Q&A with the 5 new transitional deacons
Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, will ordain five new transitional deacons on Sunday, May 23, at the noon Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark. A Permanent Deacon, Edwin Dava, will also be ordained. Read the first person account of his journey to the Diaconate.
In the Catholic Church, the diaconate is the first of three ranks in ordained ministry. Deacons preparing for the priesthood are transitional deacons. Those not planning to be ordained priests are called permanent deacons. Married men may be ordained permanent deacons. To learn more about the call to the priesthood, visit the Office of Priestly Vocations of the Archdiocese of Newark.
The following is a Q&A with the five new transitional deacons in which they discuss what inspired them to discern the priesthood and what saints have impacted their lives.
Matthew Gonzalez
Home Parish
St. John the Evangelist, Bergenfield
What inspired you to discern the priesthood?
Though I was about eight years old when I first thought about possibly becoming a priest, it was not until high school that I began to take discernment to the priesthood a little more seriously. During this time in my life, I began to think about what I would do post-high school, and the determining factor for determining my vocation and future was, “would this truly make me happy?”
The context in which I discerned my vocation and lived most of my adolescence was youth ministry. I can confidently say that through this self-gift to the Church through music, leadership, and service helped guide me in the direction to what God was calling me to. Ultimately, what inspired me to answer the still small voice in my heart were the examples of fatherly and heroic priests that brought forth light into my life, and the lives of others, and the desire to lay my life down for the flock.
What saints have influenced your discernment the most and why?
I would say that St. Francis of Assisi, St. Therese of Lisieux, and St. Augustine have influenced my discernment the most. St. Francis of Assisi has attracted me since a very young age. I believe that is because of his simplicity, detachment from wealth, pleasure, power, and honors that he could have held on to, and his total and radical surrender to God. St. Therese of Lisieux has also become a good spiritual friend within the past couple of years. What attracted me the most about Therese was her emphasis on loving in all things and seeing God in all things. Lastly, St. Augustine and his journey toward conversion have played a significant role in my spiritual journey. I think Augustine does well in summarizing the purpose and fulfillment of the human heart: “You have made us for yourself O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”
David Hinojosa
Home Parish
Sacred Heart, Lyndhurst
What inspired you to discern the priesthood?
What ultimately inspired me to become a priest was the positive impact priests had on me when I needed the most help. I have found priests to be normal and imperfect people, who by the grace of God, share in Christ’s ministry to announce to the people who are suffering, like I was in that particular time of my life, good news. I was inspired by the fact that they brought me to the knowledge of the love of Christ in a very real way that ultimately led me to have a grateful heart and the disposition to give my life so that others may know this knowledge too.
What saints have influenced your discernment the most and why?
I have been influenced by St. Francis, St. Camillus of Lellis, St. Augustine, and St. Margaret of Cortona because they all had evidently sinful lives and learned of the love of God, which transcended the idea of love which they received from earthly pleasures. I can relate very closely to them and look to them for intercession and prayers as I walk along their steps.
Roberto Moreno
Home Parish
Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary and St. Michael, Elizabeth
What inspired you to discern the priesthood?
As a child or teenager, I never thought about the possibility of becoming a priest. When I was 18, I stopped going to church. I was studying physics and had doubts about the existence of God. My life was work, parties, girls, and video games, but I was not happy.
A friend invited me to church to listen to some talks for young people and adults. I continued participating in the group, and little by little, I began to see my sins. I could see all the times that God had participated in my life, and I experienced the immense love he has for me. In me appeared a desire to share this good news with everyone.
I began to consider if God was calling me to the priesthood. With the support of my community and the help of some good priests and seminarians, I decided to allow God to take control of my life. I entered the seminary to finish discerning if this was the vocation God has for me. So far, the best decision of my life.
What saints have influenced your discernment the most and why?
The Martyrs of Barbastro. I was very afraid of the calling God was doing in my life. The priesthood was never in my plans. I had a career in physics in which I put a lot of effort. I had some different plans for my life.
When I went on a pilgrimage to Madrid for the World Youth Day in 2011, we visited the Seminary Martyr of Barbastro. The example of the spectacle of these young people giving their lives for the gospel, their prayers, their letters, their history gave me the courage I did not have to accept the call. I am still asking the martyrs of Barbastro to intercede for me.
Peter Volz
Home Parish
St. Joan of Arc, Jackson Heights, Queens, NY
How old were you when you first thought about possibly becoming a priest?
What inspired you to discern the priesthood?
When I was very young, I always told my parents that I would be a priest, but in high school, I was distracted and it was not until I was 20 that the possibility even crossed my mind again.
After high school, I pursued relationships with girls, worked part-time, and went to community college full-time. At the same time, I was trying to discover who I was and my place in the world. These are very spiritual pursuits, but I was using very worldly methods to try to attain them. I did not find happiness there, even though the world said that I would be happy doing those things, taking care of number one, and getting ahead. Instead of finding happiness, I found an ever-increasing sadness. It was deep down so that nobody could see it. At times not even I could see it. My response to this feeling, like for many youths, was to listen to music constantly or distract myself with my phone or whatever, anything not to be alone and in silence.
During this time, I went to church every Sunday and I was part of the Neocatechumenal Way, a way to grow in faith. The Neocatechumenate was, and is, helping me to deepen my relationship with Christ. The fact that God could love me as I was when I couldn’t even love myself most of the time was really good news!
I volunteered to become a missionary, still not thinking about the priesthood, but now looking back, I can see that it was the Lord who pushed me to volunteer. I was a missionary in Utah for six months, announcing the love of God to people that we met in parishes and house visitations, and I felt that God was calling me to this life. I was happy! In 2012 I entered the missionary seminary of Newark.
What saints have influenced your discernment the most and why?
I would say St. Maria Goretti because of her intense love for Christ at such a young age. She was able to defend her faith until death and forgive her attacker.
Ashton Francisco Wong
Home Parish
Holy Family in Nutley
What inspired you to discern the priesthood?
Before the seminary, I lived my best life: as a teenager on Guam, I was a successful scholar-athlete; this culminated in a basketball scholarship to Dallas University. I enjoyed all the benefits of being a popular high school athlete: attention from girls, going to parties, and living the ‘good’ life. Although I had everything I wanted – success in academics and athletics, an abundance of friends and admirers, and a secure career path – I felt empty and unsatisfied.
Through the Neocatechumenal Way, I encountered the love of God actually and concretely in my life. I was looking for life from people and things that couldn’t give me life. I found authentic fulfillment in my encounter with Jesus Christ, especially through the Eucharist.
On World Youth Day, I witnessed many priests who were happy with their vocation. They were happier than I was, even though I had sports, fame, friends, and girls. I wanted to know why they were happy, and I wasn’t. So, I decided to respond to God’s call. So far, he hasn’t given me a reason to leave the seminary. The best years of my life have been this time in the seminary.
What inspired me to discern the priesthood was God’s persistent interest in me even though I was not interested in him. He won me over with his faithfulness and generosity, undeserving as I am.
What saints have influenced your discernment the most and why?
The saint that has influenced my discernment the most has been St. John Paul the Great. He was a talented man who loved sports and had every reason to hate God (World War II was not nice to him). In his suffering, he didn’t reject God but sought him out.
He was an awesome Pope whom the Lord used to renew the Church. Although he was very talented at many things (academics, theater, sports) and could have made a career in any of these things, he responded to God’s call to the priesthood. What made him attractive was not his talent, good looks, or personal brilliance, but his relationship with the Lord manifested in his priesthood and papacy. I guess he’s great because he allowed the Lord to work greatly in his life.
His life is a huge help for me because the allurements of the world are tempting. Although John Paul II had more reason to pursue worldly success, he didn’t. His life reassures me that God wants to give me the best, that he wants to give me a life that the world can’t possibly give me.
