Two priests and seven deacons were ordained at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne on Saturday, in what was the largest ordination Mass in about 40 years. Source: Melbourne Catholic.
Fr Rhys Lowther and Fr Dominic Lawes were ordained to the priesthood; Deacons Nicolas Calandra, Andrew Tran and Anthony Wright to the transitional diaconate (a step on the path to priesthood); and Deacons Ryan Martin, Peter Nguyen, Bradley Proud and Francis Thomas were ordained to the ministry of the permanent diaconate.
It was a joyous occasion, with a crowd of 2000 present at the cathedral for the ceremony. Some guests travelled from the United Kingdom and India in support of the ordinands as they took up what Melbourne Archbishop Peter A Comensoli called “the servant sacrament”.
“Along with marriage, the sacrament of Holy Orders is the sacrament at the service of communion in the Church,” Archbishop Comensoli said in his homily.
“The diaconate and the priesthood – and, for that matter, the episcopacy – are the ‘for others’ sacrament, the servant sacrament,” he said.
Service “is the indelible mark to be received in the Sacrament of Holy Orders by these nine men today”.
Archbishop Comensoli was joined for the Mass by Hobart Archbishop Emeritus Julian Porteous, Sandhurst Bishop Emeritus Les Tomlinson, Melbourne Auxiliary Bishop Martin Ashe and Bishop Stuart Hall of the Military Ordinariate, as well as priests from the archdiocese and beyond.
Leading up to the ordination Mass, the ordinands shared how fortunate they felt to have received the support of the wider community as they prepared to take up their ministries.
“My happiest moments in seminary [life] have been when I’ve been in the parishes and encountering God’s people,” said the now Fr Rhys Lowther.
“And in a particular way, what gives me great encouragement is your desire for our Lord, your love for the holy sacrifice of the Mass, devotion to him in the Blessed Sacrament, your desire to come to him to grow in holiness.”
He asked the community to continue praying for the new priests and deacons, ‘that we might be able to serve that desire, that we might be able to bring to you the redemption won by our Lord.’
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‘The servant sacrament’: nine take up Holy Orders at St Patrick’s Cathedral (Melbourne Catholic)
