“It makes the whole ordination liturgy even more powerful when you know that your own is now likely so close,” writes Mr. Jarrod Waugh, C.S.C., in reflecting on the Ordination of Fr. Matt Kuczora, C.S.C. “This allowed me to see the whole thing with new eyes, even though I have witnessed several Holy Cross Ordinations before.” Read More

“Today, be very Catholic,” preached newly ordained Fr. Matt Kuczora, C.S.C., in his first Mass. “Allow Christ to touch you through your senses. Listen to Christ’s voice in the words of our prayers. Taste the bread and wine that are His Body and Blood.  See Him in your neighbor, both in the pews and then wherever you may go from here.” Read More

“To scatter the seed of God’s Word; to dispense his mercy; to nourish the faithful with Christ’s Body and Blood – these are three aspects of the priestly mission that I wish to reflect on with you in this homily,” preached Most Rev. Kevin C. Rhoades, the Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, at the Ordination of Fr. Matt Kuczora, C.S.C. Read More

"If you ask a Holy Cross Priest about the most memorable parts of his Ordination, I would venture that, at some point, he would talk about lying prostrate on the floor of the Basilica. It is a gesture that is packed with meaning—a gesture that calls together the prayers of those gathered in the Basilica as well as those who have gone before us in the faith," preached Fr. Gerry Olinger, C.S.C., in his homily at Lucernarium this evening, in final preparation for Matt's Ordination to the Priesthood tomorrow. Read More

We asked Mr. John Zack, University Sacristan, what it takes to run the Ordination Mass smoothly. "First of all," he responded, "we need to make sure we have enough albs and chasubles – pressed and steamed and ready to go. We will probably bring up about 100 to make sure we have enough." And for when he can finally breathe easy Read More

“As we stand with Matthew at his ordination, his ‘yes’ reminds us once again of that inner zeal that animates our life and ministry in Holy Cross,” writes Fr. Ken Molinaro, “My prayer for Matthew is that he might see in us, his brothers in Holy Cross, a call to faithfulness to who we are and a resolve to be ever more united with one another in the Lord Jesus, the One who kindles the zeal within.” Read More

“In our abundantly consumerist society in which many spend for themselves, a priest is invited to spend himself for others,” writes Fr. John Britto, C.S.C., as he reflects on his first year as a priest. “This year provided me ample opportunities every day to think of the ways in which I have been a blessing to many. In the wake of this reality, the most dominant feeling was the unfailing recognition of my unworthiness in the face of such an awesome grace lavished upon me. … What a blessing it is to be a blessing!” Read More

Rev. Mr. Matt Kuczora, C.S.C., ordained a deacon just four weeks ago at Moreau Seminary, filed this post on the ordination of Rev. Mr. Carlos Augusto Jacobo de los Santos, C.S.C., at our parish in Monterrey, Mexico. Matt is spending his diaconate year with our Holy Cross community in Mexico.  As deacons, Carlos and I will be called upon to bring hope and comfort.  Read More

Like all good things, our exclusive coverage of Ordination Week, must come to an end.  (For those of you looking for Fr. Eric Schimmel's montly blog Sermon on the Street, we have moved that to Thursday this week to give his post its own moment in the sun, which it deserves.)  We here at the Spes Unica blog thought there was no better way to close our coverage than to hear from the man who is now truly on deck in the ordination circle, Mr. Matt Kuczora, C.S.C.  Read More

Although the coverage of the Royal Wedding may be winding down, we are still going strong on our exclusive coverage of Ordination Weekend. (We will have some pictures for you tomorrow!) And if you do not know what ordinations and what exclusive coverage we are talking about, we are not sure what ecclesial rock you have been living under because it is clearly not St. Peter's! So as we seek to put a hat (or a fascinator) on our Ordination coverage these next two days, we are going to hear first from Fr. Tom Bertone, Assistant Provincial of the Eastern Province of Priests and Brothers. Attending the ordination was an occasion for him to reflect on his now 30 years of ministry as a priest! Read More

Moments ago in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Fr. Paul, with the Holy Chrism on his hands less than 24 hours old, preached the homily at his First Mass. Although Mass is still going, as with Fr. John’s homily, we have for you as part of our exclusive Ordination Week coverage the text of his homily. In a few hours, on the ND Prayercast website, you will be able to watch Fr. Paul’s first Mass as well. It is clear both of these men are going to be great priests for Holy Cross and for the Church! Read More

First out of the gate of our newly ordained in terms of presiding at Mass is Fr. John Britto, C.S.C. Moments ago in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Fr. John preached the homily at his First Mass. While Mass moves into the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we have for you as part of our exclusive Ordination Week coverage the prepared text of his homily. On the Catholic TV website, you can watch Fr. John’s first Mass as well. Read More

As a promised part of our exclusive coverage of Ordination Weekend, while Ordination Mass is still going on, we are revealing the vestments that Ms. Patty Schlarb, the Liturgical Seamstress at the Basilica, made for the ordinandi. As we found out in our interview with her earlier this week, “This year is a little bit unique, because I have made vestments in a style unlike I have made before. I also used a fabric that is a little bit more ornate, because I feel in working with the seminarians – and that is my favorite part of the job by far – that is what they are looking for today.” Read More

To get us ready for the Ordination of Deacons John Britto, C.S.C., and Paul Ybarra, C.S.C., this afternoon, Fr. Jeffrey Allison, C.S.C., an Instructor in the Department of Theology at the University of Portland steps us through the Rite of Ordination. Along the way, he explains some of the traditions that are a part of this grace-filled Rite. It is all a part of our continuing exclusive coverage of Ordination Weekend in Holy Cross. Read More

Lucernarium is one of the signature events of Ordination Weekend, serving as the official kick-off of the festivities. The ordinandi select the presider, who this year is Fr. Andrew Gawrych, C.S.C., and during the prayer service, the chalice and patens of the men to be ordained are blessed. As part of the Spes Unica blog’s exclusive Ordination coverage, we have Fr. Andrew’s Lucenarium homily as well as pictures of Deacons John and Paul’s chalices. Read More

There has been a lot of talk about the food that will be served at the wedding reception for William and Kate, so we wanted to get the scoop on the food preparations surrounding Ordination Weekend, as part of our continuing exclusive coverage. We went and got an exclusive interview with Mr. Ralph Pieniazkiewicz, the head chef at Moreau Seminary. He and his staff work tirelessly to prepare the food for the weekend, since as Fr. Pat Neary, C.S.C., the previous Rector of Moreau Seminary, liked to joke about Ordination Weekend in Holy Cross: “We pray, and then we eat. Then we pray some more, and then we eat some more.” It’s not too far from the truth! Read More

So we here at the Spes Unica blog as part of our Ordination Week Coverage thought we would get the inside scoop on the ordination vestments for Deacons John Britto, C.S.C., and Paul Ybarra, C.S.C. Unlike with Kate’s wedding dress, these chasubles, which are given to the ordinandi as a gift, will be worn when they celebrate Mass, God willing, for years and years to come. To get the goods on the vestments, we went straight to the source: Ms. Patty Schlarb, the Liturgical Seamstress at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.  Read More

We start our exclusive coverage (a la the Royal Wedding coverage) of the ordinations of Holy Cross Deacons John Britto, C.S.C., and Paul Ybarra, C.S.C., by getting the “British perspective” on the significance of the upcoming events. And so we turn to our first-year professed seminarian, Mr. Adam Booth, C.S.C., who hails from Great Britain, to set the stage for us this historic week. Read More

Feeling a little inundated by all the Royal Wedding coverage of Friday’s nuptials between Prince William and Kate Middleton?  We here on the Spes Unica blog have just what the Good Shepherd prescribed for you.  On Saturday, April 30, two of our men in Holy Cross, Deacons John Britto, C.S.C., and Paul Ybarra, C.S.C., will be ordained priestsin the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.  Starting tomorrow, our blog will have exclusive and behind-the-scenes coverage of this amazing, news worthy event that is a great sign of hope for our Church and for our world. Read More

This weekend in Holy Cross we are blessed to have a doubleheader of ordinations.  First, today, Saturday, September 18, Deacon Alfredo Olvera Ledezma, C.S.C., will be ordained to the presbyerate in La Luz, our Holy Cross parish in Monterrey, Mexico. 

Then on Sunday, September 19, Brother John Britto Antony, C.S.C., will be ordained to the deaconate at Sacred Heart St. Francis de Sales Church, which is another Holy Cross parish, in Bennington, VT. Read More