HOMETOWN

ALMA MATER

Father Raphael Arteaga was born in Providence, Rhode Island and raised in the city of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Brother Raphael’s parents, both originally born in Colombia, South America, were committed to providing a Catholic education to him and his sister, which helped to feed the Catholic faith passed on at home. From a young age Brother Raphael found himself growing in wonder at the Holy Mass and by extension, the priesthood. Yet, it was not until he met the Dominican Friars at Providence College, where he earned his Bachelors of Arts in Theology in 2019, that he began to think about religious life in conjunction with the vocation of the priesthood. “Not only did I have the Dominican Friars in class and as my chaplains, but I also had the unique experience of being a porter for the priory on campus for all four years of college. It was the experience of the multi-generations of friars residing and working at Providence College that I saw the true grace that works within the Dominican religious life under the patronage of Saint Dominic and the Blessed Mother. It was the joyful and fraternal witness of my older brothers in religion that made me desirous of the same joy and fidelity of life in Jesus Christ.”