In his travels to Krakow for World Youth Day, Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila made a stop at the Italian chapel of the Divine Mercy Shrine, dedicated to St. Faustina, to ordain a young seminarian from Poland to the diaconate who will serve in the Archdiocese of Denver.
Boguslaw Rebacz will serve as a deacon at Holy Name parish in Steamboat Springs until next spring, when he expects to be ordained a priest. He expressed the joy of his ordination to National Catholic Register, who was present at the ceremony.
“It is a special privilege for me to be ordained here, in the Divine Mercy Sanctuary, where there is the center of Divine Mercy — made even more special that it’s within the Jubilee Year of Mercy,” he said.
Deacon Rebacz studied at Sts. Cyril and Methodius Seminary in Orchard Lake, Mich., which also has a location in Krakow. The seminary specializes in training young Polish seminarians who wish to become priests in the United States. During his first year in the U.S., Deacon Rebacz visited four dioceses, and expressed his desire to serve in Denver to Archbishop Aquila.
“Boguslaw visited, got to know the people and really liked what he saw,” Archbishop Aquila told the National Catholic Register.
“I am sure he will be a blessing,” he continued. “[Deacon Rabacz] is very prayerful, and those who know him realize that, despite seeming a bit shy, he’s very engaging and is an excellent teacher and has worked well with young people.”
Deacon Rabacz is looking forward to serve the Church in the U.S., which he noted is full of people who come from many different backgrounds and cultures.
“It is a young country, where people come to church and appreciate faith and religious [observance],” Deacon Rabacz told National Catholic Register. “I find this very refreshing. Also, the Church in the United States is full of people of different backgrounds, so we can all enrich each other with culture.”
This story was written using reporting by Deborah Castellano Lubov of National Catholic Register. The original story can be viewed here.
