Fr. Gregory Pendergraft, FSSP, Director of Development for the North American District, recently spoke with Mr. Peter Graves of The Catholic World Report to talk about the Traditional Latin Mass and the booming vocations “problem”  of the Fraternity. Some excerpts:

CWR: Most Catholics today are not old enough to remember the Church before Vatican II. How are you received by parishioners and priests unfamiliar with the Fraternity or the Church before Vatican II?

Father Pendergraft: Knowledge must precede love. This is no different with the liturgy than it is with anything else. For this reason we try to encourage the faithful to experience the Traditional Mass so that they can see the many graces it has to offer. Interestingly, it is the younger generation among both priests and parishioners who are often most actively seeking the ancient rites of the Church.

As far as a reaction, most often it is the liturgy that speaks for itself. When Catholics have the opportunity to experience this liturgy they are very often intrigued and interested and want to know more about it. Thus, our role is often more that of teaching rather than trying to garner interest. As we are easily identified by the wearing of the Roman cassock, we are received with every emotion possible based on the likes or dislikes of the individual with whom we have contact. Yet, the many friendships we have with the bishops and priests who have visited our parishes and seminaries and the faithful who discover one of our parishes attest to the power of charity and the desire for sanctity to overcome any obstacle.

CWR: What do you think the Extraordinary Form liturgy brings to parishes and dioceses? 

Father Pendergraft: The Extraordinary Form liturgy sanctified generations of faithful Catholics in the past and continues its work in the present. The singular beauty and reverence of the Mass and its link to the traditional practices of the Catholic faith help to free us from the bonds of sin and the attachment to the things of the world. A strong emphasis on the need for repentance often inspires a return to the sacrament of confession, which has been called the “forgotten sacrament” in our modern age.

The entire article can be read here.

Each year the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter organizes a pilgrimage from Maryland to Washington, DC, concluding with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at the National Basilica Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The pilgrimage is informally known as the “Buckley March.”

For 2015, newly ordained Fr. David Franco, FSSP, stepped into the leadership role for the pilgrimage, and was joined by many pilgrims and numerous seminarians from Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary. Enjoy images of the pilgrimage, and an EWTN news segment on the pilgrims:

Reverend Father Timothy O’Brien, FSSP, was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by His Excellency, Bishop James D. Conley at St. Thomas Aquinas Chapel in Lincoln, Nebraska, on May 30, 2015. He offered his First Solemn High Mass at St. Francis of Assisi Chapel in Lincoln the following day, with Rev. Fr. Matthew McNeely, FSSP, serving as Assistant Priest, Rev. Mr. Christopher Mahowald, FSSP, serving as Deacon, and Rev. Fr. Karl Marsolle, FSSP, serving as Subdeacon.

Father O’Brien was born to Steven and Lori O’Brien in Phoenix, Arizona, but moved to a small town in Northern Nevada when he was three. He is the fourth of six children. Father is very thankful to his parents for handing the faith on to him, for creating an environment where the virtues could be practiced and for always being true to the Church and to the Pope.

After one year of college, he enlisted in the Army. Father served his country for four years, three of which were spent in Fort Campbell, Kentucky and for one year he was deployed to the Middle East. After returning from overseas, Rev. Fr. O’Brien took a weekend trip to Columbus, Ohio, and attended a Solemn High Mass in Latin for the first time. After witnessing the beauty, order and majesty in that Mass, he began to discern a vocation to the Priesthood. After witnessing “the most beautiful thing this side of Heaven,” Father reoriented his life so that he might serve God as best he could. He began also to attend daily Mass when he was able and, when his enlistment was over, he returned to Nevada.

Father was attending Mass three times per week and began looking into possible seminaries in which to test his vocation. This is when he first became acquainted with the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter. He visited their apostolate in Sacramento, and met the three Fraternity priests there. With their assistance, Father O’Brien joined the Fraternity’s Seminary in the Fall of 2008. The seven years of formation flew by very fast, the last year being but a blink of the eye.

Father O’Brien is very grateful to all those he has met along the way and to all those who have helped him to approach the Altar. “What shall I render to the Lord for all that He has rendered unto me? I will take the Chalice of Salvation and call upon the Name of the Lord.” Please pray for Father O’Brien that he might be a good and holy priest.

Fr. John Kodet, FSSP, offered his first Mass at Immaculate Conception church, our parish apostolate parish in Omaha, Nebraska.  Father was assisted by Fr. Dan Nolan, FSSP, as deacon, Fr. Joseph Heffernan, FSSP, as subdeacon, and Fr. John Brancich, FSSP, pastor of Immaculate Conception, assisted Fr. Kodet.

Father is the fourth of nine children and was baptized on the sixteenth of October, 1988. He was blessed, along with the rest of his siblings, to be home-schooled, which emphasized the role of his parents as teachers and he and his siblings’ role as obedient students. The constant and good example of his parents as honest, hardworking, pious, and faithful Catholics taught him the importance of keeping God at the center of his life.

“As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abide in the vine: so neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine: you are the branches: he that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for without Me you can do nothing,” ~ John 15:4-5

During his peaceful childhood on the family farm, free from the bombardment of modern and fast paced culture — filled with its countless distractions — Father found true role models in the Saints, whose hagiographies inspire us to imitate their spirit of faith in, and love and sacrifice for, our Creator and Redeemer.
Three elements combined to lead him to the seminary: the lives of the Saints, the faithful and cheerful example of priests at Sunday and daily Mass, and the oft repeated wise words from his parents: happiness comes from God and we will be happiest if we do His will.

For Father, this last thought begged the question, “What is God’s will for me?”

Father found the answer over the course of one year of college and seven all too brief years of seminary, praying daily to know and fulfill the Divine Will. In due time, Father Kodet was ordained to the Holy Priesthood for the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, by Bishop James Conley, on May 30th, 2015, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Newman Center Chapel, in Lincoln, NE.

May God bless all who helped Father Kodet to ascend the altar of God. Father prays that you seek to know and follow your God-given vocation every moment of every day.

Every breath is “debt on debt.”
“Freely you have received; freely give.” ~ Matthew 10:8

For the first time since the late 1990’s, deacons of the Priestly Fraternity were ordained to the Sacred Priesthood in Canada.

The Most Reverend Terrence Prendergast, SJ, Archbishop of Ottawa, traveled to St-Hyacinthe, Québec, and raised Deacon Jacques Breton and Deacon Alexandre Marchand to the priesthood, according to the Traditional Roman Rite of Ordination, in the beautiful seminary chapel of St-Hyacinthe.

Assisting His Excellency as deacon was Fr. Laurent Demets, FSSP, pastor of our apostolate in Québec City, and as subdeacon the Archbishop was assisted by Fr. Juan Tomas, FSSP, the assistant chaplain in our Montréal apostolate. The assistant priest for the ordinations was Fr. Erik Deprey, FSSP, pastor of St. Clements, our Ottawa apostolate.

Fr. Hubert Bizard, vice rector of the Fraternity seminary in Wigratzbad, was the Master of Ceremonies, assisted by seminarians from Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, Nebraska, as well as altar servers from St. Clement Parish in Ottawa.

The Archbishop’s sermon can be heard on his website: Ordinations 2015 at St-Hyacinthe

Many thanks to His Grace for his continued support of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, and congratulations to our new priestly members, their families, and all their supporters during Frs. Breton and Marchand’s years of formation.

Please continue, in your kindness, to pray for Fathers Breton and Marchand, and all the priests and seminarians of the Fraternity, and enjoy pictures of the day from Jacinthe Soulard.

Fr. Simon Zurita, FSSP, ordained in Lincoln, Nebraska on Saturday, May 31, 2015, offered his first Mass at the Carmel of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, in Valparaiso, Nebraska. Rev. Fr. Beniot Guichard, FSSP, assisted as the assistant priest, Rev. Mr. Xavier Proust assisted as the deacon, and acolyte Michael Cunningham assisted as the subdeacon. A group of seminarians from Our Lady Guadalupe Seminary assisted with the altar corp.

On the next Sunday, Father traveled back home to celebrate the External Solemnity of Corpus Christi at Our Lady of Fatima Chapel, our apostolate in Pequannock, New Jersey. Father was assisted by Fr. Matthew McNeely, FSSP, as deacon and Fr. Karl Marsolle, FSSP, as subdeacon. Enjoy pictures of the Mass and procession below, as well as images from Father’s Mass at Holy Innocents in Manhattan.

Father Zurita was born in the Borough of Manhattan, and was raised in the Borough of Queens, both located in New York City. He was the youngest of four children. Father graduated in 1997 from the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan, and went on to study at the Borough of Manhattan Community College for a semester, and then transferred to Hunter College. Father was baptized as a Protestant; not raised in the Catholic Faith he eventually simply followed along the ways of the world.

Yet God had other plans. After an almost life ending accident one summer in Puerto Rico, Father Zurita began to ponder the question “Why am I not dead?” This question led Father to the doors of Holy Mother Church. With the aid of a childhood friend, he converted to the One True Faith in 2005, and on the Easter Vigil of April 15, 2006, he was conditionally Baptized and Confirmed. In time, Father became acquainted with the Latin Mass, and began to serve it as an altar server in various Manhattan churches. He became a regular server at the Churches of Our Lady of Good Counsel, Saint Agnes, and Holy Innocents. Father recalls serving at a Low Mass, where in contemplating the role of the priest at Mass, he was struck with such questions as, “Can I do what he does? Can I become a priest?” Nevertheless, Father delayed in responding. However, the more he skirted the question, the more it returned. In the fall of 2008, Father was approved to enroll at the Fraternity’s Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, Nebraska.

In the seven years of seminary formation, Father learned not only of the value and importance of a Thomistic education in philosophy and theology, but also of the reality of the spiritual life in the life of a Priest. He learned the magnitude which human virtues, coupled with sanctifying grace, would play in his vocation. During formation, he was brought to the realization that on his journey, he must be accompanied by Our Lady, the Angels, and the Saints. Now as a priest in the true church of God, he asks more than ever for their aid, so that they can help him to become a good, holy, and faithful priest of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Fr. Michael Lawrence Malain, FSSP, was ordained at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Lincoln, Nebraska, on May 30, 2015. The following day, Holy Trinity Sunday, He offered his first Solemn High Mass at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. All of the ministers, the servers and most of the singers were either native or resident Texans.

Father was born in Beaumont, Texas and was later baptized by Msgr. Dan Malain, his great uncle. Fr. Malain is the oldest of the four children of Harold and Cathy Malain. Before turning five, Father Malain’s family relocated to Humble, Texas where they lived for the next 20 years, until the most recent move to Round Rock, Texas.

His vocation story began with a few faint calls in his youth when he was asked by his father and once also by a priest if he had ever considered being a priest. Surprised to be asked such a question, he replied with a simple but honest ‘no’ because he had no plan or desire of becoming a priest. He had only desired to marry a good Catholic girl and have a family, for he always admired the loving example of his parents and he always had a great love for all of his family and relatives. But God had other plans for him.

He enrolled for two years at Texas A&M in College Station from 2004-2006, and then a year and a half at University of Houston from 2006-2007, before finally applying for Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary with the Fraternity of St. Peter for the Fall of 2008. From the first years of university studies, he gradually learned more about the Catholic Faith, but after discovering the Traditional Latin Mass, his life was changed forever. By the time he was starting his senior year, after much prayer and consideration of the circumstances of his life, he suspected that God had bigger plans for him, possibly a priestly vocation, but he continued one more semester before making up his mind to try out this other plan.

After seven years of seminary formation, Father Malain recalls “Our Lord really wanted me here because each time that I had serious doubts and was almost resolved to leave, He would give me just the right grace and encouragement I needed.” He especially credits his perseverance and commitment to this vocation to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, his two spiritual directors at the seminary, and the loving support of his family and so many friends and benefactors who encouraged him and prayed for him. Father thanks all those who helped him in any way before and during his time in seminary, and begs for their continued love and prayer.

Fr. Ian Verrier, FSSP, ordained in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Saturday May 30, 2015, offered his first Mass at the Chapel of Sts. Peter and Paul at Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, NE. Father Verrier was assisted at the altar by Fr. Matthew Goddard, FSSP, with Fr. Robert Ferguson, FSSP, assisting as Deacon and Fr. Jean-Pierre Pilon assisting as Subdeacon. Images below are from this Mass.

Father grew up in Birmingham, England. He was the only child of Douglas and Janet Verrier (may they both rest in peace). Father Verrier is a convert from the Church of England, having been received into the Catholic Church at Pentecost 2003.

Upon the completion of high school he read Music at The University of Birmingham, England, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Music Honors degree. He then gained a postgraduate certificate in Cello Performance at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, England, whilst at the same time completing a two-year postgraduate certificate of education taught at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester Metropolitan University, Didsbury Campus and various high schools around Greater Manchester.

Before entering Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary, Fr. Verrier taught high school music, catechism and English in his position as Head of Junior Section at Chavagnes International College, a Catholic boys’ boarding school in the Vendée region of France. While teaching at Chavagnes, Father discerned a call to the priesthood and fell in love with the Traditional Latin Mass. He was particularly drawn by the reverence and majesty given to Almighty God and the harmony between the different roles in this liturgy.

At seminary, Father Verrier quickly grew to appreciate the joy and benefits of community life, the Traditional Latin liturgy and Thomistic studies. Father feels greatly honored to have been one of the organists throughout his time at the seminary and to have had the opportunity to direct the Polyphonic Choir from 2011 to 2015.

Father thanks all his confreres, friends and relatives for their support, good example and love. If a young man were to ask Father Verrier what he must do to make it through seminary, Father would say that cultivating a simple and humble obedience, trusting in God and devotion to Our Lady really helped him.

Father looks forward to aiding souls to find, know, love and serve God, Who is the Final End of all.

Fr. David Franco, FSSP, was ordained in Denton, Nebraska, on Saturday May 30, 2015, and offered one of his first Masses in his home parish of St. Benedict Parish in Chesapeake Virginia on the External Solemnity of Corpus Christi, images of which follow Father’s biography.

Father was born March 1, 1990, in Mountain View, California. In 1994, his family moved to New England briefly before settling in Virginia Beach, Virginia where he lived until entering the seminary. Fr. Franco is the eldest of six children.

He was home-schooled “all the way;” from day one through high school. During that time he also participated in the Holy Family Academy Home-School Co-Op, played piano, soccer, and air soft with his friends, attended youth group and was an avid member of the Boy Scouts. During his scouting career, he went on numerous camp outs and outings where he learned many useful skills and served various leadership roles in the boy-led organization. He gained many life-lessons from his experience in the Boy-Scouts which he shared with his father and brothers who were also very involved in scouting. Fr. Franco attained the rank of Eagle Scout in 2008, the year he graduated high school.

Father felt a call to the priesthood from an early age. “I remember thinking about it even before I received my First Communion,” he said. He became an Altar Boy at thirteen and spent many Masses in service of the altar where he developed a love for the Holy Sacrifice. He asked his mother to teach him Latin even though the Ordinary Form no longer required it. In his teen years, Father developed a deepening personal prayer life, thanks in no small part to the children’s “Armata Bianca” at the local Eucharistic Adoration Chapel, which strove to live the Fatima message. “These definitely helped me discern my vocation to the priesthood.”

Although he was raised in a traditionally-minded family, like many others, he did not know the Traditional Mass still existed. It was not until he was about 15 when he found it advertized in a tiny bulletin announcement for St. Benedict’s Latin Mass community. At his first Traditional Mass, he immediately fell in love with the Extraordinary Form. As he would afterwards say, “I knew I had found what I was looking for as soon as I walked into that chapel.”

He met Fr. Geddes, FSSP, who taught him how to serve the Traditional Mass and guided him in his discernment. Initially, he was hesitant to apply to the Fraternity. He was not sure he would be ready for seminary studies since he was only graduating high-school that spring. Yet, after talking with the seminary vocations director and Fr. Geddes, he decided to give it a try and entered in the fall of 2008.

How time flies! Seven years seem so short a time. The days in the seminary were some of the best days in his life.

Fr. Franco would like to show heartfelt gratitude to all who have helped him to the altar, especially for all his professors, peers, family, and friends. He humbly asks all of you to keep him in your prayers.

On Saturday, May 30, 2015, six deacons of the Fraternity of St. Peter were ordained to the sacred priesthood by the Most Reverend James D. Conley, Bishop of Lincoln, at the newly-constructed Newman Center Chapel in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Our gratitude and thanks to His Excellency for ordaining these men to the Holy Priesthood, our congratulations to our new priests and their families, and thanks to all our benefactors and friends who have supported these men and the seminary during the course of their studies, with both their prayers and financial assistance.

As each new priest has asked, and we always recommend, please in your kindness continue to pray for them and all of the priests of the Fraternity.

The newly ordained priests are:

• Father David Franco, FSSP
• Father John Kodet, FSSP
• Father Timothy O’Brien, FSSP
• Father Michael Malain, FSSP
• Father Ian Verrier, FSSP
• Father Simon Zurita, FSSP

Please return here for forthcoming pictures, and look for additional coverage of ordinations in an upcoming edition of the monthly newsletter.  Sign up Today