Monthly Newspaper • DIOCESE OF BRIDGEPORT

BRIDGEPORT—On Saturday, June 4, 11 am at St. Augustine Cathedral in Bridgeport, Bishop Frank J. Caggiano will ordain Deacon Colin Lomnitzer to the Sacred Priesthood.

Deacon Lomnitzer will be vested by Father Joseph A. Marcello. The first and second reading will be read by Tyler R. Lomnitzer, brother of Deacon Lomnitzer. Most Reverend James Massa, rector of St, Joseph Seminary and Most Reverend Gerardo J. Colacicco, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of New York will be present.

Lomnitzer has been in formation since 2016. He was ordained a transitional deacon on Saturday, May 22, 2021.

Deacon Colin Lomnitzer is a long-time parishioner of St. Catherine of Siena in Trumbull and current resident of Derby. He is son to Charles Lomnitzer and Sharon Watson and attended elementary and middle school in Trumbull and high school at Fairfield College Preparatory School. In 2005, Colin and his family were received into full communion with the Catholic Church. He attended Catholic University of America and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Sacred Heart University in 2018 and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in sacred theology, a master’s degree in theology and a master’s of divinity from St. Joseph Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y.

Colin is a member of the Knights of Columbus and enjoys playing soccer and golf. Colin served as pro-life committee chair and a resident assistant while attending Catholic University of America, and organized and helped to lead the Convivio youth conference for many years. He has been on two mission trips to Lima, Peru, and even spent the summer of 2019 in Lima studying Spanish.

Deacon Lomnitzer will celebrate his first Mass on Sunday, June 5 at 2:30 pm at St. Catherine of Siena in Trumbull. Father Joseph A. Marcello, pastor, will serve as the homilist. The concelebrants will be Monsignor Thomas W. Powers, rector, Pontifical North American College; Father Joseph A. Marcello, pastor, St. Catherine of Siena; Father Frank S. Donio, S.A.C., executive director, Conference of Major Superiors of Men; and Father Eric W. Silva, chaplain, St. Joseph’s High School.

Photos by Amy Mortensen

(Below, Deacon Lomnitzer shares his thoughts upon ordination)

At the Easter Vigil in 2005, my family and I were received into full communion with the Catholic Church. On that night I received my First Holy Communion. The thought of receiving the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist was new to me. I did not grasp what this meant at the time, but it always piqued my interest. In high school I started to attend Eucharistic Adoration almost monthly and was amazed by the fact that I was sitting in front of my God. I wanted to spend more time with the Lord, so I started to go to daily Mass. I befriended the priests at my home parish, St. Catherine’s of Siena, and I started to attend different youth events with the Marian Community of Reconciliation. These priests and consecrated women showed me the connection between the Sacrifice of the Cross and the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass. Christ gave His life for me, and the more time I spent with Him, I began to realize that I might be called to give my life to Him as a priest of Jesus Christ. My devotion to the Eucharist increased my desire to be a priest. As, Saint John Vianney said Jesus is only present in the parish church “because a priest has been there, and has said holy Mass.”

On a pilgrimage to the North American Martyrs, I heard about the life and death of St. Isaac Jogues and Companions. There, the life of discipleship became real to me: either everything that Catholic Church teaches is real, or the death of the martyrs is in vain and they were just crazy people. I became convicted that the answer could only be that the Catholic Church was real, that Jesus Christ is physically present in the Eucharist, that my sins really are forgiven, and that everything in my life needed to change.

My sophomore year in college, Pope Francis came to CU and canonized St. Junipero Serra. In the homiy at the Mass he quoted Serra saying: “Siempre adelante – always forward.” It was in hearing those words that I realized I needed to stop making excuses and if I were to truly discern the call to priesthood, I could only do that in the seminary. During my time praying about entering seminary and through my time in formation, St. John Henry Newman and St. Josemaría Escrivá became close companions and intercessors. It was through their writings that I was aided in my growth of trusting in God’s providence, His love, and His Mercy for me. I have had a lot of support from friends and family, but I have also had a lot of heavenly guides in the saints who have accompanied me throughout this time.