Upcoming Ordination

05-29-2022Weekly ReflectionFr. Michael Straley

Today we celebrate the ordination of men to the transitional diaconate. These are the men who will be ordained to the priesthood next year. For a year they will be able to proclaim the gospel and preach, to baptize, to celebrate weddings without a mass and to learn what ordained life is like. Please remember to pray for these men.

Next Sunday, June 4, we will ordain four men as priests for the Diocese of Phoenix. For all of us priests this is a special time; for me, I was also ordained on June 4, 39 years ago. I still remember that ordination: kneeling before the bishop and promising obedience, having my hands anointed with Holy Chrism, and the bishop laying hands on my head...then all of the priests also laying hands on me. It was a very moving celebration. Please remember to pray for our new diocesan priests. After ordination on Saturday, the new priests will offer their first masses on Sunday. Again, a very moving and important time for them. I can still remember very specific parts of my first mass, which happened to be the feast of Corpus Christi. I will be attending a couple of first masses next Sunday, especially one, since when I was a young priest, I taught this new priest to be an altar server.

We are truly blessed in our diocese with many young men discerning God’s will in their lives. Please also remember them in your prayers.