Priests praise new pope for being a ‘witness to Jesus and his resurrection’
Father Sengole Thomas Gnanaraj, pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Richmond, gives two books he wrote to Pope Francis after a Feb. 7, 2024, general audience at the Vatican. (Submitted photo)
By Sean Gallagher
When Pope Francis was elected bishop of Rome in 2013, Father Douglas Marcotte was in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican and experienced the “electric atmosphere” in the massive crowd that greeted the new pontiff as he came out on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.
At the time, Father Marcotte was a transitional deacon in formation at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, months away from being ordained a priest for the archdiocese.
In an interview with The Criterion, Father Marcotte spoke of how he sees now more divisions among the faithful than he perceived in 2013.
“Whatever the reasons for this division, I have found myself craving a Holy Father that will be able to bring us all together, to help us see how much we have in common and how much good we could do together to help the world know our risen Lord,” Father Marcotte said. “In being a pastor, I have gained an appreciation for how important it is for leaders to be unifying figures, to gather folks around Jesus Christ.
“With that being said, you can imagine how edified I was to hear Pope Leo proclaim to the world, ‘Without fear, united, hand in hand with God, and with one another, let us move forward.’ ”
Other priests who serve in the archdiocese spoke with The Criterion about the significance of the election of Pope Leo for Catholics in central and southern Indiana. (See more news about our new pope)
A pope who is ‘a missionary disciple’
Father Sengole Thomas Gnanaraj, pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Richmond, was excited about the election of an American as pope.
A priest of the Diocese of Palayamkottai in southern India, Father Gnanaraj has ministered in the archdiocese for 14 years and has appreciated the vitality he’s seen in the Church in the United States.
“The Church in America is very alive,” he said. “It has advanced so much the new evangelization, forming people intentionally in many ways. Lay people are being educated theologically. The Church here is thriving. It’s alive.”
Father Gnanaraj can also identify with Pope Leo, who spent many years in ministry in Peru and whom he described as “a missionary disciple who has become a pope.”
Both were born and formed for ordained ministry in one country and went far away to serve as a missionary.
“Leaving one’s country is not easy,” said Father Gnanaraj. “I went through that. It took me three years to get used to [the reality] that this is my place, these are my people.”
He said that he and Pope Leo both went to faraway countries “for the sake of the Church, for the sake of the mission and, of course, for the sake of Christ. We’ve immersed ourselves in a different community … for the mission of Christ.”
“I feel so welcome here,” Father Gnanaraj said. “I don’t see myself as a stranger. This is my place. This is my community. Being here for 14 years has given me so much joy, being with the people that I serve. I never feel out of place. I never feel strange or challenged. I think Pope Leo XIV had the same experience [in Peru].
“Working in the Church in any part of the world is much different than working for other organizations, because the Church is primarily our family.”
‘Our faith is universal’
Like Father Gnanaraj, Father Mauro Rodas was born and formed for ministry far from the U.S. but has spent most of his 60 years of ordained ministry in central and southern Indiana.
He was born in Ecuador, a country neighboring Peru where Pope Leo spent decades of ministry. Father Rodas was ordained in 1965 for the Diocese of Guaranda, Ecuador.
Father Rodas became an archdiocesan priest in 1979. A year earlier, he was appointed to lead the archdiocese’s first organized ministry to Hispanic Catholics. During the past nearly 50 years, he’s witnessed how much the ministry has grown and has continued to play a part in it, even in retirement.
“It is satisfying to me to know that I made a little contribution to the Church in this particular area,” Father Rodas said.
He was amazed to see how God worked “in mysterious ways” to lead the 133 cardinal electors to select a pope who was born and formed in the U.S. for ministry and then served for decades in South America.
“He served people who needed help and direction,” Father Rodas said. “They needed hope and faith. I did the same thing in the United States. I came from Ecuador to a foreign country and learned the language. I love this ministry. I love the Hispanics. I care for them. I feel love for them from my heart.”
What he believes makes it possible for him and Pope Leo to serve in places faraway from their homes is that “our faith is universal.”
“Our faith is everywhere,” Father Rodas said. “It does not have limits. We have an unlimited faith. That’s why we call it Catholic. So, I feel like I belong to the whole world in relation to my faith. I don’t belong to only part of this Earth.”
‘A witness to Jesus in the world’
At the heart of that universal faith is Jesus Christ. Father Eric Augenstein was impressed by how, in his first remarks as pontiff, Pope Leo “came out to proclaim Christ Jesus, the peace of the risen Christ.”
The pastor of Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ Parish in Indianapolis and archdiocesan director of seminarians noted how the Acts of the Apostles said that a successor to Judas Iscariot in the ministry of the Apostles should be “a witness to [Christ’s] resurrection” (Acts 1:22).
“Pope Leo came to us as a witness to Christ and his resurrection,” Father Augenstein said. “That, in many ways, is one of the primary roles of the pope, to be a witness to Jesus in the world.”
He also noted that the attention that has been given to the Church from the death of Pope Francis through the election of Pope Leo is a chance for all Catholics to share the faith with others.
“It’s an opportunity for us as Church to remember the place and responsibility that we have in the world to pray for and support our Holy Father, but also through him and with him to spread the news of Jesus,” Father Augenstein said. “This is an opportunity for evangelization.
“As others have been fascinated by or curious about the Church in these days, we can say to them that we are here to proclaim Jesus to them just as Pope Leo does.”
Father Marcotte said he has been praying for Pope Leo and will continue to do so.
“I cannot imagine the weight of the cross he carries as the successor of St. Peter,” he said. “I am hopeful that Pope Leo’s pontificate will be one that testifies in both word and deed to the power of Jesus Christ’s resurrection to transform … the whole world.
“Many in the world are drowning in what seems like a darkness that is going to completely swallow them. They must know that, although the darkness may be vast, it has not—it will not—overcome Jesus Christ who is our light. If Pope Leo’s reign is known for and remembered for that testimony, we will thank God, for that will have done much to advance the kingdom.” †
