Called to serve: Two Franciscan friars ordained to the priesthood

SILVER SPRING, Md. – As the setting sun streamed through St. Camillus Church’s multi-colored windows, Brothers Maikel Gómez Pérez, OFM, and Joshua Richter, OFM, made a public promise to serve as missionary disciples of God's boundless love.

Nearly 100 friars, family members and friends witnessed their ordination to the priesthood on Aug. 21 during a joyful bilingual Mass celebrated by Cardinal Robert McElroy of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. Concelebrating the Mass were the more than 60 Franciscan priests present, including Minister Provincial Br. Michael Perry, OFM, Vicar Provincial Br. Erick López, OFM, and Provincial Councilor and Secretary of Formation and Studies Br. Colin King, OFM. Also serving as concelebrants were Bishop Emmanuel Kanon Rozario of the Diocese of Barishal, Bangladesh, and Bishop Stephen Parkes of Savannah, Georgia, where Br. Maikel serves at St. Peter Claver Parish in Macon.

"The spirit of the Lord is upon you," Cardinal McElroy told the two friars, adding the spirit "recognizes that we have been placed on this earth with a particular purpose: to proclaim the Lord Jesus Christ and promote the transformation of the world."

The transformation, he said, is threefold: to share God's unlimited mercy and compassion, to build a world that reflects Christ’s virtues and removes the structures of injustice, and to heal suffering by bringing consolation, hope and joy.

After the Gospel was proclaimed, Cardinal McElroy called the ordination candidates forward from the congregation and they responded with a strong "Presente!" and "Present!" During the presentation of the candidates, Br. Michael Perry, OFM, and members of the community testified to their worthiness. Br. Jim McIntosh, OFM, who has lived and ministered with Br. Maikel, described him as "a dynamic man" with "a good sense of humor," adding, "he will make a good priest."

Br. Joshua's brother Robert Richter and sister-in-law Rileah reflected on his support during their marriage preparation and Rileah’s journey through the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults, saying, "We have experienced Joshua not only as a brother and someone who is preparing to be a priest, but also as a shepherd."

Sons of St. Francis

Br. Maikel, 46, was raised in Holguín, Cuba, where his late grandmother nurtured his faith. His call to serve others came from witnessing the suffering of the Cuban people. After reading about St. Francis of Assisi, he was inspired to join the Order and made his first profession on Dec. 28, 2015. He ministered to migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas, where he encountered Christ in those seeking refuge from violence, starvation and climate disasters. Today, he ministers to the Latino and young adult communities at St. Peter Claver Parish in Macon.

"As a priest, I feel happy and fulfilled," Br. Maikel shared after the Mass. "In this new stage of my life, while still being a Friar Minor, God has given me this ministry so that I can be a bridge of unity and reconciliation between my brothers and sisters and God."

When Br. Joshua, 29, was a child, he was unsure about what career to pursue. At age 12, he was inspired to become a Franciscan by witnessing the fraternity shared by the friars in Cincinnati. After college, he entered the Order of Friars Minor and professed his first vows on July 2, 2020. He teaches theology at Roger Bacon High School in Cincinnati and hopes to use his teaching and environmental science skills in various ministries.

"I had the blessing of being ordained eight years to the day that I started with the friars and arrived here at St. Camillus," he reflected after the Mass. "This has been a lifelong goal. I'm still trying to soak it all in, but I have just so much happiness, excitement – and a little nervousness – for everything that's going to come. My life is going to be changed forever."

During his homily, Cardinal McElroy emphasized that their priesthood is intertwined with their Franciscan identity.

"You live in the world, you pray, you serve, and sacrifice as a son and brother of Francis of Assisi," he said, referring to St. Francis as "a magnificent exemplar of the heart of Christ for our age: literally bearing the cross of Christ on his body, giving up all to minister to the people of God, witnessing to all humanity, serving as a peacemaker, a prophet of the call to cherish the created order."

Veni, Sancte Spiritus

Following the homily, the Rite of Priestly Ordination continued with the friars promising to faithfully carry out the ministry of priesthood. Then they prostrated themselves before the altar in a powerful symbol of surrender to God’s will. The assembly called upon the Lord Jesus Christ and joined the communion of saints in praying for their intercession.

As the litany concluded, Brothers Maikel and Joshua knelt before the cardinal for the laying on of hands as he prayed to the Holy Spirit to fill them with wisdom and grace. So too did more than 60 friar-priests in attendance, each imposing hands on the candidates before lining up in rows behind the altar.

Br. Joshua’s parents and Br. Maikel’s close friends brought forward their liturgical garments so that Brothers José Santos Pérez Castillo, OFM, and Bob Hutmacher, OFM, could vest Br. Maikel and Br. Joshua respectively with the stole and chasuble.

Cardinal McElroy also anointed their hands with sacred chrism and presented them with the bread and wine for the Eucharist. In an emotional moment, Brothers Maikel and Joshua gave their loved ones their maniturgium – the white linen cloth used to wipe the chrism from their hands – and a special blessing.

The joy in the air was palpable as the cardinal, bishops, deacon and friar-priests shared a sign of peace with the newly ordained priests, a period that lasted over seven minutes and concluded with resounding applause from the assembly. The new priests then joined the other ordained ministers at the altar to concelebrate the Eucharist for the first time.

A message of gratitude

As the Mass ended, Br. Michael Perry thanked the many people who had accompanied Brothers Maikel and Joshua throughout their journeys and expressed gratitude to Cardinal McElroy for presiding and for the fraternal presence of Bishop Parkes and Bishop Rozario. He also thanked individuals who organized and took part in the liturgy, including the Liturgy Committee led by Master of Ceremonies Br. Jim Sabak, OFM, Deacon Br. Michael Ward, OFM, Fr. Joseph Murphy of the Archdiocese of Washington, the music ministry and staff of St. Camillus Church, and the Holy Name College fraternity.

He asked those gathered to continue praying for the new priests as they begin their ministry.

"We thank God for the gift of these two brothers," he said. "May they enter into the struggles, the heartbreaks, the daily realities of the people of God, sharing also their joys, serving as instruments of God's forgiveness and tenderness, prepared to go to the peripheries sharing the hope, love, and justice that Jesus alone is able to give."