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Ordination Day in Oxnard
Mary Star of the Sea Parish in Oxnard, California, was the scene for the second round of ordinations for the Augustinian Recollects in 2003. The date was Saturday, May 31, and the candidates for ordination were Fras. Eliseo González of Oxnard, California, and Luis Ramírez of Santa Ana, California (both of whom were fighting colds on ordination day!). Bishop David Arias, auxiliary of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, and himself an Augustinian Recollect, was ordaining bishop for the occasion. Mary Star of the Sea was filled with clergy, family members of the newly ordained, and parishioners, many of whom were witnessing their first ordination. Since both candidates and their families were of Mexican decent, the services were conducted mostly in Spanish. Br. Anthony Torretti was Master of Ceremonies for the occasion, and the students from neighboring St. Augustine Priory were the servers. Vesting priests were Frs. Provincial (for Fr. González) and Fr. Ramon Gaitan (for Fr. Ramírez). Concelebrants included representatives from most of our parishes in Southern California as well as guests Fr. Marlon Beof (prefect of professed) and Br. Ramiro Muñoz from Tagaste Monastery. Fr. Robert Huse played the organ and accompanied the parish choirs. After the Mass a reception, which included a dinner, was hosted by the parish in the hall. There were long lines of people awaiting the first priestly blessing of Frs. González and Ramírez. On the following day, June 1, both Frs. González and Ramírez celebrated their first Masses, respectively in Oxnard and Santa Ana. For those who are not familiar with Southern California geography, these two towns are about two hours apart! To allow for people to attend both services, Fr. González celebrated his Mass at 9:00 AM and Fr. Ramírez at 7:00 PM. The main dinner was held in the evening for both young men at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Santa Ana. Bishop David Arias - who attended both celebrations - spoke movingly about the example these young men have set and challenged the youth who were present to consider the possibility of a vocation to the religious life and priesthood. High lights of the evening included a lively Mariachi group who provided music for the occasion, and the cutting of the huge cakes that were more than enough to satisfy the large crowd. In all, the weekend of May 31-June 1 was a most happy time for the people our parishes, our Recollect brothers, the families and friends of the newly ordained, and most of all the young men who will now be joining their fellow priests in carrying out their new duties. for other stories, visit our news archive
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