Louisville Ordinations

The weekend before last, it was a great joy of mine to be a part of the ordination of two Deacons to the Holy Priesthood for the Archdiocese of Louisville. It was a hectic trip tho! Flying home, I couldn't get on the plane because they oversold it (but I was compensated). I was put on standby for the next flight and, thankfully, I was able to get on. That was a miracle because it was Memorial Day weekend and every other flight that day on every other airline that flies out of BWI was booked solid.

Flying back, my plane was delayed three times. I should have arrived in Baltimore at 9:30pm but didn't arrive till 1:45am.

But anyway, it was an honor to be a part of the ordination Mass; I was the crossbearer. I also had a fun time staying with my d.b., Mike, at the Cathedral Rectory. The whole weekend made me want to be a priest, like, tomorrow.

Here's a pic of me in the Courier-Journal pretending to be a Swiss Guard before the Mass:

Matt Hardesty, right, and Christopher Rhodes, both Catholic seminarians, stand at the front of the Cathedral of the Assumption prior to the start of the ordination ceremonies. "It's a great honor to be a part of this," Hardesty said. "It definitely strengthens my discernment and my hope for the future."

For More:

A Photo Gallery, from the C-J, of the Ordination
An article from the C-J: "Fathers Find Their Second Calling"
An article from The Record on Fr. Wally Dant: "Deacon Dant lived full life before entering the seminary"
An article from The Record on Fr. Jeffrey Hopper: "Deacon Jeffrey Hopper eager to serve, celebrate Eucharist"
I love what Fr. Hopper says here:
“What I’m looking forward to the most is offering the sacrifice of the Mass and doing the pastoral duties of a priest — hearing confession, visiting the hospital, going to the school with the kids”