The Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception are pleased to announce that two Marian brothers are ready for ordination to the transitional diaconate, the last step, God willing, on their vocational journeys to the priesthood.
Brother Timothy Childers, MIC, and Br. Jason Lewis, MIC, will be ordained as deacons on Saturday, Sept. 3, at 10 a.m. at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
The Mass will be livestreamed by the Paulist Fathers on their YouTube channel and Facebook page.
The Most Rev. Roy Edward Campbell, Jr., auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington, will confer the Sacrament of Holy Orders on both men, who will make promises of obedience, celibacy, and to pray the Liturgy of the Hours daily.
Men studying for the priesthood are ordained as transitional deacons prior to beginning their final year of study before ordination to the priesthood. Deacons are able to preach at Mass, baptize, and celebrate weddings, while undergoing additional pastoral, liturgical, and educational preparation.
Brother Timothy John Childers, MIC
"I realized there was something deeper inside me that was longing for God, and I didn't even know it,” he recalls. “I heard the Lord speaking to me in my heart. I never had the ears to hear that before. It was impossible to ignore. God wanted a relationship with me. I felt like a new man. My whole life was given new color and depth, a sense of joy and hopefulness.”
He embarked on intense study of the Catholic faith. “I started going to Eucharistic Adoration, and would read St. Faustina’s Diary there,” he says. “As I learned about Pope John Paul II’s ‘Theology of the Body,’ I considered for the first time a vocation to celibacy and the priesthood.”
His vocational journey jump-started with a “Come and See” retreat with the Marians. “Father Donald Calloway’s conversion story resonated with me, as did the lives of saints like Augustine and Francis,” he says. “I realized I can invite God’s grace into my life, be a conduit of His love, and change the world for the better.”
Following ordination to the diaconate, Deacon Timothy will reside at the Marian House of Studies in Steubenville, Ohio, and participate in parish ministry.
He will preach his first homily as a deacon on Monday, Sept. 5 at the morning Mass at the Marian Scholasticate in Washington, D.C.
Brother Jason Matthew Lewis, MIC
A native of Steubenville, Ohio, he was really drawn to the Marian Fathers when he went to confession years ago with Fr. Kaz Chwalek, MIC, and afterwards was handed a copy of the Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska.
“That was it,” he admitted. “The devotion to Divine Mercy attracted me, and grew in me. The Lord gave me an image of my secular life as a small puddle, but the religious life as a wide open ocean filled with promise.”
Brother Jason co-authored the bestselling Marian Press book After Suicide: There’s Hope for Them and for You with the Very Rev. Chris Alar, MIC. “We had no idea when writing it that it would be so successful, and resonate with so many, offering hope to anyone grieving the loss of a loved one, whether by suicide or another cause,” he said.
Brother Jason is especially mindful of the fact that it is 15 years since the passing of Fr. Mark Garrow, MIC, former superior general of the Marian Fathers. “He was ‘Papa Mark,’ my spiritual mentor and friend,” he said. “I was privileged to serve as his primary caregiver during his valiant struggle with cancer. I will carry with me always his example of courage and serenity.”
Following ordination to the diaconate, Deacon Jason will continue his studies in Washington, including Encounter Ministry training.
Deacon Jason will preach his first homily as a deacon on Sunday, Sept. 4 at the 9:15 a.m. Mass at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C.
Please remember Deacon Timothy and Deacon Jason in your prayers!
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