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See Pictures of the Ordination
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Chulucanas Ordinations Celebrated in Spirit of Thanksgiving May 5th was a historic day for the Vicariate
of Chulucanas when three young Peruvians were ordained to the priesthood and
one other to the deaconate. The ordination mass was held in the Cathedral of
the dioceses of Chulucanas and was f The men being ordained to the priesthood were Juan Carlos Olaya a native of our parish of Morropon, about 1 hour away from Chulucanas. Hugo Erazo a native of the mountain village of Santo Domingo where the Augustinians staffed the local parish for many years and are still fondly remembered by the inhabitants. Finally, Alberto Saavedra from a small mountain village a mile high in the Andes mountains, in the parish of Chalaco, also once staffed by the Augustinians. Also in attendance were the two parents of Hugo, the mother of Juan Carlos (his father is deceased for several years) and the aunt that raised Alberto. His mother died giving birth to Alberto and his father passed away when he was a very young child. Thus his aunt and uncle are considered his “parents.” At the same time Miguel Sedan, a native of the city of Piura, about 40 miles from Chulucanas was ordained a deacon. Both Hugo and Juan Carlos did their respective
theological studies in the international house for Latin America in Cochabamba,
Bolivia. So representing the Augustinians of Bolivia was Fr. Juan Pedro
Smesters, the Vicar of Bolivia. Also present representing the American
Augustinians was Fr. Bill Lego, provincial of the Midwest Province. In his beautiful homily, bishop Dan emphasized the need of the ordained minister to foment the basic baptismal call of the laity. All the baptized are called to mission, all are called to build the body of Christ and to promote this is one of the essential dimensions of the priest and deacon. The pre-novitiate students of Trujillo, under the direction of the community’s prior, Fr. Julio Astete, provided the music for the celebration which was inspiring and brought together all the people in the church who joined in with loud voices. After the homily the bishop proceeded to the ordination
rite, first of the deacon and then of the three priests. He questioned each
of the candidates about their intentions and their free decision to follow the
Lord. Each then offered to him and his successors obedience in the exercise
of their ordained ministry explaining to the faithful that previously in their
solemn profession they had promised obedience to their religious superiors in
all that pertains to their common life. Following the promise of obedience,
the candidates lied down on the floor, in a sign of humility, as the litany of
the saints was sung. This was then followed by the laying on of hands on
Miguel as he was ordained a deacon. Then his family brought up the stole,
sign of his ministry, to the bishop to be blessed. Then the two padrinos
(god-parents) vested the new
Next the three young men who were already deacons
approached the bishop who laid hand on each of them. Following that, in
accordance with the long tradition of the church, dating at least to the 3rd
century, all the priest present lay their hands on the newly ordained as
well. Once again the “padrinos” then vest the newly ordained with vestments
he will use to celebrate mass, and then the priest goes up to the bishop to
have his hands anointed with the holy chrism, the same oil used at baptism.
Finally each receives the chalice and paten, symbols of his vocation to
preside at the Eucharistic celebration. The final part of the ceremony is the sign of peace and fraternity that the bishop, and then all the priests and Augustinians present share with the newly ordained. At the end of mass came the tradition “acción de gracias” (offering of thanks). Each of the newly ordained spoke to express their gratitude for their vocation and to thank the people whose role was most important in supporting them during these years. Finally the Vicar of the Augustinians in Chulucanas, Fr. John Lydon, spoke in the name of the Augustinian community. As the mass ended, the bishop received the first blessing of the newly ordained priest, followed by Augustinians and members of their families. Then all the invited guest went to the Pastoral Center of the dioceses to partake of a traditional meal of goat, potatoes, and a traditional Peruvian drink called “chica morada” (a purple corn based drink). A toast was offered at the beginning with wine, and the blessing was pronounced by one of the newly ordained. As part of the entertainment during the lunch a young
couple offered a rendition of a typical dance in the northern region of Peru,
the Tondero. Finally the gathered crowd yelled for Fr. Juan Carlos to also do
the dance because as a youth in the parish of Morropon many years ago he won
the national championship held annually for this dance. |
illed with family, friends and
Augustinians for the occasion. Presiding at the celebration was our brother,
Bishop Dan Turley, bishop of the dioceses. 
deacon with the sign of his office, the deacon’s
stole and Miguel then knelt again before the bishop to receive the book of the
Gospels, “whose hearld” the bishop says, he now becomes. Handing him the book
the bishop proclaims: “Believe what you read, teach what you believe, practice
what you teach.”