A native of Sri Lanka, where he was born in Kurunegala on Oct. 27, 1945, he is a son of the late Charles and Agnes (Tissera) Mendis; he has three sisters: Calista Mendis, Florida Perera, and Winifred Mendis. In addition to his parents, his two brothers, Justin and Simon, are also deceased.

Father Linus as he is called, surely must have the longest legal name of all the priests of the archdiocese -- Balapu Waduge Tudor Aloysius Linus Mendis.

He was raised in Sri Lanka and educated in its schools and at the Oblate Seminary in Kany, Sri Lanka. Bishop Leo Nanayakkara, OSB, the first bishop of the Diocese of Badulla, ordained him to the diaconate on Dec. 7, 1971, and to the priesthood at St. Mary Cathedral, Badulla, on Oct. 11, 1973.

He arrived in the archdiocese in 1990, having previously served in Sri Lanka.

From his 1990 arrival to his Feb. 28, 2014, incardination into the archdiocese, and in the years since, he has served in parishes across the archdiocese as parochial vicar, administrator, or senior vicar.

His assignments prior to his incardination include St. Joseph, Somerville (1990-1993); St. Joseph, Malden (2008-2009); Our Lady of the Assumption, Lynnfield (2009-2013); and Holy Family, Gloucester (2013-2014).

Following his 2014 incardination, he served at St. Dorothy of Cappadocia and St. Thomas of Villanova, both in Wilmington (2014-2015); Incarnation of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Melrose (2015); St. Thomas the Apostle, Millis (2015-2020); and St. Joseph, Medway (2020-2024).

On June 1, 2024, Cardinal O'Malley granted him senior priest/retirement status. Father Linus will be living as a senior priest in residence at St. Jude Rectory, Norfolk.

In his several assignments in the archdiocese, he has been welcomed by the parishioners for his extreme kindness and his ready and generous availability for them.