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Holy Cross Fathers and Brothers: Largest ordination class in recent memory
By Father James T. Gallagher, CSC
Posted: 5/29/2015
Father Matthew Fase, CSC, Father David Halm, CSC, Father Timothy Mouton, CSC, Father Stephen Chase Pepper, CSC, Father Daniel Ponisciak, CSC, and Father Christopher Rehagen, CSC, were ordained to the priesthood on April 11, 2015, at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on the campus of the University of Notre Dame. The Most Rev. Daniel R. Jenky, CSC, bishop of Peoria, was the ordaining bishop. Photo courtesy/Barbara Johnston/University of Notre Dame
Father Thomas J. O'Hara, CSC, provincial superior of the United States Province of Priests and Brothers, presented the six deacons for ordination during the afternoon. Mass, and at the Celebration of Lucernarium on Friday prior to ordination, he shared these words with the ordinandi in the presence of their family, friends, and fellow priests and brothers: "You will have the deep privilege to help people see our God more clearly in their lives as you administer the sacraments ... it is surely an awesome privilege ... never lose that sense of awe at any point in your lives of having the privilege of celebrating the Sacraments and presiding at the Eucharist. God loved you from the moment He created you ... and all the days that lie ahead in your lives."
What exactly will the future look like for these six young men ordained as Holy Cross priests? No one is for certain, but Father Christopher Rehagen, CSC, shared this sentiment with his confreres before ordination: "I look forward to the unknown. Who knows what the Congregation of Holy Cross will look like in 50 years, but I look forward to finding out."
The Congregation of Holy Cross was founded in 1837 by Father Basil Moreau, CSC, and has served the Catholic Church for more than 175 years. Today, there are approximately 1,200 Holy Cross religious working to educate both the hearts and minds of believers of Jesus Christ in 16 countries and on five continents.
Blessed Moreau's vision (Moreau was beatified Sept. 15, 2007) was to complete and maximize the spiritual vigor of Holy Cross -- to give it "one heart, one soul" -- by modeling it after the Holy Family.
The Congregation of Holy Cross, United States Province of Priests and Brothers, which arrived in the Diocese of Fall River with the founding of Holy Cross Parish in South Easton, Mass., is a community made up of approximately 500 priests, brothers, and seminarians and is headquartered in Notre Dame, Ind. The United States Province fulfills Blessed Basil's vision in its education, parish and mission settings around the world.
Mission
We are an apostolic, Roman Catholic community of priests and brothers, who with zeal and a preferential option for the poor, work to make God known, loved and served in our education, parish and mission communities across the United States, and around the world.
To learn more about Holy Cross, visit www.holycrossusa.org.
To learn more about discerning a call to religious life, please visit www.holycrossvocations.org.
Father James T. Gallagher, CSC is Director of Vocations for the Congregation of Holy Cross, United States Province of Priests and Brothers. Father Gallagher has served as Director of the Office of Vocations since 2009. A native of South Bend, Ind., he earned a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering ('98) and M.Div. ('06) from the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind.
