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My Unlikely Journey to the Priesthood
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June 3, 2024I often tell people that I am the least likely person to become a priest. When I give my testimony, I tell people that in high school, If I were to write down a list of 100 possible careers I could see myself doing, the priesthood certainly would not have been a remote thought for me.
Growing up, I intensely disliked going to school and going to Church. My mother often found herself having to convince, bargain, bribe and frequently force me to attend CCD for me to receive my sacraments. As I got older, my dislike for all things Church grew. When I entered college, I embraced the typical secular lifestyle of a college student, balancing academics with a job and weekend debauchery.
One day, an old high school friend found me on campus and invited me to a bible study. I thought, “My life is awesome; I don't need to go to some bible study.” After much of his persistence, I finally gave in and went. This bible study became a steppingstone to my “reversion” to the faith. Up to this point, I had never encountered the Bible being explained in such an engaging way, with people who were normal and friendly and eager to bring you in as one of their own.
After about a year in this Bible study, I was challenged by an insight into the real presence of the Eucharist. The Bible study I attended espouses a teaching that sent alarm sirens throughout my soul. I needed to know who was right and what was the truth.
After much reading, researching, and soul-searching, I concluded that I needed to return wholeheartedly to the Church. There was too much evidence, particularly from the Church Fathers, that Christian believers always held that the eucharist is truly the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ. I zealously threw myself back into the faith and consumed large amounts of philosophical and theological content. I thought, “If this is true, nothing else matters.”
About six months later, I found myself trying to teach myself something from Khan Academy on YouTube when I received the most bizarre thought ever: “What is a day in the life of a Catholic priest like?” “That's weird,” I thought. But since I was already on YouTube and could use a little distraction from studying inorganic chemistry, I typed those exact words into the search bar. I watched a video expecting to see a priest sitting down in a church praying all day. However, this video showed something more exciting, but still not enough to get me to “sign up.”
I then left my house and went to work at the health club, where I was a personal trainer. I could not think about anything else but the priesthood for that entire day. I was becoming more and more afraid of what that meant. I already had plans—becoming a physical therapist, traveling the world, having a nice car and owning a big house!
I got home late that night, still unable to shake that thought that had grown and intensified all day. I sat in my room, afraid and unable to sleep. Nothing gave me peace of mind, so I did what I had never done before by myself: I prayed the rosary. Upon finishing the rosary, I experienced a peace I had not experienced in a long time.
It took much more than a single rosary to get me where I am today. I would go on to graduate from college and serve as a missionary in Central America, enter religious life, go on numerous retreats, travel to various countries, and wrestle with God for many years until I finally came to peace with giving God my total, complete and joyful surrender to being His priest. I’m a slow learner, but eventually, I understood what God was doing in my life and how all of my fulfillment would come from Him.
