Florida Catholic | Priests Will Be Honored At Chrism Mass

Priests will be honored at chrism Mass

DEBRA TOMASELLI | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 03.14.08

Celebrating 40 Years

Five priests in the Diocese of Orlando are celebrating 40 years of priesthood this year and will be noted at the chrism Mass March 19. They are: Redemptorist Father Francis Browne, pastor, Sacred Heart Parish, New Smyrna Beach; Father Paul Henry, pastor, St. John Vianney Parish, Orlando; Father Peter Henry, pastor, St. Ann Parish, DeBary; Father Tito Nel Rojas, parochial vicar, All Souls Parish, Sanford; and Father Richard Walsh, pastor, St. Margaret Mary Parish, Winter Park.

ORLANDO | Seven priests in the Orlando Diocese celebrating 50th and 25th jubilee years will be honored at the chrism Mass Wednesday, March 19, at the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe here. All the priests of the diocese will join Bishop Thomas Wenski in celebration of the Mass and will renew their priestly commitments. Bishop Wenski will bless the oils to be used for sacraments in the diocese throughout the year. Mass will begin at 11 a.m. and is open to the public.

FATHER FELIX BAÑOS

Born: Feb. 6, 1935, Valladolid, Spain

Ordained: June 22, 1958, in Madrid, Spain, for the Diocese of Palencia, Spain, by Bishop Rafael Gonzalez Maralejo, professor of moral theology in Madrid.

Father Baños entered the seminary, Seminario Diocesano de Palencia, at age 11. He completed his theological studies at Seminario Teologico Hispano-Americano in Madrid.

In March 1961, after having served in the Diocese of Palencia, Father Baños arrived in Florida. He became associate pastor of the Cathedral of St. James in Orlando, Our Lady of Lourdes in Melbourne and, in 1967, was administrator of St. Madeleine Sophie in High Springs, while serving as chaplain of Spanish students at the University of Florida in Gainesville. In 1968, Father Baños returned to Our Lady of Lourdes in Melbourne until 1971, when he became the first pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Mount Dora. In 1976, he became pastor of Orlando’s then-newest church, St. Joseph, arriving in time for the dedication. He was pastor of Holy Spirit Parish in Lake Wales from 1984 until his retirement in 2000.

His name, Felix, means happy and fortunate, and he feels both.

“Christ promised to be with us always until the end of time,” he said. “Keep that in mind and you are never alone.”

He assists at St. Joseph Parish in Lakeland and Holy Spirit Parish in Lake Wales.

FATHER DAVID PAGE

Born: June 10, 1932, Galway, Ireland

Ordained: June 8, 1958, at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Kilkenny, Ireland, for the Diocese of St. Augustine

Father Page attended Mungret College in Limerick, and completed his theological studies at St. Keiran’s College, Kilkenny, Ireland. After he was ordained, Father Page came to Florida.

St. Petersburg was his first stop, where he served as assistant pastor of St. John Parish and taught at Bishop Barry High School. The following year, he transferred to Christ the King Parish and Bishop Kenny High School in Jacksonville.

In 1962, he earned a master’s degree in U.S. history at The Catholic University of America in Washington before becoming vice president of Father Lopez High School in Daytona Beach. From there, Father Page founded Epiphany Parish in Port Orange, where he was pastor until 1966. In addition to serving at St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Altamonte Springs, the Cathedral of St. James in Orlando and finally Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Indialantic, Father Page was also executive editor of the Florida Catholic from 1965-1990. He became pastor of Holy Name of Jesus Parish in 1987, where he remains today.

Father Page’s priesthood, which includes Vatican II changes and the building of four churches under his leadership, has given him an appreciation of laity. “We can’t do it without the Lord and the people’s help,” he said.

FATHER THOMAS JOSEPH CONNERY

Born: Nov. 20, 1954, Queens, N.Y.

Ordained: May 21, 1983, Columbus, Ohio, by Bishop James A. Griffin

Father Connery earned his bachelor’s degree at Don Bosco College in Newton, N.J., and a master of divinity at Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus.

He began his priesthood at St. John Bosco Parish in Marrero, La., then taught at nearby Archbishop Shaw High School from 1984-1986. The following year he relocated to Florida, where he became associate pastor at Queen of Peace Parish in New Port Richey, serving until 1990, then at Prince of Peace in Ormond Beach for three years.

He earned a master’s degree in education at the University of South Florida in 1994 and a doctorate in counseling from the University of Florida in Gainesville in 2002. “You grow more through different experiences,” he said.

He returned to education, this time at Father Lopez High School in Daytona Beach from 1994-1998, before becoming associate pastor of Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Indialantic. Since 2003, he has served as pastor of St. Peter Parish in DeLand.

“People are looking for life,” he said. “They want the joy and energy of following the Lord, doing his work.” The thought he carries with him originates in John 10:10. “‘I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.’ That’s my prayer.”

FATHER BENEDICT ANDRZEJ JURKIEWICZ

(Discalced Carmelites)

Born: July 20, 1957, Siemianowice, Silesia, Poland

Ordained: June 11, 1983, by Bishop Julian Groblicki in Krakow, Poland

Father Jurkiewicz attended Carmelite Seminary in Krakow, Poland, and earned his master of theology degree at Catholic University of Lublin, Poland.

After ordination, Father Jurkiewicz served as catechist in Krakow for a year, then became vice principal and prefect of students at Minor Carmelite Seminary at Wadowice, Poland, until 1990. He became the superior of the Carmelite Monastery in Lodz, Poland, and in 1992 came to the Carmelite Monastery in Munster, Ind. Nearly six months later, he was asked to help minister to the Polish congregations in Florida. Assigned to the Carmelite Community in Flagler County, he began celebrating Polish Masses in the Diocese of Orlando in 1993.

In 2002, he was asked to commute weekly to Orlando to celebrate Polish Mass. He thought the assignment would last two or three months, but he made the 100-mile trek each weekend for two years.

“When there is no place to celebrate the Mass in a particular language, then it becomes like missionary work,” he said. “It’s not exactly like Africa, but the work of a priest is missionary work.”

Finally, in 2004, he moved to Orlando when he was named parochial vicar of St. Joseph Parish, where he remains today. But it didn’t end his missionary zeal. In addition to his responsibilities at St. Joseph, Father Jurkiewicz travels to All Souls Parish in Sanford each weekend, where he celebrates the Latin Tridentine Mass.

FATHER NICHOLAS JOHN O’BRIEN

Born: April 17, 1956, Cleveland

Ordained: Sept. 17, 1983, at St. Martin of Tours, Cleveland, by Bishop A. Edward Pevec

Father O’Brien attended Sts. Peter and Paul High School Seminary in Newark, Ohio, run by the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions and Maryglade Seminary at the University of Detroit. In 1983, he completed studies at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.

After ordination, Father O’Brien served as director of vocations for the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions in Fraser, Mich., and, later, in Newark, Ohio, where he returned to teach at Sts. Peter and Paul High School Seminary.

But the experience that shaped his priesthood occurred during a mission trip to New Guinea, an island nation north of Australia, in 1986. “I thought I would change the lives of those I helped,” he said, “but I discovered that the faith of the people was much stronger than mine.”

Father O’Brien returned, focused on becoming a diocesan priest and sending others on missions. In 1990, he became parochial vicar at Blessed Trinity Parish in Ocala, then Resurrection Parish in Lakeland, and St. Paul Parish in Leesburg. Through the years, he established mission teams that traveled to Mexico, the Appalachian region of the United States and the Dominican Republic.

He is pastor of St. Anthony Parish in Lakeland.

Father O’Brien believes we are here to serve others. “It’s stewardship,” he said. “You give to God and he gives back to you.”

FATHER BRIAN SHERIDAN

(La Salette Fathers)

Born: Oct. 8, 1954, Hartford, Conn.

Ordained: May 28, 1983, in Ipswich, Mass., by Bishop Alfred Hughes

Father Sheridan earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and history from Merrimack College in North Andover, Mass., before attending La Salette Novitiate in Altamont, N.Y., and Washington Theological Union in Silver Spring, Md., where he graduated with a master’s degree in theology.

“My experience of Eucharist is always a sense of miracle,” said Father Sheridan. “I love every opportunity to celebrate Mass.”

His ministry began at St. Ann Catholic Church in Marietta, Ga., before he traveled to Bolivia in 1989 with the Maryknoll Language School, then served in Argentina. Four years later, he returned to the United States, where he became mission fundraiser in Hartford for six years.

He served a short stint as shrine director of Our Lady of La Salette in Altamont, N.Y., before being asked to serve as pastor of Good Shepherd Parish in Orlando, with its bilingual needs. He might not have accepted the invitation, had it not been for a border of Disney characters surrounding the room he was in and the Mickey Mouse telephone he was using while talking to the superior of his religious order.

He became pastor of Good Shepherd Parish in 1997, where he remains today. “This is a superb place to meet Christ and serve Christ,” he said. “It’s alive.”

FATHER ANDRZEJ (ANDREW) WOJTAN

Born: Dec. 3, 1954, Warsaw, Poland

Ordained: May 29, 1983, for Archdiocese of Warsaw, Poland, by Cardinal Joseph Glemp

Father Wojtan grew up in Poland, where almost everyone was Catholic. While studying engineering in Germany, he was surprised by the lack of Catholic churches. Maybe they have no priests, he thought, and, suddenly, he considered the vocation. After earning a master’s degree in engineering at the University of Germany in 1978, he completed a master’s degree in moral theology from the Archdiocesan Seminary of Warsaw.

Father Wojtan served locally until 1987 when, after Pope John Paul II’s visit to Poland, he volunteered to assist where needed. He was chosen to go Zambia, Africa, where he served the Diocese of Mbala for eight years. After a short stint in Germany, he was reassigned to South Africa, and served there until 2003, when health issues began to plague him. He returned to Poland, serving the Pontifical Mission Societies. While there, he heard that the Diocese of Orlando needed priests.

Before he could even locate it on a map, Father Wojtan found himself headed for St. Isaac Jogues Parish in Orlando in 2004, and then, in 2006, the Cathedral of St. James. In 2008, he became parochial administrator of Holy Spirit Parish in Mims, where he remains today.

His vocation is grounded in Christ’s encouragement to “Feed my sheep” (Jn 21:17). “Despite my own shortcomings,” Father Wojtan said, “God still wants to use me and sends me to preach.”

Return to Diocese of Orlando Front Page

Priests will be honored at chrism Mass

Celebrating 40 Years

Other Stories