To Be, Or Not To Be: A Seminarian

A blog by the Diocese of Brooklyn

 

Diaconate Ordination

Posted by Fr. Gelfant on Dec 12, 2009 at 8:11 pm | Recent News
On December 8th, 2009, the Patronal Feast of our Diocese, the Immaculate Conception, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio ordained two men to the Diaconate. Alonzo Cox and Nixon Jean-Francois will have about 6 months of serving the church of Brooklyn as deacons until their ordination at the end of June 2010 to the priesthood.
The celebration was glorious, not because of the careful planning of liturgists or music directors, instead it re-echoed the joy of the Church that anytime the bishop ordains another seminarian, we thank God for His calling more faithful leaders to the Church. The excitement was present then and now as the diocese waits for June 26, 2010.  Deacon Michael Bruno, Deacon Alonzo Cox and Deacon Nixon Jean-Francois are anticipated to be ordained and the Diocese of Brooklyn, we pray, will have 3 new priests.
Many priests of the Diocese of Brooklyn were present to pray the Mass along with our Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, the ordaining bishop who was  joined by Bishop Octavio Cisneros and Bishop Guy Sansariq, Auxiliaries to the Bishop of Brooklyn. Many of the Vicars of the Diocese were also present along with the seminarians from both Cathedral Seminary Residence and the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception.
The NET, our diocesan TV station was on scene to report and filed the following story.

On December 8th, 2009, the Patronal Feast of our Diocese, the Immaculate Conception, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio ordained two men to the Diaconate. Alonzo Cox and Nixon Jean-Francois will have about 6 months of serving the church of Brooklyn as deacons until their ordination at the end of June 2010 to the priesthood.

The celebration was glorious, not because of the careful planning of liturgists or music directors, instead it re-echoed the joy of the Church that anytime the bishop ordains another seminarian, we thank God for His calling more faithful leaders to the Church. The excitement was present then and now as the diocese waits for June 26, 2010.  Deacon Michael Bruno, Deacon Alonzo Cox and Deacon Nixon Jean-Francois are anticipated to be ordained and the Diocese of Brooklyn, we pray, will have 3 new priests.

Many priests of the Diocese of Brooklyn were present to pray the Mass along with our Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, the ordaining bishop who was  joined by Bishop Octavio Cisneros and Bishop Guy Sansariq, Auxiliaries to the Bishop of Brooklyn. Many of the Vicars of the Diocese were also present along with the seminarians from both Cathedral Seminary Residence and the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception.

The NET, our diocesan TV station was on scene to report and filed the following story.

 

(T-minus 2.5 Hours) Ordination Day

Posted by Fr. Gelfant on Dec 8, 2009 at 5:05 am | Other Thoughts

As we celebrate the Patronal Feast of our Diocese and Country, traditionally, December 8th has also been the day when men preparing for Priesthood Ordination are ordained to the Order of Deacons. As I am sure the seminarians are busy preparing for this great feast at the Seminary, we also remember Alonzo Cox and Nixon Francois who will be ordained at 10:30am this morning.

I presume these two men were joined by their fellow seminarians in a vigil of prayer last night as they contemplate what is about to happen. Their entrance into the clerical state can invoke many emotions into the person about to be ordained.

I recall my own experience, almost 5 years ago. I was ordained on December 19th – but it was the night before that was quite interesting. I cannot say I was nervous, however, there was something strange going on in my head. I thought I was hiding it well, but the two priests I was living with at Holy Name of Jesus Church in Prospect Park, might have sensed something. They kept on me the whole evening…are you ok? Are you excited? Get ready, the end is near (joking around of course – Fr. Farrell was always good for a laugh). I suppose what gave away my nervous excitement that evening before was the fact that after I prayed my heart out…I decide to re-tile the bathroom floor in my room. I know it sounds strange, but what else was I suppose to do? So off to Home Depot I went, bought my floor tiles, and began my project that lasted a couple of hours. It worked. I was wiped out and fell right to sleep ready to take on the world that next morning.

While we know not what Alonzo and Nixon are up to at this moment, the one gift we can give to them right now is our prayers. As they are flooded with emotions, thoughts, happiness and a bit of sadness too…we offer them our prayers of support and joy.  <<We will try and get some pictures up later today>>

 

The Rejected Cornerstone

Posted by Evans Julce on Dec 4, 2009 at 9:42 am | Uncategorized

Scripture refers to Jesus as the cornerstone of the Church, that crucial piece of the construction without which the whole structure cannot properly take shape.

It’s been a couple of weeks since I wrote about time and its proper use. It’s so ironic then that I was so swamped with activities during the interim.

I had a presentation and two papers due this week. I nailed the presentation on the head on Monday. On the papers, I’ve received a stay of execution from both professors.

I can’t get out from under these papers. It’s been a problem since highschool. I had it diagnosed in college by a couple of professor who labeled me a perfectionist. I thought perfectionist got everything done well.

They informed me, though, that perfectionists actually get nothing done because the task at hand never seems quite done. It’s a bit different from procrastination which thinks the job will get itself done.

Thus instead of handing in a B+ paper when it’s due, I hand in one worth an A+ one week later. The result: a C+.

Imagine a kid who got all wound up with anxiety when he wanted to play with his Lego set. He’d enjoy himself…if only he had enough pieces for the front foyer.

You’d feel like yelling “just build a regualr castle, Johnny”. But he’s paralyzed, unable to start until he’s planned the Swedish baths in the North wing of the structure.

But it’s not essential. Christ is essential. Christ keeps the castle standing. His absence makes it crumble.

May Our Lady and her “Fiat”– her quick acceptance of God’s offer, her immediate response to allow Christ to structure her– allow me to complete these last few days of the semester with ease.

Let’s get it done, Johnny. And may Christ be the center.