest, with constant joy and genuine love, attending not to your own concerns, but to those of Jesus Christ. Follow the example of the Good Shepherd, who came not to be served, but to serve, and who came to seek out and save what was lost,” Bishop Serratelli told the eight men.

Toward the end of the Mass, Bishop Serratelli led the congregation in reciting the diocesan Prayer for Vocations, of which he is the author. He thanked God and everyone who attended the ordination Mass and all those people, who over the years helped to shape the lives and vocations of the new priests, including their families, brother priests and seminaries that they attended.

Then, the Bishop addressed the intolerance and persecution of Christians that has been increasing around the world, including here in the U.S. He called on all Catholics, but especially priests to “stand and face our culture with the truth of the Gospel, despite persecution.”

“Every priest is a man who needs your support, encouragement and prayers,” said Bishop Serratelli in reminding the faithful. “If we fail and are weak, do not disdain us but lift us up with your prayers,” he told them.

Then, to resounding applause, the Mass ended with a long procession out of St. John’s with the new priests, priests in attendance and the Bishop. Then, the newly ordained returned to the sanctuary of the cathedral to bestow their first blessings on well-wishers, many of whom cried tears of joy.

Receiving a blessing from Father Gaza was Victoria Santo, who met the new priest, as part of the Filipino community at Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., and as she said, “Became good friends.”

“Father Kerwin was always there to help me and we could talk about faith. He will make a good priest, because he is very honest and has strength, courage and perseverance, especially after he came to the United States from the Philippines all by himself with no one,” Santo told The Beacon. “I’m surprised today, because this is the first ordination that I’ve been to of someone I know as a priest. I used to call him by his first name but now things will be different. But Father Kewin’s humble heart is still there,” she said.

After the ordination, Father Brandi reflected on his new priesthood, noting that he previously had led a ministry of caring, tending to infirm family members and also serving the elderly and in hospice as a permanent deacon. He also had a career as a psychologist.

“Now as a priest, I can perform the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, which I couldn’t do as a deacon. I look forward to that,” Father Brandi said. “As a priest, I’m on the same journey of compassion that I was already on.”