43 Seminarians Receive Ministry of Acolyte
ROME, 24 February 2019 –
On the 24th of February 2019, the Most Reverend Steven J. Lopes, Bishop of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, conferred the Ministry of Acolyte during Mass in the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception, Pontifical North American College, Vatican City State to the following students:
- Samuel Augustus Bass of the Diocese of Austin
- Dillon Alexander Bruce of the Diocese of Richmond
- Alessandro Calderoni Ortiz of the Diocese of Tulsa
- Louis Angelo Cona of the Diocese of Rockville Centre
- Nicholas Scott Case of the Archdiocese of San Francisco
- Patrick Gordon Costello of the Diocese of Green Bay
- Matthew Joseph Donahue of the Diocese of Knoxville
- Matthew Steven Duclos of the Diocese of Albany
- Timothy Mark Eck, II of the Diocese of Metuchen
- Paul Louis Floersch of the Archdiocese of Omaha
- Reed Turner Flood of the Diocese of Des Moines
- Edward James Godefroid of the Archdiocese of St. Louis
- Patrick Michael Hannegan of the Archdiocese of St. Louis
- Madison Russell Howard Hayes of the Archdiocese of Anchorage
- Michael David Hoye of the Diocese of Worcester
- Daniel Paul Holgren of the Diocese of San Diego
- Jakob Nicholas Hurlimann of the Diocese of Austin
- Lucas Marshall LaRoche of the Diocese of Worcester
- Michael Ledesma of the Diocese of Tyler
- Seth Mitchell Lemaire of the Diocese of Lafayette
- James Edmund Linkenheld of the Diocese of Rockford
- Joseph Louis MacNeill of the Archdiocese of Hartford
- Michael Joseph Malucha of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
- Eric Joseph Mashak of the Diocese of La Crosse
- Patrick Shane McCain of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter
- Nicholas Paul Morrison of the Archdiocese of Washington
- James Robert O’Neil of the Diocese of Lincoln
- John Anthony Pankratz, Jr. of the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings
- Alexander Williams Pince of the Diocese of Venice in Florida
- Kyle Joseph Poje of the Archdiocese of Seattle
- Luke Timothy Powers of the Diocese of Madison
- Timothy Matthew Reither of the Diocese of La Crosse
- Thomas Sullivan Robertson of the Archdiocese of Washington
- Juan Miguel Sanchez of the Diocese of Charlotte
- Peter Lee Srsich of the Archdiocese of Denver
- Christopher Andrew Trummer of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
- Nicholas John Vetter of the Diocese of Bismarck
- Michael Joseph Wanta of the Diocese of Madison
- Curtis Carl Weisenburger of the Diocese of Toledo
- Joseph Paul White of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston
- Grant Bradley Wilson of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
- Stephen Andrew Yusko of the Diocese of Albany
- Gregory Joseph Zannetti of the Diocese of Metuchen
In his homily, Bishop Lopes stressed the importance of Christ’s love as a measure for our lives noting that Jesus Christ is “a love without conditions, a love without limits, a love that was willing to give all; that is the love that is revealed in God, in Christ.” He said this love is “the truth of an encounter that transforms us” and he added, “it is an encounter that is experienced particularly today by those who have received the Ministry of Acolyte because we are servants of the Mass, and the Eucharist, which is the principle place of that encounter.”
Bishop Lopes told the newly instituted acolytes that the “acolyte understood in the context of this seminary is a ritual step towards ordination. It is a ritual drawing near to the altar, to the sacrifice, and to the Lord’s cross.” He concluded by asserting: “The love we encounter at the altar, the love by which you draw nearer today, changes us. It transfigures us. It accomplishes in us what you and I, humanly speaking, could never ask or even imagine. And so we love differently. We are changed by the sacramental outpouring of grace. Because at the altar we know ourselves to be loved in a way that is unimaginable. This is the heart of the Christian faith. This is the heart of the Gospel itself.”
As part of the rite, the bishop placed the paten, which contains the hosts for the celebration of Mass, in the hands of each candidate. He then said, “take this vessel with bread for the celebration of the Eucharist. Make your life worthy of your service at the table of the Lord and of his Church.”
The seminarians, currently in their second year of formation for the priesthood, would have two additional years of theological studies before being ordained to the priesthood in their home dioceses.
The Pontifical North American College serves as the American seminary in Rome. Founded in 1859 by Blessed Pius IX, the College has formed over 5000 priests near the heart of the Church for service in dioceses around the United States, Canada, and Australia. The College strengthens the bonds between Rome and local Churches worldwide, and it allows its students a first-hand encounter of the Church’s rich religious and cultural heritage.
A gallery of photos from the Mass may be viewed at https://www.flickr.com/photos/pnac/albums in the coming days. Local diocesan news organizations may contact Denis Nakkeeran (dnakkeeran@pnac.org) for information regarding photo use credits and permissions. All other news sources may contact pnacdc@pnac.org for photo permissions.