Formation Stage

Propaedeutic Year

Home Parish

St. Boniface, Anaheim

Seminary

Bishop White Seminary

Favorite Saint(s)

Oscar Romero, Michael the Archangel, Jose Sanchez del Rio, Francis of Assisi, Mother Teresa, Joan of Arc

Favorite Marian Apparition(s)

Lourdes Guadalupe, Fatima

Favorite Book or Movie

Eagle and Jaguar Trilogy, Great Gatsby, Brave New World, Prince of Egypt, Joseph: King of Dreams, Saw Series

Favorite Hobby

Videogames (FC 25, GTA V, Fortnite, Bioshock)

Background

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

My decision to enter the seminary had both monetary and personal reasons to enter. To begin with, and most important of all, I want to serve God with all my being, and being a priest, to me, is the best way to do this. As a result, it would come natural as a Catholic to discern the priesthood and eventually enter a seminary. As for the monetary side, with the Diocese being so generous to pay for Seminarian’s Schooling, it is a huge blessing for myself and my family as they can focus on paying for my brother’s schooling when he graduates high school without worrying about paying for two different tuitions. Factors that led to me discerning the question of a vocation to priesthood included wanting to serve back to not only my community of St. Boniface, but of the whole Diocese of Orange for the formation I received a I have grown up. I want to help change what now feels like a primarily secular world to one that truly loves Christ and his Church. I want to help younger kids keep the faith and truly understand what it means to be Catholic, the way that this was instilled in me at such a young age.

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

Some people who have influenced my decision/inspired me would include Fr. Nicolat, Fr. Ed, and Bishop Tim. All of these faithful men of the Lord have truly inspired me to continue my studies towards the path of Priesthood, as they have been a great example of how to defend the faith, yet be compassionate, patient, selfless, and serving our diocese to the best of their ability. The character they bring to service has truly inspired me to become a priest myself, and hopefully in the future have an impact on the younger generation as they have had on me.

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

The moment I decided I wanted to take the next steps to become a priest was when I decided that I wanted to serve God to the best of my ability. In my opinion, the way to do this was to give my life to the priesthood. It had always been on my mind, but it wasn’t until around 2023 or 2024 when I seriously started thinking about it, and I realized that this is what I wanted to do; to serve Christ’s Church and his people. As a result, I started the process to apply to become an OC Seminarian, and now move on to begin my first year at Bishop White Seminary.