Who is called to the priesthood?

The priesthood is a call from God to live a relationship with Him by serving His people. Jesus Christ chooses ordinary men to do the extraordinary. Just as He chose His first apostles, calling them each by name to follow Him, He does the same today through the call to serve Him as a priest.
A vocation to the priesthood is counter-cultural. First of all, it is a response to the love of God in one’s life. Further, it is a life of
self-sacrifice that is aimed at restoring and recovering a love of God in the world.
The priest brings the people to God and God to the people. Priests are called to be open to God’s love, promises and will.
 

What does a priest do?

Priests share in the mission of Christ. They perform three main tasks:

• Teach –priests instruct others in the faith through their preaching, teaching and example of self-sacrifice.
• Shepherd—priests guide, unite & encourage their flock, their spiritual children.
• Sanctify— priests administer sacraments.

A priest is prayerful, desiring to love God and God’s people with his whole being. He is available and involved in the day-to-day lives of the people he is privileged to serve and represents the presence of Christ and the Church – ever beside its members through the successes and struggles, joys and sorrows of life.
 

Signs that indicate a possible vocation to the priesthood may include:

• Love of God—you strive to know and love God more everyday.
• Love of neighbour—you desire to bring God’s love and grace to the world for the salvation of souls.
• Attracted to the priesthood—you have an interior attraction to the priesthood. There is a certain sense of joy and peace when you contemplate yourself living as a priest.
•  A willingness to serve the Lord as his priest—The willingness to be a priest is already an excellent sign that the Lord wants you to be a priest.
• A generous heart and willingness to sacrifice

Prayer for Priests

Almighty Father, in Your plan for our salvation You provide priests for Your people.
We pray for those whom You call to serve the Archdiocese of Kingston as priests.
Please help to inspire men who are called to a priestly vocation to generously answer Your call
and participate in the fullness that You have planned for them.
Grant them courage and vision to serve Your people. Raise up worthy ministers for Your altars
and ardent but gentle servants of the Gospel.
We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Eternal High Priest.
Amen.

Fr. Jan Kusyk
Director of Vocations

66 Church St.,
Brockville, ON K6V 3X6
613-259-2155

Mr. Jude Thusiar

I was born in North York in the GTA. I moved around the GTA quite a bit, hitting Scarborough, Pickering, North York, and Mississauga. I moved to Kingston, to study Mechanical Engineering at Queen's. Once I completed my degree I worked as a contract engineer for a tech start-up here in Kingston. At a young age, I received a call from the Lord in a very humorous way (ask me about it sometime!). That call, stayed in my heart, and I never stopped thinking about it. As I started work as an engineer, I also started seriously discerning the Lord's call! Soon I was certain that the Lord wanted me to further discern the priesthood in the seminary. So with His grace, I applied!

I hope that the seminary will help me to further discern the Lord's will for me and to grow in holiness and mission! I am incredibly excited to see what the Lord has in store for me, He has never disappointed me in the past, and He always promises the best! Please pray for me as I continue discernment on my path to the priesthood.

Verso L'alto!"

Mr. William Danahy

I was born in Chicoutimi, QC into a vibrant family. We moved to Belleville when I was four and have been there ever since. We would go to Mass on Sunday’s and pray before bed, but my faith was not much more than that; I knew He was real, but I didn’t feel like He really cared about me. In turn, the idea of my becoming a priest was not even a question—plus, everyone gets married and only old people are priests, I thought. But those ideas started to change while on a retreat in grade nine. 

While I was in prayer, I had a beautiful experience where I felt as though a warm blanket was covering me and God was watching over me. I felt as though God cared for me, knew me, and loved me; and I wanted to share that with others. That same year, my heart was struck again. My parish priest shared his vocation story during his homily. He explained that he made the decision of becoming a priest in order to lay down his life for the community. While he was speaking, I no longer saw “just an old man”, but a warrior, a leader, a general sacrificing himself for his people. I no longer saw “just an old man”, I saw Christ. I no longer saw the priesthood as something boring and plain, but as something beautiful and attractive. I came to see a more balanced view of both the married life and Holy Orders. 

A couple of years after high school, I had to make a decision about what I wanted to do the upcoming year. After some thought and prayer, I decided on the seminary since I felt like it was the best place for me to answer the questions that I had: “Do I want to be a priest?” And “Is God calling me to be a priest?”. So here I am, “discerning”—as it is called—in the seminary; listening to His Voice, and to where He is leading me. 

I would be grateful for your prayers as I continue through formation for the priesthood.

Mr. Savio Cyril Kocherry

Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever! My name is Savio Cyril Kocherry and I am entering the Propaedeutic (Spiritual) Year at St. Augustine's Seminary for the 2021-22 academic year.
Born in India, my family moved to Canada in 2006 after several years in the Middle East. I graduated from Queen's University with a BScH in 2019 studying Life Sciences.

During my time in Kingston, I got involved with the Catholic Chaplaincy, Newman House, and matured in my faith living at Frassati House, a men's Catholic residence. After graduation, I was employed at the chaplaincy; active in ministry, and formation of students on campus. 

A vocation to the priesthood took root during my University days. With time and prayer, an invitation to receive the gift of the priesthood of Jesus Christ became apparent. It was a gift that I did not merit, nor deserve, but one that God was offering. He chose me, and now I choose to follow Him. 

Please pray for my fellow seminarians & I as we prepare to receive this gift more fully.

Seminarian Prayer Card 2021Priesthood: Is God Calling You?

Deacon Mark Mawson

Director, Office of the Permanent Diaconate

613-548-4461 ext. 116

Deacon Robert Wojcik
Formation Coordinator, Office of the Permanent Diaconate

rwojcik@romancatholic.kingston.on.ca

613-528-4461 ext. 116

 Permanent Diaconate Webpage

The renewal of the permanent diaconate is one of the greatest legacies of the Second Vatican Council.

The service of deacons in the Church is documented from apostolic times. A strong tradition, attested by St. Irenaeus, sees the origin of the diaconate in the institution of the “seven” mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles (6:1-6). Thus, at the initial grade of sacred hierarchy are deacons, whose ministry has always been greatly esteemed in the Church.

St. Paul refers to the deacons and bishops in his letters to the Philippians (Phil 1:1) and also to Timothy (1 Tim 3:8-13). He lists the qualities and virtues they should possess. He underlines that the ministry of deacons is nothing other than the ministry of service of Jesus Christ.

Up to the fifth century, the diaconate flourished in the Church. But after this period, it experienced, for various reasons, a slow decline, which ended in its surviving only as an intermediate stage for candidates preparing for the priesthood.

Restoration of the Diaconate

The restoration of the diaconate came about during the Second Vatican Council. “At the lower level of the hierarchy are deacons, upon whom hands are imposed ‘not unto the priesthood, but unto a ministry of service.’” (Lumen Gentium 29).

The deacon is a member of the clergy and, like the priest, shares in the ministry of the bishop. Historically, the deacon and bishop worked closely together in meeting the spiritual and temporal needs of others. The diaconate is a distinct order that imitates Christ in service to church and society. The diaconate as a permanent ministry was restored by Pope Paul VI, on June 18, 1967, upon the recommendation of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council.  In 1969 the Bishops of Canada initiated the ministry in this country. In 1993 the Archdiocese of Kingston ordained its first permanent deacons.

When Pope Paul VI implemented this decree in his Apostolic letter “motu propio” (on his own initiative), Sacrum Diaconatus Ordinem, he re-established the permanent diaconate in the Latin Church: He wrote the permanent diaconate is “not to be considered as a step towards the priesthood, but by its own character, as indelible, with its particular grace, to enrich all those who are called to it, and could dedicate their time to the ‘mysteries of Christ and His Church,’ in a stable manner.”

Therefore, a deacon is a man, single or married, that is called to be the Sacramental Presence of Christ who serves and, by virtue of the imposition of hands and the Prayer of Consecration, is configured in Christ through the Holy Spirit, with a gift and a permanent promise to participate in a special way in the mission and the grace of Christ, who came “to serve and not to be served.” Christ, throughout the life and service of a deacon, continues to serve His own, touching their lives and responding to their needs as He did during His ministry on earth.

This diakonía, or service, is exercised in the Church in three different ways. Deacons are called to live a threefold ministry of service. This service can be summarized in the following way:

Service to the Word of God

The deacon is called to be a man of deep prayer, becoming familiar with and a living witness to the Word of God in his ministry, among his family and in the workplace. He is to love, preach and teach the Sacred Scriptures from the pulpit and in his daily life.

Service to the Eucharist

Every deacon is called to serve the Sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood by his proper participation at the Liturgy, his love and reverence of the Blessed Sacrament and his willingness to bring the Eucharist to those who are sick and unable to join the community of faith in Sunday worship. Each deacon must also cultivate a profound love and reverence for the sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood. Such a eucharistic spirituality is essential in the ministries described above.
 

Service on behalf of Justice, Charity and Peace

Deacons serve as Christ’s heralds of hope and love to the poor, disabled, needy, lonely, forgotten and society’s outcasts. Through their living witness and service, they promote works of mercy, justice, reconciliation and peace. In this most important aspect of diaconal service, each deacon must strive to challenge fellow believers to address the social needs of the poor (i.e., materially and spiritually poor) and seek to meet them.

If you feel that God is calling you to serve your brothers and sisters through this vocation,
talk to your pastor and call the diocesan Diaconate Formation Office at 613-548-4461 ext. 116.

Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul (SP)
PROVIDENCE MOTHERHOUSE

PO Box 427, 1200 Princess Street, Kingston, ON K7L 4W4
613-544-4525 fax: 531-9805
General Superior: Sr. Sandra Shannon,
SP Assistant Superior: Sr. Frances O’Brien,
SP Councillors: Sr. Gayle Desarmia, SP Sr. Diane Brennen, SP
http://www.providence.ca/

SISTERS OF CHARITY (S.C) - Halifax

Sr. Margaret (Peggy) Malcolm, SC

803 - 523 Portsmouth Avenue Kingston, ON K7M 7H6

613-544-0484

http://www.schalifax.ca/



 

RELIGIOUS HOSPITALLERS OF ST. JOSEPH (RHSJ)

PROVIDENCE MOTHERHOUSE

Box 427, 1200 Princess Street Kingston, ON K7L 4W4
613-544-4525
Local Superior: Sr. Patricia Cuddihy, RHSJ 
Assistant Superior: Sr. Evelyn Emery, RHSJ 
Councillor: Sr. Rena Doucette, RHSJ 

http://www.rhsj.org/en/home.php


 

CONGREGATION OF NOTRE DAME (CND)

Box 427, 1200 Princess Street Kingston, ON K7L 4W4

613-544-4525 x 221 fax 613-531-9805
Coordinators:
Sr. Patricia Arsenault, CND 
Sr. Rosemary Shannon, CND http://cnd-m.org/en/home/