New Priest Assigned To St. Alexander To Be Ordained Saturday

CHICAGO – A new priest assigned to St. Alexander Catholic Church in Palos Heights will be ordained for the Archdiocese of Chicago Saturday, May 21. The ordination will be livestreamed starting at 10 a.m. on the archdiocese’s YouTube channel Catholic Chicago.

Cardinal Blase Cupich will ordain Colm Mitchell, 32, of Chicago, at Holy Name Cathedral, 735 N. State St., Chicago. Mitchell's first assignment will be to St. Alexander. Another man, Joseph Brom, SJC, 35, from Lisle, is also slated to be ordained by the cardinal this Saturday.

“I welcome these men into the priesthood as shepherds who love the Lord with all their hearts and who will bring different life experiences and talents to their ministries,” Cardinal Cupich said in a news release. “They answered a call to give their lives in service to God and His people. May the wisdom and fortitude of the Holy Spirit and the gift of the Lord’s grace guide them.”

Men become priests through the Sacrament of Holy Orders, a celebration rich in symbolism and tradition. By ordination, priests receive a wide variety of responsibilities, particularly celebrating the Mass and granting forgiveness of sins through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Priests also preach the Gospel, and celebrate the Sacraments of Baptism, Matrimony, and Anointing of the Sick. Diocesan priests make promises of life-long celibacy, prayer for the People of God, and obedience to their bishop at their ordination. It is also expected that priests will lead a life of simplicity consistent with the people they serve.

Each newly ordained priest has completed at least six years of human, spiritual, academic and pastoral formation, which included an exhaustive study of philosophy, Catholic theology, the history of the Church, and pastoral practice. As part of their seminary education, future priests are assigned to work at parishes, schools, and hospitals as they develop their capacity to be shepherds of God’s people.

“These men have spent the bulk of their seminary formation during some of the most challenging times the Church has seen in recent years,” said the Very Reverend John Kartje, rector/president of University of St. Mary of the Lake / Mundelein Seminary. “The flexibility and resilience they have displayed, while always remaining grounded in their relationship with Jesus Christ, will serve them and the people of the Archdiocese of Chicago extremely well. They have the hearts of true shepherds, disciples, and servants.”

Mitchell will celebrate his first Mass Sunday, May 22 at 1:30 p.m. at St. Mary of Perpetual Help Church, Chicago.

Brom, SJC, 35, from Lisle, is a Canon Regular of St. John Cantius and will have his first assignment at St. John Cantius Parish in Chicago. He will celebrate his first Mass on Sunday, May 22 at 10:30 a.m. at St. John Cantius, 825 N. Carpenter St., Chicago.