‘You will be shepherds like him’: Pope Francis ordains nine new priests in St. Peter’s Basilica

Pope Francis ordained nine men to the priesthood on Sunday, urging them to be shepherds like Christ throughout their priestly lives.

In a largely off-the-cuff homily in St. Peter’s Basilica April 25, he told them that they would share in the mission of Christ.

He said: “You will be shepherds like him. This is what he wants of you. Pastors. Pastors of God’s holy faithful people. Pastors who go with God’s people: sometimes in front of the flock, sometimes in the middle or behind, but always there with God’s people.”

The pope urged the ordinands to seek “closeness” to God, their bishop, their fellow priests, and the People of God throughout their priestly service. He described this as the “four closenesses of the priest.”

He said it was vital for clergy to remain near God in prayer.

“A priest who does not pray slowly extinguishes the fire of the Spirit within,” he commented.

He called on the ordination candidates to see themselves as “collaborators” with their bishops, ensuring unity in the local Church.

He also asked them to be respectful of other priests.

“I suggest a resolution for you to make on this day: never speak ill of a brother priest. If you have something against another, be a man: go there, and tell him to his face,” he said.

He also encouraged them always to maintain a strong connection with parishioners.

“None of you have studied to become a priest. You have studied the ecclesiastical sciences, as the Church says you should. But you have been elected, taken from God’s people,” he told them.

He warned them that when priests lose contact with the people, they become “entrepreneurs,” rather than servants.

He said he was moved when he heard the story of a priest who was an able administrator. When the priest discovered that an elderly employee had made a mistake, he harshly scolded him, terminating his employment. The pope said that the elderly man died as a result.

“The man had been ordained as a priest and ended up as a ruthless entrepreneur,” he reflected.

Three of the nine new priests for the Diocese of Rome -- who range in age from 26 to 43 -- were born outside Italy. The non-Italians come from Romania, Colombia, and Brazil.

• Fr. George Marius Bodgan, originally from Romania, trained for the priesthood at both the Pontifical Roman Minor Seminary and the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary. He was first inspired to pursue the vocation when he read a life of St. John Bosco at the age of nine.

• Fr. Salvatore Marco Montone, a 32-year-old from Calabria, southwest Italy, was born on Good Friday 1989. On the day of his baptism, the parish ran out of white garments for children, so the priest covered him with his stole. “I have no memories, of course, but my parents always tell me about it,” he said in a press release from the Diocese of Rome.

• Fr. Manuel Secci, at 26 the youngest of the nine new priests, was born in Rome. His vocation was nurtured at his local parish of Santi Simone e Giuda Taddeo a Torre Angela, where, he said, “the sense of community and the beautiful experiences nurtured my vocation.” He trained at the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary.

• Fr. Diego Armando Barrera Parra, 27, was born in Colombia. After completing high school, he volunteered in a juvenile detention center and a foundation for drug addicts. “There my desire was born to be able to help and serve others forever,” said the new priest, who studied at the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary.

• Fr. Giorgio De Iuri, a 29-year-old from Brindisi, a port city on the Adriatic Sea, first felt a call to the priesthood at the age of 15. While studying medicine in Rome, he decided to pursue the vocation, training at the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary.

• Fr. Salvatore Orazio Lucchesi, a 43-year-old Sicilian, discerned his vocation later in life, studying at the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary.

• Fr. Riccardo Cendamo, 40, who trained at the Redemptoris Mater seminary, was previously a film director. In 2013, he was invited to show his co-directed short film “Regreso a casa” at the Ischia Film Festival. He has taught directing at the Accademia Togliani, a cultural association in Rome. Before his ordination, he said: “If I look back now, I realize that the call to the priestly vocation has always existed, that love had to mature.”

• Fr. Samuel Piermarini, 28, was a promising young soccer player who turned down an opportunity to play for the youth team of the Serie A club A.S. Roma. After discerning a call to the priesthood, he entered the Redemptoris Mater seminary.

• Fr. Mateus Henrique Ataide Da Cruz, 29, was born in Afogados da Ingazeira, northeast Brazil. He recalled that when he was 15, he started working for an elderly man. “I helped him with the computer,” he said. “In the work contract it was clearly written that every day I would also have to pray with him and recite the rosary. What I experienced at first as an imposition became a necessity for me.” He moved to Rome seven years ago to train at the Seminary of Our Lady of Divine Love.