“You were chosen,” Cardinal Tobin tells new priests (Photos)
Be prayerful shepherds who walk with the flock, Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, told the three men whom he ordained on Saturday, May 24.
Deacons Michael Bollinger, Giovanni Cuzziol, and Raymond Francis Walsh were ordained as priests in the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark.
In his homily, Cardinal Tobin spoke to the three men about the responsibilities of the priesthood.
“Consider that by exercising the ministry of sacred doctrine, you will participate always in the mission of Christ, the one teacher,” he told them. “You will be, like him, shepherds. This is what he wants from you. Shepherds who go out to God’s holy and faithful people. Shepherds who walk sometimes in front of the flock, sometimes amidst the flock, and sometimes following the flock.”
He also urged them to remain close to God in prayer and sacrament, “because a priest who does not pray slowly extinguishes the fire of the spirit within, and his ministry no longer makes sense.”
The importance of unity among priests was also emphasized.
“The unity among yourselves is itself a witness to the living Christ,” Cardinal Tobin said.
Additionally, the cardinal advised the ordinandi to remember that they were chosen for the priesthood by God, “taken from the people of God while always remaining a member of the people.”
“Don’t lose the sense of the people of God,” the cardinal told them.
Following the homily, the men declared their resolve to undertake the order of the priesthood — to faithfully carrying out their obligations to preach the Gospel, teach the faith, reverently minister to God’s people in the sacraments, and live prayerfully. They knelt before Cardinal Tobin and, with folded hands, promised “respect and obedience” to him and his successors.
As the three men lay prostrate before the altar, the congregation prayed for them.
Cardinal Tobin then laid his hands upon their heads and invoked the Holy Spirit. The other bishops and priests came forward and did the same. There followed the Prayer of Ordination, in which the cardinal prayed that God grant them men “the dignity of Priesthood.”
Afterward, the men received their priestly vestments — a stole and chasuble — and the cardinal anointed their hands with chrism. When the gifts were brought to the altar, the new priests received the bread and wine from Cardinal Tobin as a reminder that the Holy Eucharist is at the heart of the priesthood.
At the end of Mass, the new priests gave their first blessings to family, friends, and well-wishers.
You can view a set of photos of the ordination here.
Featured image: Father Raymond Francis Walsh, Father Giovanni Cuzziol, and Father Michael Bollinger stand with Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., after their ordination on May 24, 2025. (Photos by Archdiocese of Newark/Julio Eduardo Herrera)
