PHOTOS | ‘All is Gift’: Four Men Ordained Catholic Priests in Denver
- André Escaleira, Jr.
- 5 minutes ago
- 5 min read
At the Cathedral Basilica in Denver, Archbishop James Golka calls the Church’s newest priests to total surrender and sacrificial love in Christ.
As Fathers Manuel Alarcon, Jason DiRito, Jonathan Francois and Daniel Rivas were ordained priests May 9, one message resounded through the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver: all is gift.
In Christ Alone
Before their foreheads met the marble of the cathedral floor as they lay prostrate in prayer before the altar, part of the priestly ordination rite symbolizing their total self-gift, the archdiocese’s newest priests were reminded that their future priestly ministry comes from, and is only possible because of, Jesus Christ.
Quoting then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s address to Brazilian bishops in 1990, Denver Archbishop James Golka emphasized the “nothingness” asked of the apostles.
“What man can stand up on his own and say, ‘I forgive your sins’? What man can stand up and say, ‘This is my Body. This is my Blood. Receive the Holy Spirit’?” then-Cardinal Ratzinger asked in his address.
“All of that comes from our Lord Jesus. On their own, by the force of their own understanding, knowledge and will, they cannot do anything they are meant to do as apostles or as priests,” Archbishop Golka explained. “You must allow Jesus Christ to do it in and through you. That’s the beauty of our priesthood. It is Christ who gave us authority that if we do something in his name that he would have us do, he will do it through us. We don’t do it on our own. The same applies to the priesthood.”
Standing in persona Christi, in the person of Christ, the priest offers a great gift to God’s people: communion.
“The Church that Jesus Christ founded needs communion, and this Church needs priests serving at the altar to offer this communion to the people of God, the Body of Christ,” Archbishop Golka said during brief remarks in Spanish. “Communion isn’t a thing; it’s a way of living, and the Church needs priests who are going to serve, in Christ, and offer this communion.”
As they work towards the unity of the sons and daughters of God (see Ephesians 4:12-13), these new priests — and indeed all priests — have a lofty calling “to introduce men and women for Baptism, to forgive sins in the name of Christ and the Church in the sacrament of Penance, to offer the sick the relief of the holy oils, to celebrate the sacred rites, to offer praise, thanks and intercession during the day, not only for God’s people but for the entire world,” the archbishop explained.
(Photos by Daniel Petty/Denver Catholic)
Complete Surrender
But that mission is not to be done alone, Archbishop Golka emphasized. In fact, it’s impossible if not done while offering oneself completely to Jesus Christ, depending wholly on him.
Recalling a powerful experience in prayer at his First Mass of Thanksgiving after he was ordained a priest, the archbishop shared that he froze at the fraction rite of the Mass, when the priest breaks the consecrated host. He found himself struggling to break Jesus, now truly present.
“I heard him say to my heart, ‘Unless and until you’re willing to let this happen to you, you’re not ready to offer it for them,’” Archbishop Golka recalled, turning to the archdiocese’s newest priests. “Unless and until you’re willing to let your life be broken open for the Lord, let your life be poured out in loving service for the other, then we’re not ready to do that for the people of God, and they’re hungry for the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
By offering themselves to God completely, these new priests — and all priests — “live a life of self-giving, revealing God’s love through your service to the community, especially in the celebration of the Eucharist,” the archbishop continued.
“Let yourself be broken open for others. Let your life be an outpouring of the grace that belongs to God,” he shared. “To let your life be something means that you surrender. You literally have to depend on the Lord to be a priest. To surrender doesn’t mean that you’re giving up; it means you’re giving over.”
A Ministry of Grace
That grace-filled reality of Christ’s presence in and through their future priestly ministry was not lost on the archdiocese’s newest priests, either.
“As I prepare to take on the responsibilities of a parish priest, I'm confronted with the reality of how far beyond my natural capacities they are,” Father Jason DiRito shared with the Denver Catholic in the days leading up to his ordination. “That said, I can't wait to witness the mighty works of God in the lives of his people. As his minister, I will get a front row seat to his loving work in souls through the sacraments.”
“These sacramental responsibilities are a source of excitement for me, especially the thought that Christ will operate through me in these liturgies as in persona Christi [in the person of Christ],” added Father Jonathan Francois. “I am an unworthy minister, but given extraordinary grace to operate as Jesus on earth during our pilgrimage towards Heaven as we participate in the sacraments that he has given to the Church.”
In and through the sacraments that the priest offers — in both the most joyful and most challenging times in a person’s life — he has the opportunity to bring God to his people in a powerful way.
“In those times, God generously grants priests the honor of making his presence known, felt and appreciated, and we pray to do that faithfully and humbly,” said Father Daniel Rivas.
For the Laity
In addition to the support of the Lord himself, these new priests and all priests count on the support of their families, friends and the Church at large, Archbishop Golka emphasized. Expressing gratitude for the laity’s cooperation in the vineyard of the Lord, he reminded the faithful to keep praying for their priests, well after the ordination liturgy concluded.
“Please, after today, they are going to need more support, more prayers and more love from their families and from the entire Church as well,” Archbishop Golka said in Spanish. “Thank you for offering your sons to the Church, because in Christ, they will live filled with the Holy Spirit. That is a gift of God. Thank you for that.”
Recalling that the hundreds of laity gathered were not mere “spectators,” neither in the ordination liturgy nor in the ministry to come, he emphasized their call “to find out how we are called to offer our lives for our God in Jesus Christ” in the mission that God has given to each, and to the entire archdiocese.
“Brothers and sisters, as these men give their lives over to the Lord today, give your life to him in whatever vocation he’s called you to,” Archbishop Golka concluded. “Let this archdiocese, let your families be on mission, so that it is the Lord who gives himself through us by our sacrifice and giving to one another.”
