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October 17, 2005 
VOL.
43, NO. 18Oakland,
CA
Five new seminarians begin study
for priesthood in Oakland Diocese
By Voice staff
Last month,
the Oakland Diocese gained five more seminarians, bringing to 13 the number
of men studying to become priests for the diocese. Four of the new seminarians
are students at St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park; the fifth is enrolled
at Mount Angel College Seminary in Oregon.
Derrick Oliveira, 23, left the Navy in June after five years of service
as a hospital corpsman at Camp Le Jeune, North Carolina, and entered Mount
Angel to complete his college education. While serving in the Navy, he
assisted in the Catholic chaplain’s office on base and it was there
that he discerned his vocation to the priesthood. A member of Our Lady
of Grace Parish in Castro Valley, he is a graduate of Proctor Elementary
School in Castro Valley and Castro Valley High School.
Rene Gerona, a native of Cebu, The Philippines, is a former school administrator
who worked to assist his family until his siblings were grown and he could
pursue his dream of becoming a priest. At 38, he was considered too old
by his local seminary so he applied to the Oakland Diocese, which does
not have the same age restrictions for seminarians. He is currently studying
philosophy at St. Patrick Seminary and upon completion of those courses
will begin his theological training.
Philip Lugala, 41, came to Oakland from Sudan via Egypt where he served
as a Franciscan missionary. In the U.S. he was assigned to the Franciscan
community at St. Elizabeth Parish in Oakland. Last year he completed a
degree in philosophy at Holy Names University. During that time, he discerned
a call to diocesan priesthood. He was recommended by the Franciscans and
applied for admission to the seminary program for the Oakland Diocese.
He is in his first year of theological study at St. Patrick Seminary.
Juan Franco, 40, holds a Master of Divinity degree and is spending a year
in pastoral work at St. Catherine Parish in Martinez before undertaking
two years of additional seminary training. Originally from Morelia, Mexico,
he was affiliated with the Franciscans who invited him to study in Chicago.
When he left the Chicago community, he relocated to St. Joachim Parish
in Hayward, where he became involved in Latino ministry before applying
to the Diocese of Oakland and St. Patrick Seminary.
Rolando Bartolay was a Claretian missionary in his native Philippines,
working in a region where tensions between Christians and Muslims often
erupted into violence. He discerned a calling to serve the Church in the
United States and sought affiliation with the Oakland Diocese. Thirty-five
years old, he is a third-year theology student at St. Patrick Seminary.
Rolando Bartolay
Juan
Franco
Rene
Gerona
Philip
Lugala
Derrick
Oliveira
