Bishop Checchio ordains five men to the priesthood

ASBURY — At long last, the spiritual journeys of five men reached a glorious summit as Transitional Deacons David Edward Keyes, Thomas William Lanza, Gustavo Andres Rodriguez-Perez and Gilbert Zachariah Starcher, and Oratorian Brother John Fredy Triana-Beltran were ordained to the priesthood.

“We are grateful for the gift of these five men who will lay down their lives in service to the Church,” said Bishop James F. Checchio before hundreds of clergy, family, friends and well-wishers in attendance to witness the milestone event Aug. 22.

The rite, usually celebrated at the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi, Metuchen, was instead moved to the open-air National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima amphitheater because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the need to accommodate more people in a socially-distant environment. Fortuitously, the date marked the Feast of the Queenship of Mary, the patroness of the diocese.

In his homily, Bishop Checchio, who presided at the Mass, said the five men taking their priestly vows made up the largest ordination class in the diocese in the past 25 years.

All but Father Triana-Beltran were ordained for the diocese. He is a member of the Raritan Congregation of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, which resides at St. Ann Rectory in Raritan. The Oratorians serve at St. Ann Parish and its school; St. Joseph Parish and the Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament, also in Raritan; and Holy Trinity Parish, Bridgewater.

Bishop Checchio advised the new priests rely upon their mother, Mary, since “sacrifice, the priesthood and the Incarnation forever go together.”

Recalling the Gospel of John, wherein Jesus entrusted his mother, Mary, to the disciple at the foot of the cross, Bishop Checchio said, “Jesus Christ, after having given all he could give… gave us the most precious thing he had left: his holy mother. Every Christian person is entrusted to Mary, our mother,” he continued. “God made himself dependent upon his own creature [by] awaiting Mary’s ‘yes.’

Addressing the five who were about to become ordained priests, the bishop added, “My brothers, there will be a special relationship between Mary and you beginning today. Take Mary into your inner being, all that your priestly ministry will be… You can and must feel you are the truly chosen beloved disciple.”

Bishop Checchio advised the priests to hold up Mary as their model and be “a celibate, prayerful and obedient priest.”

“Go out to all the corners of the diocese to be with those in need of Jesus. You don’t go alone,” he continued. “You have the prayers and gratitude of the people of the Diocese of Metuchen… Go forth today with enthusiasm. The Holy Spirit that acted in Christ is the same spirit that acts in you today.”

Father Mauricio Tabera-Vasquez, director, diocesan Office of Vocations, made a public affirmation that the five candidates were prepared to take up their priestly ministries, and each man asserted that he had come willingly and faithfully to the priesthood.

In a preponderance of caution during the early weeks of the pandemic, the diocese had postponed the annual Chrism Mass, at which the bishop blesses the holy oils used in numerous church rites. So that he might anoint the hands and head of his new priests, Bishop Checchio blessed and consecrated oils in the amphitheater before the ordination.

During the Rite of Ordination, the men declared their willingness to undertake the tasks and obligations of the priesthood. The men knelt before the bishop to promise fealty to him and his successors; they lay prostrate before the altar to symbolize both their unworthiness for the office to be assumed and dependence upon God and the prayers of the Christian community as a schola led the congregation in the timeless chant “Litany of the Saints.”

The last notes of the litany faded, and the five men arose to approach Bishop Checchio, who then laid his hands on their heads, one after the other, in silent prayer to invoke the Holy Spirit. Then, one by one, their fellow priests filed from their seats into the sanctuary to bless their new brothers in faith in the same manner.

The vestments of a deacon the five wore were replaced by a stole and chasuble, the garments of a priest. They knelt once more before Bishop Checchio as he anointed their palms with Holy Chrism. During the Kiss of Peace, each new priest was embraced by the bishop and their fellow clerics. They then joined the prelates at the altar to consecrate, for the first time, the bread and wine during the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Bishop Checchio announced the five priests’ first parish assignments as parochial vicars. Father Keyes will  serve at St. Ambrose, Old Bridge; Father Lanza will minister at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Bernardsville, and teach at Immaculata High School, Somerville; Father Rodriquez-Perez will serve at St. Joseph, North Plainfield; Father Starcher will minister at St. Philip and St. James, Phillipsburg; and Oratorian Father Triana-Beltran  was assigned to the Blessed Sacrament Shrine, Raritan.

After celebrating the Mass and delivering his remarks, Bishop Checchio knelt in front of the altar and each of the five new priests gave their first priestly blessing upon him. The clergy then recessed out of the Shrine.    

`Father Keyes, Father Lanza, Father Rodriquez-Perez, Father Starcher and Oratorian Father Triana-Beltran returned to the altar. Members of the congregation eagerly formed queues before each new priest to receive their blessings, as others shared their admiration for the five.

Orlando and Maria Barcenas of St. Matthew Parish, Edison, snapped numerous cellphone photos of the rite. Beaming, Orlando explained, “We are friends of Gustavo, a good man. His family couldn’t come [due to the pandemic], but we are here for him.”

Jay Locquiao, a member of St. Ann Parish, Raritan, shared, “I came to witness the gift of the priesthood. I am aware of the struggles that Fredy [Father Triana-Beltran] went through to get there, the many steps along the way. He carried his cross and was able to obtain the graces he needed. He’ll help the people with those graces.”