BACKGROUND

I was born in Long Beach on March 2 in 2002. My family then lived in Buena Park and attended St. Irenaeus Church where I was baptized. My father, a medical engineer, and my mother, a nurse, moved to Mission Viejo in 2005 along with my two older sisters, older brother, and my younger brother, where we began to attend Holy Trinity Church. I attended Mission Viejo High School and graduated in 2020 (albeit, through a zoom commencement ceremony). I attended Holy Trinity by myself for the past few years before entering seminary where I’ve helped the parish through simple ushering and other times as lector, usually for daily masses.

What are some of the factors thet led to your decision to enter the seminary and discern the question of a vocation to the priesthood?

The greatest factor was spending intimate time with Our Lord through either prayer or in front of the Blessed Sacrament. I felt peace and I dug into that feeling where I discovered a clear question, “Will you follow Our Lord all the way to calvary?” I knew I was called to perfection and to total surrender to God’s will. In my surrender came a recurring question that began when I was 7 which was Christ’s priesthood.

Who are some of the people who influenced your decision to enter the seminary? What is it about them that assisted you?

My primary influence was my pastor at Holy Trinity Church who had a pastoral heart that could be seen by anyone. The love between priest and congregation was a new love I hadn’t quite understood before, although I certainly noticed it. Praying for each other, as he offered me spiritual direction, I gained a deeper love for what the priesthood means, a heart chosen by God that brings God’s love to ordinary people

Describe the moment that you knew you wanted to take the next steps to become a priest?

The most clear moment I had where I knew I had to make the next step to applying for seminary was when praying the Our Lady’s rosary and I arrived at the fifth Joyful mystery, the finding of Our Lord in the temple. Praying that decade I felt total stillness as I thought of Jesus leaving his family to do His Father’s work, debating with scholars in the temple. It was then I knew that I had to make the next step in doing my Heavenly Father’s work in applying for seminary.