News/Events

May 21, 2008 - Cardinal O'Malley To Ordain Seven Priests

(Brighton, MA) ... Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley will ordain seven men to the priesthood this Saturday, May 24, 2008 at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, 1400 Washington Street, Boston. The ordination Mass begins at 9:00 A.M.

Cardinal Seán said, "The Ordination of these seven men to the priesthood is a joyous moment for our Church. In this bicentennial year we are blessed by their commitment and we pray that more people are inspired by them to join us in service to the Lord and the Church."

CatholicTV® will broadcast the entire Mass live from the Cathedral beginning at 9:00 A.M. Fr. Robert Reed, Director of CatholicTV®, will be providing commentary during the ordination for viewers. Please check with your local cable provider for the CatholicTV® channel in your area or go to www.catholictv.org for more information.

Following are the candidates for ordination. The Pilot, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Boston, will feature profiles of all the candidates in this week's edition (Friday, May 23).

Rev. Joseph G. Arsenault is the only child of the late Joseph and Elizabeth (Porter) Arsenault. His home parish is St. Michael in Swansea. He attended local parish and public schools and graduated from Swansea's Case High School. He obtained his bachelor's degree at Boston College in 1969 and went on to obtain a master's degree specializing in psychology from Assumption College in Worcester. He has been assisting at St. Michael Parish, North Andover during his deacon year while finishing his theological studies at Blessed John XXIII National Seminary in Weston. Father Arsenault will celebrate his First Mass at 2:00 p.m. on May 25 at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Braintree; the parish's pastor, Father Kevin Sepe, will be the homilist.

Rev. Tamiru F. Atraga is one of the 11 children of Tsiege Atraga and her late husband Francis. He is originally from Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Gubre in the southern part of Ethiopia. He attended local schools in Gubre before attending minor (high school) seminary in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa. He attended the Vincentian College seminary, also in the national capital of his native land. As part of his final preparation for the ordination, he has been a deacon at St. Ann Parish in Neponset. He will be an alumnus of St. John's Seminary. Father Atraga will celebrate his First Mass in St. Ann Church, Dorchester at 2:30 p.m. on May 25. The homilist will be Msgr. Paul Russell, a priest of the Archdiocese who is assigned to the diplomatic service of the Holy See as Charge d'affairs in the Nunciature in Taiwan, and once served at the Apostolic Nunciature in Addis Ababa.

Rev. Mark D. Barr of St. Patrick Parish in Natick is one of the three children of Elynore (Pettigrew) Barr and the late Thomas Barr. He has one brother and one sister. He grew up in Wayland and attended local public schools and graduated from Wayland High School. His undergraduate education was at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, while his seminary formation was at St. John's Seminary in Brighton. During his final year of preparation for ordination he has been serving as deacon at St. Monica Parish, Methuen. Father Barr will celebrate his first Mass at St. Patrick Church in Natick on May 25 at 2:00 p.m. Father Romanus Cessario, OP, of the seminary faculty, will be the homilist.

Rev. William P. Lohan is one the six children of Thomas and Mary (Coughlin) of St. Theresa of Avila Parish in Boston's West Roxbury neighborhood. He is an alumnus of the parish's grammar school, Boston Latin School and Providence College. During his deacon year he has been assisting at St. Rose of Lima Parish in Chelsea while finishing his studies at St. John's Seminary in Brighton. Father Lohan will celebrate his first Mass at noon on May 25 at St. Theresa of Avila Church, West Roxbury. Father Vincent Daily, recently named pastor of St. Gregory, Dorchester, will be the homilist.

Rev. Arthur T. MacKay, a native of St. Ignatius Loyola Parish in Chestnut Hill, is the son of the late Charles and Marjorie (Sullivan) MacKay. He has one sister. He attended Mount Alvernia School, Catholic Memorial High School in West Roxbury and Boston College. He has been a seminarian at Blessed John XXIII Seminary in Weston, and has served as a deacon at St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Hanson. He will be the homilist at his first Mass to be celebrated at St. Joseph the Worker on May 25 at 11:00 a.m.

Rev. Joseph M. Mazzone is one of the four sons of Theresa (Rocha) Mazzone and the late Remo Mazzone of Cumberland, Rhode Island. He attended local public schools, graduated from Cumberland High School and went on to attend the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. During his seminary formation at Blessed John XXIII in Weston, he completed his deacon assignment at St. John the Evangelist in Winthrop. Father Mazzone will celebrate his first Mass, at which he will be the homilist, on May 25 at 11:30 a.m. in St. Joan of Arc Church, Cumberland, Rhode Island.

Rev. Paul V. Sullivan is one of the eight children of Daniel and Lois (MacVarish) Sullivan of Chelmsford. One of Father Sullivan's brothers is also a priest of the Archdiocese, Father John Sullivan pastor of St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish, Melrose. He also has an uncle, Father Lawrence Sullivan, who is a senior priest of the Archdiocese living in Peabody. He grew up in Cheshire, Connecticut and attended local public schools. After graduating from Cheshire High School, he attended Magdalen College in Warner, N.H. While completing seminary studies at Blessed John XXIII Seminary, he has been a deacon at St. Bridget Parish in Framingham. Father Sullivan will celebrate his first Mass at St. Bridget Church in Framingham on May 25 at 12 noon.

About the Archdiocese of Boston:
The Archdiocese of Boston was founded on April 8, 1808 and was elevated to Archdiocese in 1875. Currently serving the needs of approximately 2 million Catholics, the Archdiocese of Boston is an ethnically diverse and spiritually enriching faith community consisting of 295 parishes, across 144 communities, educating approximately 48,000 students in its Catholic schools and 156, 000 in religious education classes each year, ministering to the needs of more than one million patients annually in its hospitals and 200,000 individuals through its social service outreach. Mass is celebrated in nearly twenty different languages each week. For more information, please visit www.rcab.org.

MEDIA SHOULD SET UP TO THE LEFT OF THE ALTAR ON THE UNION PARK STREET SIDE OF THE CATHEDRAL MEDIA SHOULD REFRAIN FROM APPROACHING THE ALTAR DURING THE CELEBRATION. THANK YOU.

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