Transitional Deacons share their vocation stories

I am 28 years old, and I was born the second of nine children to Mark and Teresita Pendleton in Laredo and raised in Benavides. I am grateful to God for my big family and thankful for my parent’s Catholic faith.

I play tennis, spikeball, volleyball and board games. My favorite book is The Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena and anything written by St. Thomas Aquinas.

Like many teenagers, I didn’t appreciate my parent’s faith, nor was I fully committed to the life of a Christian. I wasn’t sure how the Catholic beliefs fit in with my daily life, and I was even less sure why I needed to preserve it to be successful or good —as a man. Still, I continued to attend Mass with my family, and I was an altar server until I graduated high school.

The day finally came when it was time for me to leave Benavides and attend Texas A&M University in Kingsville. I figured I wanted to teach English in high school since I always enjoyed assisting my classmates. Before leaving home, I will never forget my mom’s words: “Raymond, I don’t care if you don’t pack your toothbrush or flunk your classes; I want you to attend Mass every Sunday.” I brushed the words off, but the authority and the care with which she said those words stayed in my memory.

My first Sunday as a college freshman came around, and I did not intend to go to Mass, but I couldn’t forget my mom’s words. I couldn’t handle ignoring those words any longer, and I dressed up and attended Mass at the chapel of St. Thomas Aquinas. My mind was blown. There were many young men and women there, and they participated in the Mass. I immediately recognized and admired their devotion to God. I became used to attending Mass with my family while being one of the very few young people in attendance. I thought faith was irrelevant, but I was wrong.

Two years passed, and I had made myself a second home in the chapel of St. Thomas. I made some good friends there, and I had been attending daily Mass and picked up altar serving again. I fell in love with the Mass and began considering the priesthood as a possible vocation.

Without those words of my mom’s before leaving for college, I don’t believe I would have made it to Mass that Sunday. I would have believed that my parents raised me in a Catholic home just to get through high school. With the help of my friends and priests, my faith was nurtured further. I applied for seminary during my third year of college. Finally, I was accepted into the Diocese of Corpus Christi as a seminarian in the spring semester of 2015.

I was accepted–yes–but the journey was only beginning, as I have completed seven years of priestly formation. I have learned much since 2015, and I have grown to understand more deeply the life of the priest in relation to Christ on the Cross. I hope that I will come to embrace the Cross more dearly as I commit my life to all of you as a future priest. 

I have already begun to look forward to giving up my life for you in my promise of celibacy I made at my diaconate ordination. I know it is mysterious to many: Why would anyone consign themselves to a lonely life? However mysterious or sad it may seem, I see it as a way to unite myself to Christ and, in a special way, to dedicate my life to bring him to you and you to him. 

I have the strong support of my family and many friends, but I ask that you all pray for me. Without spiritual strength, I cannot hope to do a fraction of what Christ calls his priests to accomplish.

 

By Deacon Thomas Swierc

Contributor

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 was born in San Antonio 29 years ago and raised in College Station. Growing up, my immediate and extended family were pretty close-knit, and our life was centered around the Catholic faith. My parents set a great example of what it looks like to make room for Christ in daily life. Whenever we were free from school, my sister and I regularly accompanied our parents during their assigned hours at our parish’s Perpetual Adoration chapel. 

I began to seriously discern the priesthood when I was a freshman studying mathematics in a junior college. Perhaps this realization stemmed from a seed planted in high school when I saw the Grassroots Films production, “Fishers of Men,” which illustrated fulfillment found in choosing a priestly vocation. 

I met with the Vocation Director of the Diocese of Austin. He politely told me that I should spend more time discerning before attempting to enter the seminary to ensure I wanted to enter for the right reasons. After two years in junior college, I transferred to Texas A&M University-Kingsville, where I studied electrical engineering and switched to computer science. I also worked in the IT department on campus and as a residence assistant in a dorm. All the while, I continued to discern and pray. Eventually, through the counsel of the Catholic student chaplain, I finally felt ready to discern within the seminary walls.

While I pursue my vocation at St. Mary Seminary in Houston, there’s still room for my other passions. During my pastoral year, I befriended a stray dog. Being both a lover of dogs and music, I named her after St. Cecilia (the patron of music) and managed to get her and her puppies into a foster home, The Puppy House. In just a few months, they were placed into forever homes. 

I enjoy collecting and listening to vinyl records in my free time. Classic Rock and Roll bands like The Beatles, Tom Petty, and the Heartbreakers are my favorites to listen to —George Harrison from the Beatles is a hero of mine. Making music is fun, too: I play guitar and ukulele, and, since high school, I’ve sung in the church choir. Being a bigger man, people expect me to sing bass (the lowest male singing voice), so it surprises some that I’m a tenor (the highest male singing voice). 

Like many of my generation, I like the Harry Potter novels —much more than the film adaptations. For more serious reading, I particularly enjoy books on the Eucharist. Especially eucharistic miracles and books that explain scripture-based eucharistic theology. I have outdoor hobbies, too, like fishing, camping and canoeing.

Throughout my life, there have been several examples of people who motivated me toward the priesthood. First is Father Lawrence Swartz (born Thomas Swierc), my great-great uncle, a Trappist monk in Gethsemane, Kentucky, for over 76 years. I met him a few times as a child before he died in 2005. Despite being a contemplative monk, he was a humorous man who loved God and everyone he encountered. Then, there was Father Frank Kurzaj, a Polish priest from the Archdiocese of San Antonio. For many years, he’s been a very close friend of our family. He’s a fantastic homilist and a very compassionate man of the people. 

Right before I entered the seminary, I met our own Msgr. Seamus McGowan —who has been a close friend ever since. In the last couple of years of getting to know him better, I came to love his gentle, loving, compassionate and caring spirit —he is the kind of priest I want to be. I am now a Theology IV seminarian for the Diocese of Corpus Christi, and I think my family is excited to see me on this path. They were all smiling and crying (tears of joy) at my diaconate ordination. There’s a possibility that my great-grandmothers would’ve been happier than Jesus Himself about me becoming a priest: I know they frequently prayed very hard for priestly vocations and that there might be one in the family.

Being in seminary has made me grow in several ways. I’m more thoughtful and contemplative than I used to be, and my prayer life is stronger than ever. Though difficult, I’ve learned that the priestly vow of celibacy is a wonderful gift that one must pray to receive and then learn how to live out. Not everyone can do this. Celibacy requires the priest (or deacon) to sacrifice having a wife and family for the Church’s sake and the souls’ salvation. Through my formation, I desire to become a good priest who loves Christ, his Church and his people, who will never stop working to win souls for Christ. Perhaps, someday, I’ll be a college campus minister. But for now, I want to learn to be a good parish priest.