Ordination Marks Historic Moment For The Diocese Of Evansville

We celebrate yet another historic moment in the life of this local Church known as the

Diocese of Evansville.  It seems only fitting that the ordination of our first Latino priest should

take place on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas.  While this

occasion marks a particularly joyful chord among our Latino brothers and sisters, its impact is

felt throughout the twelve counties of southwest Indiana comprising our Diocese.  Today, we are

not merely ordaining a warm body.  Our brother, Homero, is a man of incredible gifts and talent.  

He is a man of prayer, discernment, spiritual depth and a pastoral heart.  No doubt, he will be in

great demand.  That is why we must be careful not to overwhelm, scare or burn him out.

    Regretfully, Homero’s immediate family cannot be here with us to witness the ordination

of their son and brother.  In a sense, this is a poverty of spirit that Homero must bear.  Our

gathering here, however, includes our pledge to embrace him as one of our own.  There are

others here who have come to know Homero along his way to us.  Before coming to us, Homero

spent extensive time in Chicago and San Antonio, where he had previously discerned the call to

Holy Orders.  It is our belief that he has come to us by the grace of the Holy Spirit.  Of course,

on this Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, we do not want to take for granted the intercession of

our Blessed Mother Mary.  

    We are grateful for those who have been a part of Homero’s formation, leading up to this

point.  In addition to his family, we want to acknowledge the many friends in Mexico, San

Antonio, Chicago and elsewhere, who have had an impact on his life and discernment.  In more

recent times, and more locally, we take this opportunity to express deepest appreciation to the

good people of Holy Rosary Parish and the entire Latino community throughout the Diocese who

have become his surrogate family here among us.  

    We do well to consider the role of discernment in the life of the priest, the diocese, the

Church.  In his World Youth Day address to Polish Jesuit seminarians, in Krakow, in July of this

year, Pope Francis stressed how essential the art of discernment is in the life and ministry of

priests.  Warning them to avoid locking in to a black and white approach to the world, the Holy

Father pointed to the reality of living with a sense of gray in relation to human beings, culture,

society and life.  Of course, this is not to encourage relativism or deny moral truths.  Authentic

discernment must be rooted in prayer, scripture, study and understanding.  It requires the

cultivation of certain virtues; courage, boldness, humility, generosity, openness and patience.  

The promises of prayer, especially celebrating Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours, celibacy and

obedience, when understood and lived well, are meant to enhance the ongoing process of

discernment in the life of the priest.  The Holy Father stressed the need to look people in the eye

and be direct with the truth, always in charity.  Noting the wisdom of discernment that permeates

the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises, Pope Francis added; “The Church today needs to grow in the

ability of spiritual discernment…And priests above all need it for their ministry…Spiritual

direction is not solely a priestly charism, but also lay, it is true.”  The priest as spiritual leader, I

believe, must tend to this great need for himself and those entrusted to his pastoral care.  Of

course, to remain authentic and properly grounded, all discernment relies upon the principles of

Catholic teaching as found in the Deposit of Faith; namely, Scripture and Tradition.  

    On this Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, we give thanks for the many ways in which

God breaks through and transforms the human condition.  Our Lady, pregnant with the Living

Word of God, appeared to St. Juan Diego and commissioned him with a profound message that

would transform an entire people, culture and, eventually, a continent.  It is that One with whom

Mary was pregnant, Jesus Christ, that the priest must proclaim in Word and Sacrament, in

ministry and service.  The priest, like St. Juan Diego, may claim nothing as his own.  The priest

is merely the privileged vessel through which the Lord Jesus Christ, our Great High Priest,

makes all the difference.  Thus, the priest does well to remain ever close to the Virgin Mary,

seeking her intercession and inspiration in his life of prayer, adoration and discernment.  

    Deacon Homero, confident in your zeal for souls, your fidelity to the Church, your

capacity for discernment and your readiness to embrace the life and ministry of ordained

priesthood, we call you forth to become one with the presbyterate serving both the local and

universal Church.  Our local church is enriched by your spirit of missionary discipleship, coming

to us from another country and embodying within you the many cultural gifts of your heritage.

We entrust you to the special protection of Our Lady of Guadalupe, keeping in mind the words

of St. Teresa of Calcutta; “We come to Jesus through Mary.”  Remember that a priest is ordained

to be a man for others, not merely for his own purposes.  You represent something more than

yourself or even an ethnic group.  Your concern must be for all those entrusted to your care, both

Catholic and non-Catholic, never severing the Head, Jesus Christ, from His Body, the Church, in

either word or deed.  Like Mary, you must seek always to embrace the will of one greater than

yourself and dare to go beyond your comfort zone to accompany others in and through Jesus

Christ toward salvation.  Most especially, keep in mind that you are not alone.  We pledge our

prayer, support and affection for you.  You are becoming part of a fraternity, a band of brothers

as a valued member of our presbyterate.  May your spirit always rejoice in the greatness of the

Lord with you.