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Brother Damien is Now a Deacon!!
Sunday January 30th was the momentous occasion
of Bro. Damien Gjonaj’s ordination as a transitional deacon at St. Scholastica
Parish in Detroit! The ceremony took place during the 12:30 pm Mass
which was presided by Bishop Moses
Anderson (Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit). His confreres from St. Benedict
and St. Sylvester Monasteries, Frs. Daniel Homan, Michael Green and Bernard
Shinn concelebrated the Mass with the Bishop and a Deacon from Precious
Blood Parish (the church that Bishop Anderson pastors). Most of our
community from St. Benedict Monastery as well as some of our neighbors
and friends braved the inclement weather to attend this happy occasion
and pray for Br. Damien (it’s almost 50 miles between Oxford and Detroit).
In eager attendance were many relatives from his family, among them his
mother along with some of the
parishioners of the church.
The preparations for the ordination
was not an easy task. First, Br. Damien had to travel from New York
to Detroit on Friday night because he is a student at St. Joseph Seminary
in Yonkers. He arrived in Detroit at 10 pm then was driven to St.
Scholastica to practice for the ceremony with Fr. Daniel Homan. Finally,
he came home (to St. Benedict Monastery) shortly after Midnight!
Because the Sunday Mass is celebrated at St. Benedict Monastery at 9:30
am, there was not a lot of time
for the monks before they left the monastery for the church in Detroit.
In hindsight, all of the monks as well as our friends from the Oxford area
who attended the Mass at St. Scholastica felt that being present at the
ordination was a very inspirational experience!
The Mass and ordination was
followed by a jubilant, but simple celebration in the community room at
St. Sylvester Monastery (adjacent to the church). The monks and many
of their friends enjoyed the company of the Bishop as they ate the
refreshments prepared by some of the parishioners of St. Scholastica Parish.
The other monks, Frs. John Colautti, Bartholomew Kraemer, Livy Paoli and
Leo Cornelli (former Abbot of the our Benedictine Congregation) joined
in the “post-Mass” festivities. Unfortunately because of his studies,
Br. Damien immediately after the celebration had to go back to the Seminary
in Yonkers. We ask all our visitors to pray for Br. Damien’s ministry
as a transitional Deacon and for a successful last semester at St. Joseph
Seminary.
Congratulations
Brother
Damien!
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All above photos courtesy of Ann Haefner
THIS NEWS PAGE IS
UPDATED EVERY MONDAY.
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