Shining the Light of Truth

Shining the Light of Truth

By Praedicare Staff

The seven newest priests of the Province of St. Joseph share their thoughts on bringing the truth to a world in need

“Those who are learned will be radiant as the sky in all its beauty; those who instruct the people in goodness will shine like the stars for all eternity.”

By the time a Dominican friar is ordained a priest, he will have sung this antiphon dozens of times. It comes from Morning Prayer for the Liturgy of the Hours for the feast of a Doctor of the Church. Most friars, in all humility, would not aspire to be recognized as a Doctor of the Church, yet the antiphon for Morning Prayer may nonetheless inspire them in their ministry. That’s because the bishops and priests of the Church are entrusted with the sacred duty of teaching the faithful. The priest, by virtue of his ordination, is a teacher, even if he never steps foot in a classroom.

On Thursday, June 5, the Most Reverend Anthony C. Fisher, O.P., Archbishop of Sydney, Australia, ordained seven friars to the priesthood of Jesus Christ. They are bringing clarity to a world hungry for sound teaching. Wherever they go throughout their ministries, they will take what they have learned from their Dominican formation and hand on these gifts to the faithful, inquirers, and everyone else besides. Like the centuries of Dominican priests before them, they will “instruct the people in goodness” and after years of faithful service, “shine like the stars for all eternity.”

Fr. Louis Bethea, O.P.

Hometown: Springfield, VA
Alma Mater: Carnegie-Mellon University
Current Ministry: Advanced studies

“A pressing challenge facing the church is an underappreciation of just how special it is to be baptized into the Mystical Body of Christ…Just as I am beginning to embark on my own journey as a priest of Jesus Christ, preaching and teaching with a special commission as an ordained minister, all of the baptized have their own way—especially in the family and the workplace—of teaching the truth of God, and we must help reinvigorate an understanding and appreciation for this essential component of being Christian.

Fr. Louis Bethea, O.P., promises obedience to his superior and local ordinary at his ordination.

Fr. Gregory Santy, O.P.

Hometown: Syracuse, NY
Alma Mater: Catholic University of America
Current Ministry: Campus ministry at Providence College

“As St. Thomas once noted, these are the two greatest mysteries of our Faith: the divinity of the Trinity and the humanity of Christ. Since eternal life consists in knowing these, in knowing the only true God and the one whom he has sent (John 17:3), and we can only come to know, to believe in them by hearing, the greatest need for teaching in the Church today, as it has always been, is the preaching of these two truths, which are the heart of the Gospel message.”

Fr. Gregory Santy, O.P., receives the laying on of hands at his ordination.

Fr. Bertrand Hebert, O.P.

Hometown: Crowley, LA
Alma Mater: Catholic University of America
Current Ministry: Advanced studies

“Christ stands as the perfect teacher. His lessons resonate deeply, not solely due to the profound images and parables he used—though they are indeed powerful—but because he is Truth in the flesh, showcasing the greatest lesson of truth at work in our lives. The Dominicans were founded partly to counteract erroneous teachings that diminish the significance of the flesh and the humanity of Christ. Thus, we hold a heartfelt devotion to the Incarnation, which profoundly shapes our prayer, study, and preaching.”

Fr. Bertrand Hebert, O.P., receives the chalice and paten from Archbishop Anthony Fisher, O.P., of Sydney, Australia.

Fr. Basil Burroughs, O.P.

Hometown: Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Alma Mater: Queen’s University
Current Ministry: Advanced studies

“A reality that excites me is that a priest shares in a privileged way in the teaching mission given to Christ: ‘As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ The priest receives a grace and a charge to perpetuate Christ’s mediating presence in the world, a presence that brings divine truth, mercy, and redemption…The priest perpetuates Christ’s testimony about who he is and where true power to love is found.”

Fr. Basil Burroughs, O.P., imparts his first blessing upon the Archbishop Anthony Fisher, O.P., of Sydney, Australia.

Fr. Titus Sanchez, O.P.

Hometown: Fort Worth, TX
Alma Mater: Southern Methodist University
Current Ministry: Advanced studies

“The greatest need for teachers in the Church today is that they be credible witnesses. When a preacher’s life is rooted in Christ, he becomes a human window to divine things. That is my prayer for my priestly ministry: when people see me, may they see Jesus; when they hear me, may they hear Jesus.”

Fr. Titus Sanchez, O.P., listens to the homily during the Mass of Ordination.

Fr. Nicodemus Thomas, O.P.

Hometown: Waltham, MA
Alma Mater: Providence College
Current Ministry: Parish ministry at St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish in Charlottesville, VA

“Many fields of study help people know things. Our studies as Dominican Friars help us know a person: Jesus Christ. And that is what separates the teaching office of the Church from so many other teachings. We do not just hand on facts or things learned in a book. We as Dominican priests get to hand on the very person of Jesus Christ. We do so mystically from the pulpit and in the classroom and even more beautifully on the altar.”

Fr. Nicodemus Thomas, O.P., blesses his parents after his ordination.

Fr. Linus Martz, O.P.

Hometown: Hanover, PA
Alma Mater: Christendom College
Current Ministry: Parish ministry at Holy Innocents Church in Pleasantville, NY

“As a priest, I look forward to teaching all who will listen about Christ’s merciful grace, which we receive through the Church and her sacraments. I especially hope in my words and actions to make Christ the Teacher present to families, to the poor, and to those who do not yet believe.”