Dear beloved sisters and brothers in Christ,
My ordination anniversary is May 29th. For my 25th anniversary of ordination, the Florida Catholic newspaper interviewed me. Five years later on my 30th anniversary, the only thing I would add is the joy of being your pastor of Nativity. Come and give thanks to the Lord with me at Mass on Monday, May 29th at 4pm followed by dinner in the Parish Center.—Fr David
Can you tell me about your family and where you were raised? Was Catholicism part of your upbringing?
I grew up attending St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church in Altamonte Springs, Florida. Father Pat Caverly was our pastor. A cradle Catholic, I went to its parochial school. My Mom and Dad took us six kids to Mass every Sunday. Before family dinner, we said “Bless us O Lord and these thy gifts….”
When did you first feel a calling to the priesthood?
In 9th grade, we did a career report. We had to interview an adult in a career we were interested in. I wrote about being an engineer like my Dad. But my heart was not in it. A year later, on January 16, 1980 while changing classes in high school, I heard a clear voice in my head, “Be a priest.” The thought was not my own. God was calling me to be a priest. Without pause, my age-appropriate response jumped out, “No.” Being a priest was a great idea. My problem was that it was not my idea.
Through college, I sought other directions. Yet only priesthood remained standing on the horizon. After graduation, the Lord sent me to serve a year in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps to grow up. Entering Saint Meinard Seminary in Indiana, I came to accept and embrace the Lord’s desire for me.
What assignments have you had over the course of your priesthood?
- Pastor, Nativity Catholic Church, Longwood, Florida (2019 to present)
- Pastor, Most Precious Blood Catholic Church, Oviedo, Florida (2013 to 2019)
- Pastor, Saint Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church, Orlando, Florida (2006 to 2013)
- Parochial Vicar, Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, St. Cloud, Florida (2004 to 2006)
- Parochial Vicar, Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church, Winter Park, Florida (1998 to 2004)
- Campus Minister, University of Central Florida, Orlando (1998 to 2004)
- Parochial Vicar, Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church, Indialantic, Florida (1993 to 1998)
Ordained May 29, 1993 for the Catholic Diocese of Orlando
Looking back over these 25 years, what moments stand out to you?
Here are several moments in no particular order where the Lord has worked his wonderful deeds for us:
- Just weeks after ordination, my pastor Monsignor Dave Page told me that I would be helping start Christ Renews His Parish retreat process in the parish. It was not my choice. But I was glad that he told me to do it. Since then, I have started CRHP at five parishes. I’ve seen countless men and women undergo a conversion from fear to faith. They enter into a personal friendship with God in the living, risen Christ. Church changes from a “they” institution to a “we” community. Concern for one’s well-being changes to commitment to the Kingdom of God. They are renewed.
- At five o’clock one morning, I woke up worrying what I would preach for Christmas. Finally I asked, “God, what do you want me to preach?” And the Lord said, “What do you want to tell them more than anything?” “I want to tell the people on Christmas Eve, ‘You are loved’.” Preaching the mystery of faith has been a joy for me. I earned a Doctorate of Ministry in Preaching and teach others the joy of preaching the good news.
- Early in my priesthood, Deacon Henry Libersat, the editor of the Florida Catholic, asked me to write for the homily column. I started writing and 25 years later no one has told me to stop. I’m glad whenever I can give my book “A Prayer for Hope” to a struggling parishioner, or my book “Can I Say a Prayer With You” that equips Catholics to help others with prayer.
- Founding the parish St. Maximilian Kolbe parish in southeast Orlando was the most difficult thing I have done but among the most rewarding. We held Mass and faith formation in an elementary school for seven years. The rectory was the parish office. While at St Max I went on a summer sabbatical funded by the Lilly Foundation and made a 30-day retreat. It was life-changing.
- Through the years, the faith of the people especially in their struggles and suffering has been an inspiration to my own faith. Many have become treasured friends.
What has been the greatest blessing of your priesthood?
St. Teresa of Lisieux said that if you pick up a pin with love, you are pleasing to God. Too often I pick up a pin saying, “Who the hell dropped the pin?” or “Someone might get hurt, I better pick up the pin.” I am so inadequate to witness to God’s saving love in Jesus Christ. Yet the Lord is okay with that. Calling me to the priesthood, God has freed me to surrender to God’s love in Jesus Christ. I hope to show and tell each day in word and sacrament how much God loves us so that we live in his friendship and in solidarity with one another.