Feb
08
2021
By Anonymous (not verified)
By Marc Massery
Brother Nicholas, MIC, of South Brunswick, New Jersey, has an older sister who had always reminded him that he was going to become a priest one day.
"The priest that baptized me looked at my mom during my Baptism and said, 'This one is going to be a priest.' That stuck with my oldest sister," Br. Nicholas said. It stuck with Br. Nicholas, too.
He first felt drawn to the priesthood as a fourth grader. "That's when I consecrated myself to Jesus through Mary via St. Louis de Montfort's Total Consecration. Without me fully realizing it, Our Lady took that and led me to where I am today," he said.
Growing up, Br. Nicholas, his two older sisters, and his older brother all learned about their Catholic faith through the witness of their devout Catholic parents. "One of my earliest childhood memories is walking down the stairs hearing my parents pray the breviary together. The Catholic culture was very much a part of my life and ingrained in me, especially through my parents."
Brother Nicholas and his siblings all took piano lessons growing up. "I've been playing just about my whole life." He said that music proved essential in drawing him deeper into his relationship with God. "I enjoy composing and writing my own stuff. ... Through music, I felt more deeply connected to my faith and God. I found God in the awe and wonder that is created through music." His favorite composers are Frédéric Chopin and Sergei Rachmaninoff.
After graduating high school, Br. Nicholas went to Ave Maria University in Ave Maria, Florida. He studied music with a concentration in piano. "As an undergraduate, my faith became my own. Catholicism was no longer just something I had inherited. It was now something that I wanted to identify with. Thankfully, Ave Maria is an awesome Catholic school. They offered 24-hour Adoration."
The more Br. Nicholas went to Adoration, the more he was attracted to the idea of becoming a priest. "One day, I simply googled 'Marian community, loyal to the Magisterium of the Church,' and the Marian Fathers were the first result. They were the only religious order I was interested in. So, I visited and applied."
When he visited the Marians on a "come and see" retreat, he felt right at home. "I knew that Our Lady had drawn me there. I knew I was doing the right thing. When I completed my psychological evaluation for the seminary, I just felt a deep sense of being at home there. It didn't seem like something foreign, just the next thing that would be part of my life."
After two years as an undergraduate at Ave Maria, Br. Nicholas left to join the Marian Fathers. "I knew that I wanted to join the Marians. I didn't want to put it off. I wanted to join right away."
His family has been extremely supportive of his decision to pursue the priesthood. "They're all very Catholic: cousins, aunts, and uncles. It's a great support that I have, and they all understand it very much. It's nice to have that family background and prayers of support as well."
When Br. Nicholas consecrated himself to Our Lady as a fourth grader, he completed the consecration prayer in a side chapel at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. "My parents are third order Carmelites. We happened to be there for an event." Coincidentally, he spent his first year with the Marians at the Dominican House of Studies, just a stone's throw away from that same chapel. "It's like life has come full circle," he said.
Brother Nicholas has seen much personal growth in himself since joining the Marians more than two and a half years ago. "Emotions can be fleeting. There are good days and bad days in formation, like there are for anyone. But with the Marians, I have stumbled upon a peace and joy that is constant and pure, something rock solid that I haven't found any other place."
Brother Nicholas, MIC, of South Brunswick, New Jersey, has an older sister who had always reminded him that he was going to become a priest one day.
"The priest that baptized me looked at my mom during my Baptism and said, 'This one is going to be a priest.' That stuck with my oldest sister," Br. Nicholas said. It stuck with Br. Nicholas, too.
He first felt drawn to the priesthood as a fourth grader. "That's when I consecrated myself to Jesus through Mary via St. Louis de Montfort's Total Consecration. Without me fully realizing it, Our Lady took that and led me to where I am today," he said.
Growing up, Br. Nicholas, his two older sisters, and his older brother all learned about their Catholic faith through the witness of their devout Catholic parents. "One of my earliest childhood memories is walking down the stairs hearing my parents pray the breviary together. The Catholic culture was very much a part of my life and ingrained in me, especially through my parents."
Brother Nicholas and his siblings all took piano lessons growing up. "I've been playing just about my whole life." He said that music proved essential in drawing him deeper into his relationship with God. "I enjoy composing and writing my own stuff. ... Through music, I felt more deeply connected to my faith and God. I found God in the awe and wonder that is created through music." His favorite composers are Frédéric Chopin and Sergei Rachmaninoff.
After graduating high school, Br. Nicholas went to Ave Maria University in Ave Maria, Florida. He studied music with a concentration in piano. "As an undergraduate, my faith became my own. Catholicism was no longer just something I had inherited. It was now something that I wanted to identify with. Thankfully, Ave Maria is an awesome Catholic school. They offered 24-hour Adoration."
The more Br. Nicholas went to Adoration, the more he was attracted to the idea of becoming a priest. "One day, I simply googled 'Marian community, loyal to the Magisterium of the Church,' and the Marian Fathers were the first result. They were the only religious order I was interested in. So, I visited and applied."
When he visited the Marians on a "come and see" retreat, he felt right at home. "I knew that Our Lady had drawn me there. I knew I was doing the right thing. When I completed my psychological evaluation for the seminary, I just felt a deep sense of being at home there. It didn't seem like something foreign, just the next thing that would be part of my life."
After two years as an undergraduate at Ave Maria, Br. Nicholas left to join the Marian Fathers. "I knew that I wanted to join the Marians. I didn't want to put it off. I wanted to join right away."
His family has been extremely supportive of his decision to pursue the priesthood. "They're all very Catholic: cousins, aunts, and uncles. It's a great support that I have, and they all understand it very much. It's nice to have that family background and prayers of support as well."
When Br. Nicholas consecrated himself to Our Lady as a fourth grader, he completed the consecration prayer in a side chapel at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. "My parents are third order Carmelites. We happened to be there for an event." Coincidentally, he spent his first year with the Marians at the Dominican House of Studies, just a stone's throw away from that same chapel. "It's like life has come full circle," he said.
Brother Nicholas has seen much personal growth in himself since joining the Marians more than two and a half years ago. "Emotions can be fleeting. There are good days and bad days in formation, like there are for anyone. But with the Marians, I have stumbled upon a peace and joy that is constant and pure, something rock solid that I haven't found any other place."
LAMDVD
