Perth boy presents himself in Sydney for candidacy to priesthood in the Archdiocese of Perth.
By Anthony Barich
West Australian Christian Irdi presented himself for candidacy to the priesthood on May 17 along with five others at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney.
Christian, who graduated from Aquinas College in 2000, will complete his philosophy studies at Good Shepherd Seminary in Sydney until next year before completing his formation at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, where he is also likely to be ordained a deacon before his priestly ordination by the Archbishop of Perth in WA.
Of the other candidates, Robert Doohan, Daniel McCaughan, Joseph Gedeon and Vietnamese-born Long Nguyen will continue their studies for the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Sydney and John Ssemaganda for Uganda.
They presented themselves for candidacy for the priesthood in a Mass presided over by Cardinal George Pell in a ceremony coinciding with the monthly visit of seminarians to the cathedral for Vespers and Mass with the wider Catholic community.
Candidacy signifies another step towards the priesthood for these men, following their institution as Lectors, and then as Acolytes.
Receiving candidacy is not only a recognition from the Church, but is also a renewal of vocational commitments for these seminarians, who are striving to fulfill their call to serve God’s people, Good Shepherd Seminary student Dominic Nguyen told The Catholic Weekly in Sydney.
He said that the six candidates are a symbol of diversity within the Catholic Church, having family heritage ranging from Italy, Lebanon, Uganda and Vietnam to the local Irish-Australian background.
“These six seminarians all have different gifts and talents, but they share a common love of God and the enthusiasm to serve Christ in His Church that will stand them in good stead for their future ministry,” he said.