Before anything else, I must say with gratitude that it is only by God’s providence that I am here in Houston today, blessed with this great opportunity to be a part of the All Saints Parish community. I grew up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the oldest of two boys—my younger brother of five years, James, is also a seminarian for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.  

I believe I first felt a call to the priesthood when I was about six or seven years old. Attending mass with my family on Sundays and experiencing the church community at a young age, I always looked up to and admired our parish priest, wanting to be an altar server and wanting to be like him: leading the parish in prayer and doing good in the community. Over the years, this calling remained with me but developed as I matured. As I went through my junior high and high school years, I knew that I felt called to work with people, to be a force for good in their lives, and I continued to carry my faith with me. Admittedly, though I still felt the calling at the time of graduating high school, I did not feel ready to answer the call and enter the seminary. Instead, I attended St. Mary’s University in Calgary, where I completed my undergraduate degree in English literature. My plan was to go on to become a teacher after that. However, during the last year of my program there, I felt strongly that I needed to give serious consideration to the calling that I had put on the back burner for a while.  

In February of 2017, I attended a Come and See weekend in Edmonton, Alberta, to experience the seminary life and community. This experience really answered some of the questions I had about seminary and allowed me to more seriously consider my call to the priesthood. By March, after further prayer and discernment, I decided to apply and enter seminary in the fall of 2017. I completed four years at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Edmonton before taking a year away from the seminary in 2021-22 for further discernment.  

After this year away, I still felt called to continue my journey toward the priesthood, and I applied to join the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston to continue my studies at St. Mary’s Seminary. The past six months especially have been a whirlwind as I was engaged in the process of application to the Archdiocese and the seminary here in Houston and also continuing to discern God’s will for my life—not only if it is His will that I become a priest, but where I am to serve Him.  

As I said at the beginning, I cannot help but see God’s providence in everything that has transpired in my life to this point. I could never have predicted where my journey toward priesthood would take me, but I am confident in God’s plan and His work in my life. More than anything, I’m excited to be here in Houston, specifically here at All Saints Parish, beginning a new chapter in my seminary formation. I look forward to getting to know the parish community and offering whatever I can to serve God and His Church.

Coming to All Saint's Parish this week, the first week of Lent, the first thing you probably noticed was all of the purple veils covering the sacred icons and statues in the church. While it may seem strange to cover our sacred images during the Lenten season, a time when we are called to focus on God more than ever, there is good reason for the tradition. The veiling of sacred images is meant to stir in us a longing for the sacred, a desire to see those divine images which are only mere reminders of the heavenly glory to which we are all called, God's heavenly kingdom.

During the season of Lent, we are called, each in a personal way, to give something up as a form of penance. This often includes giving up our favorite foods, abstaining from meat on Fridays, fasting from our electronic devices and TVs, or making a commitment to avoid certain vices. But Lent is not only about what we don't eat or what we don't do, it is also a season in which we are called to go the extra mile, to do something more for God and our neighbor. This might include extra time for prayer or making an effort t do something good for someone, especially someone we might not consider a close friend.

In the weeks leading up to Lent, the Gospel readings prepare us for this season. In last Sunday's Gospel, for example, Jesus teaches us to love our enemies as well as our friends: "For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same?" Mt. 5:46

On the fourth Sunday of ordinary time, a few weeks back, we heard the Beatitudes: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven..." Mt. 5:3 The Beatitudes, in particular, provide us with a sort of road map to heaven, teaching us how we ought to live our lives so that we all might one day see God's heavenly kingdom.

During this time of Lent, when we are called to penance and fasting, let us feast on the word of God and live the Gospel message. While we abstain from those temporal goods that we enjoy here on earth –the beautiful art in the church or our favorite foods –, let us listen attentively and fill ourselves with the word of God that nourishes our souls. May the Word of God live in each of us during this Lenten season and lead us to the joy of the resurrection.