Three priests ordained for the Sydney Archdiocese

Priestly ordinations not only reflect the diversity of the global clergy, but also stand as reminders of how everyday persons are called to holiness.  

This message was the core of Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP’s homily on 8 August for the celebrations of the ordination of three new priests for the Archdiocese of Sydney at St Mary’s Cathedral.  

It was also the feast day of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, Australia’s first saint. In his homily Archbishop Fisher said that she was an example of how everyone can heed and spread Christ’s Word and become “holy, holy, holy followers of Christ.”  

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“MacKillop took Christ’s words seriously enough to keep riding out into the bush, starting and supporting things, sending sisters forth and leaving the rest to God,” he said.  

“That was the secret to her sanctity, and a reminder to us all that holiness can be cultivated in the most ordinary circumstances.”  

The Archbishop also commended the newly ordained priests, Fr Lukasz Golab, Fr Peter Van Khuong Tran, and Fr Stephen Howard for entering a life where God has made them “living instruments of Christ, the Eternal Priest.”  

“The call to holiness goes out to the whole world, and today it addresses three men from different countries, one from Poland, one from Vietnam and the other a ‘Hillsbilly’ of Sydney,” he said.  

“In our epistle today, St Paul has some fashion advice for you: as you engage in those new priestly tasks, clothe yourselves in the alb of compassion, kindness and humility, in the cincture of gentleness and patience and in the stole of forbearance, forgiveness and peace.” 

For all three men, it was an emotional day. At the beginning of Mass, the Archbishop asked the faithful and other clergy to pray for Fr Tran, as his extended family from Vietnam were denied visas to attend the ordination, while also acknowledging how the grief of losing a brother informed Fr Howard’s decision to discern his priestly vocation.  

Fr Howard was visibly moved as he spoke before the final blessing, especially when he referred to “our loving Mother Mary.”  

“We would like to thank the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Joseph, who built together the house of Nazareth in our hearts, so we may become just like their son,” he said.  

“Quietly, secretly, patiently, they have loved us and watched over us. And for the precious gift of priesthood, we give thanks and praise to God, our provident Father, to God the Holy Spirit, to God the Son, our Lord and lover, Jesus Christ, the way, the truth and the life, whose love is stronger than sadness, than sin, than war, than suffering and stronger than death.”  

Fr Howard also thanked the Archbishop, the auxiliary Bishops, the Seminary of the Good Shepherd, the friends and family of the three newly ordained and the priests of Sydney, “who have welcomed us to the presbyterate so kindly, so prayerfully, as fathers, friends and brothers.”  

The Mass was followed by a reception in the Cathedral Hall where people crowded in to receive the first blessings of the three new priests.  

For Fr John Greig, who recently retired from his position as parish priest at Our Lady Star of the Sea at Miranda, witnessing the ordination of three new priests, including Fr Golab, whom he can count as, “one of my wonderful students, and a wonderful young man,” gives him hope for the future of Sydney’s clergy.  

“A lot of us older folk can’t go on because we’re not well and are on the natural way out, so it’s absolutely wonderful for us to see that there are new priests coming through,” he said.  

“They won’t just be great priests, but they will be good young men too.”  

Fr Golab also received a framed papal blessing from Pope Leo XIV, which was presented to him by his friend Jennifer John.  

“I met Fr [Golab] in Rome, and we ended up in the same group for World Youth Day, and since meeting him, I’ve always thought about getting him the papal blessing,” she said. 

“In the end, it’s not just a gift, it’s a blessing, and it’s a blessing of the holy Father, and he definitely deserves on his big day, and I’m sure everyone here today will be praying not just for Father but for all three of Sydney’s new priests. 

Anh Nguyen, a seminarian studying at the Seminary of the Good Shepherd, was also extremely happy.  

“The ordination was awesome and incredibly inspiring to see three men who were once our brothers in the seminary become brothers in Christ,” he said.  

“Hopefully, in time, I and my fellow brothers in seminary can join them.”