Archbishop Paul Martin
“The life of a priest is a satisfying life, and it is a life of relationships. It makes no sense without the people. It is the faith of the people that carries and sustains my vocation. Being with people and seeing them grow in their love of Christ gives me joy. The priesthood is about having a relationship of love with Christ, and leading others to a personal encounter with Him, which leads to a life of discipleship.”
Fr Matthew White
“I’ve always had a desire to know more about God and to love Him more. I tried serving God in all sorts of ways – as a high school teacher, in youth groups, as lay pastoral leader – but I always felt there was something more….”
Fr Alfred Tong
“Like many people of today, I struggled to find what I really wanted to do in life. You know how in every career path employers are looking for the ‘full package’. I was never one of these. My life ultimately became a lot of ‘what ifs’… Looking for the missing puzzle piece I had a niggle to become a priest, so I decided to enter the seminary to discover what this might be.”
Fr Andrew Kim
“All of us are on the journey towards God. Sometimes we lose the way and we do not know where we are supposed to go. But if we just stop what we are doing and listen carefully with our heart, we can hear Jesus whisper to us deep in our heart. And this whisper will lead us in the right direction. We just need to trust him and remember his words, “Come follow me.””
Fr David Dowling
“To be an instrument of God’s love in this way is a gift and privilege beyond words. When I stand at the altar and see the faith of the people of God, gathered to be nourished by the word of God and the Eucharist, I am humbled to be called to priesthood.”
Fr Bill Warwick
“It has been a wonderful life. I enjoy being with the people… in important moments and in every-day moments. Sometimes, when I meet school children on the street, they tell their parents that I am Jesus! That is what I do as a priest, I bring Jesus to the people I am called to serve.”
Cardinal John Dew
“When I went to the Seminary in 1970 it was really the last thing I wanted to do. I didn’t want to be a priest but somehow I knew that it was the only thing, and the right thing, for me. ”
Msgr Gerard Burns
“My experience of priesthood – whether preaching the Word, celebrating the Sacraments, being with people in different moments of life – has been an encounter with the Lord Jesus, and a very great privilege.”
Fr Seph Pijfers
“Sometimes I am asked why I gave up rugby. Looking back, the rugby was just part of who I was growing up – a typical Kiwi kid. I had some amazing experiences with some of New Zealand’s top rugby players at the time. It was great and I did it for the passion of it, but in the end, I found something that I was more passionate about and I was happy to give all that up to follow Jesus…”
Fr Joy Thottankara
“Whichever path you follow, you have to be willing to take a risk in life. I always keep in mind the promise that God made in the book of Jeremiah in the Bible – that God knows what plans He has for us, and that His plans for us are good.”
Fr Maleko Tufuga
“It has been a wonderful life. I enjoy being with the people… in important moments and in every-day moments. Sometimes, when I meet school children on the street, they tell their parents that I am Jesus! That is what I do as a priest, I bring Jesus to the people I am called to serve.”
Fr Alan Roberts
“When I look back at how it all happened, I understand that we do influence one another… I am truly grateful for the influences on me from people who belong to the Lord. What a world it would be if we handed it on.”
Fr Michael Bellizzi
“The call to be a priest is not something you come up with, but something that is offered to you again and again. If it is really coming from God, the call to the priesthood will not go away even if you try to block it out of your life. God is very gentle but also persistent. He will not choose things for us but leaves us free to choose ourselves…”