Fr. Christopher Collins, 34,
from Phoenix, has a bachelor’s
in philosophy from the University
of St. Thomas in St. Paul
and a master’s in history from
Saint Louis University. He
taught English and theology at
Marquette High in Milwaukee
and has led priests and seminarians
in 30-day retreats during
summers. He will be working
on the Pine Ridge Indian
Reservation in South Dakota
after ordination. (Wisconsin
Province)
Fr. James Duffy, 40, from
Phillipsburg, New Jersey, has
a BA in biochemistry from the
University of Scranton and an
MD from Georgetown. He did
an internship in internal medicine
at the naval hospital in San
Diego and was a medical officer
in the navy. He has also worked
with the homeless at clinics in
Chicago and Oakland. After
ordination he will work with
the Spanish Catholic Center in
Washington, D.C. (Maryland
Province)
Fr. Charles Frederico, 34,
from Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania,
studied at the Culinary Institute of
America and earned a BS in food
marketing from Saint Joseph’s
University in Philadelphia. He
taught algebra and world cultures
at Scranton Prep, where he also
coached swimming and led service
trips to Mexico. He has directed
retreats and taught English to
Jesuits in Poland. After ordination
he will work in campus ministry
at Loyola College in Baltimore.
(Maryland Province)
Richard VandeVelde, SJ |
Working for Company magazine, as I do, results in being in frequent contact with its editor. The editor is not a bad person, but he can catch you in one of your weaker moments and ask something as innocent as "Why don’t you write about what it has meant for you to be a priest?" His request was genuine; my task is impossible.
I can only echo the words of Lacordaire as I pen these words as an introduction to Company’s annual article introducing the newly ordained Jesuits. Having been in the Jesuits for over 50 years and having been ordained for more than 35, I can only say "O God, my brothers, what a life awaits you if you accept it!"
My own training in the Jesuits was clearly aimed at academic ends—higher studies in the abstruse discipline of mathematics. Ordination was followed by an assignment to a university to teach mathematics. There and then the expected ended and the unanticipated began. Friends and strangers alike approach you, groups and individuals seek you out, asking you to stretch yourself to do things for which you feel totally unprepared—all because you are a priest. If history is any predictor of the future, I am sure that this group of new priests will experience the same sorts of shiftings, turnings, and unexpected ways in which they are asked to serve the Lord and his people. As the Portuguese proverb goes, "God writes straight with crooked lines."
As a person whose duties these days include the editorial process of getting the word out about these men, I wish them well and urge them to be to ready to have the Lord work in their lives in unexpected ways. My hope and prayer for them is that when they approach anniversaries such as 25, 40, or 50 years of service, that they, with me, will be able to say "O God, what a life!" I hope, too, that they can add to that the words "Amen and Thank You!"
Fr. Ian Gibbons, 37, from Edwardsville,
Illinois, has an MBA
from Southern Illinois University
and an MA in American Studies
from Saint Louis University.
He taught economics and social
sciences at Regis Jesuit High in
Colorado where he assisted with
many retreats and liturgies. He has
worked at a L’Arche community
in Spokane and at the Catholic
Worker House in Montreal. He
will teach at Rockhurst High
School in Kansas City this fall.
(Missouri Province)
Fr. Daniel Hendrickson, 35,
from Fremont, Nebraska, has a
BA in psychology and theology
from Marquette University in
Milwaukee. He taught philosophy
at Creighton University in
Omaha and worked with the
Service Learning Program in the
Dominican Republic. He has also
served at St. Agnes in San Francisco
and St. Martin of Tours in
the Bronx. He will teach philosophy
and theology in Tanzania and
then start on a doctorate in the fall
of ’07. (Wisconsin Province)
Fr. Patrick McGrath, 39, from
Chicago, has a BA in American
Government from Notre Dame
and an MS in organizational
change from Northwestern
University in Evanston, Illinois.
He directed the Jesuit Identity
program at Loyola Academy in
Wilmette, Illinois, and did counseling
at Covenant House in New
Orleans and at the AIDS Pastoral
Care Network in Chicago. He
will serve as province assistant for
secondary education after ordination.
(Chicago Province)
Fr. Sean Michaelson, 37, from
New York, has a PhD in English
from Arizona State and taught the
subject at Boston College and
the University of San Francisco.
He coached debate at Fordham
Prep, worked with refugees
in Toronto, and was deacon
of the Newman Centre at the
University of Toronto. He will
teach English at the Colegio del
Sagrado Corazón and Universidad
Católica in Montevideo, Uruguay,
this September. (California
Province)
Fr. Kevin O’Brien, 39, from
North Palm Beach, Florida, has a
BA in government from Georgetown
University and a law degree
from the University of Florida.
He worked at a leprosy hospital
in India, immigration centers in
Los Angeles, and a law center in
Camden, New Jersey. He was
a campus minister at Fordham
University and taught philosophy
at Saint Joseph’s University in
Philadelphia. In July he will serve
at Holy Trinity in Washington,
D.C. (Maryland Province)
Fr. Hung Pham, 36, from Biên
Hòa, Vietnam, has a bachelor’s
degree in biology, chemistry,
and mathematics from Regis
University in Denver. He taught
chemistry and biology at Saint
Louis University High and
trained teachers with the Jesuit
Refugee Service in Thailand.
His interests include playing
tennis and leading youth retreats.
After ordination he will
continue theology studies at the
Weston Jesuit School of Theology.
(Missouri Province)
Fr. George Witt, 41, from
Queens , New York , has
degrees in English, theology,
and philosophy from Fordham
University. He worked at St.
Ignatius Retreat House in
Manhasset, N.Y., and spent
summers teaching English to
Jesuits in Poland. Fluent in
sign language, he is deacon
and spir itual director at St.
Benedict Parish for the Deaf in
San Francisco and will continue
working there after ordination.
(New York Province)
Fr. Alan Yost, 46, from Clinton,
Pennsylvania, has an MA
in publishing and writing from
Emerson College in Boston and
studied Spanish at Stonehill
College in Northeaston, Mass.
He worked in retreat and young
adult ministry and at the Vatican
Observatory Summer School in
Italy. He taught English in El
Salvador, Mexico, and Madrid
and will be teaching the subject
at Bellarmine Prep in Tacoma,
Washington, this fall. (Oregon
Province)