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On Saturday, June 12, Bishop Bernard A. Hebda ordained two new priests for the Diocese of Gaylord. Before an assembly of more than 800 which included Bishop Emeritus of Gaylord Patrick R. Cooney and 40 priests, 8 deacons, religious sisters, seminarians and parishioners from throughout the diocese, along with family members and friends from as far away as Kenya, Nigeria and Japan, Deacon Sylvestre Obwaka and Deacon Gerald Okoli were welcomed into the diocesan presbyterate at St. Mary Cathedral.

As Bishop Hebda began his homily, he said “I find that my heart is filled with gratitude this morning with thanks to so many people who have made this day possible. Most especially I am so appreciative to Gerald and Sylvestre for their willingness to answer God’s call. It is an excellent example to all of us. I would be remiss if I did not offer thanks to Gerald’s family and Sylvestre’s mother and family as well. How wonderful that they would be willing to give us, the Diocese of Gaylord, their sons. It must be so difficult with the distances involved and the different cultures involved. Yet both families have told me how they so willingly offer their sons to us and have pleaded with me that we would accept them as their sons. And I promised that we would.

“We certainly have to thank Almighty God for desiring so much that the people of Gaylord be fed that He sends us these two young men to be our priests. In His great love, He has recognized this diocese’s need for priests, for the sacraments, for good preaching, for good leadership. He called these two young men from thousands of miles away to come to the Diocese of Gaylord and feed us the Eucharist. How great is God’s love? Do we realize how much God must love us, if for our sake, He would call these two young men to make such sacrifices for us?

The sacrifices for both Fr. Sylvestre and Fr. Gerald, who are originally from Kenya and Nigeria, respectively, have been great. Fr. Gerald felt the call to priesthood before he entered his teen years, yet it wasn’t until he came to the United States and spent a year truly discerning what God was calling him to do with his life that he took the final leap. Until the week of his ordination, Fr. Gerald had not seen his mother in eight years and was able to meet his niece for the very first time.

Fr. Sylvestre also travelled a winding road to his ordination which included spending nearly 18 months serving a parish in St. Peter’s Parish in Goderich, Canada as he neared the end of his studies. A large delegation from that parish travelled to Gaylord to celebrate his ordination.

Mary, his mother said, “My son has taught me a lot through this. I have learned about the power of prayer and I have learned so much about God’s great love.” She spoke about her happiness for Fr. Sylvestre and the joy that he is now a priest. She admitted her surprise when she initially learned he would be studying for the priesthood for a diocese in Michigan, but now “I am so happy for him and grateful to God,” she added.

The families of Fr. Sylvestre and Fr. Gerald brought gifts for Bishop Hebda from their homeland, two of which the Bishop used to illustrate his homily.

Hyacinth and Agnes Okoli presented Bishop Hebda with a mahogany trumpeter.

“The trumpeter, Gerald’s parents explained to me, assembles the people,” Bishop Hebda said as he displayed the handcrafted wooden statue to the assembly. “He calls the people to a life of harmony, to a life of peace. He enables them to come together and be a family. It struck me that it is not unlike the ministry that Gerald and Sylvestre are being called to today. Indeed, they are going to be calling the community together. The nice thing is they don’t have to be great musicians because they only have to play three notes. The first is preaching, the second is sanctifying, and the third is leading.

“To make sure they play these three notes correctly, I would like to recommend to them today a life that involves great prayer. It is in your prayer that those three notes you are called to pray will resonate in your heart as you spend time with Jesus, as you recall that Jesus is asking to stand in His very person and to think about this great privilege and also this great service. Remind yourself to always be a man of prayer so that you are able to hear the notes played by Jesus first. You also have to make sure that the notes you are playing are in harmony with the teachings of the Church, that they are played in communion with the ministry of our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, that they are in harmony with these priests, the bishop and the faithful of the diocese of the Church of Gaylord. How important it is that you are going to take that time daily to make sure you are playing the right notes – and that you are playing them with joy -- and hopefully, with an African beat,” the Bishop smiled.

Bishop Hebda continued by displaying the second gift, an ebony rhinoceros presented to him by Mary Obwaka. “She said the rhinoceros represented Sylvestre,” the Bishop stated.

“I would like both of our priests to remember the example of the rhinoceros because they need to have big hearts, but they are also going to need thick skin,” Bishop Hebda said, “because they going to face the pressures all of us face in society and they are going to have to lead us through them.

Bishop Hebda continued recognizing the personal gifts the two new priests bring to the Diocese of Gaylord.

“God already has blessed them with so many wonderful natural gifts that now, with ordination, are raised to another level,” Bishop Hebda noted. “It occurred to me that both of these young men come from churches that are pools of hope. The experiences of Gerald and Sylvestre are that of great joy and great growth, even in difficult times. I think God, in His wisdom, has brought them to us because we need an infusion of their life, of their love and of their joy…We can learn from these two men and their great experiences in the Church,” the Bishop added.

Fr. Sylvestre, 37, is a native of Kenya and the oldest of four sons born to Paul (now deceased) and Mary Obwaka. He also has three half-sisters. He attended Ziwani Primary School in the coastal town of Mombasa, Kenya and then went to St. Gabriel’s Minor Seminary for his high school years. His theology studies continued as he attended St. Augustine’s Senior Seminary in Bungoma, Kenya from which he received his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy in 1996. As he discerned his particular vocation, he studied theology in Nairobi, spent time with a Franciscan community in the United States, and earned a Masters degree in Human Services from Louisiana State University.

In 2004 Fr. Sylvestre was accepted as a seminarian for the Diocese of Gaylord and was ordained a transitional deacon by Bishop Patrick Cooney on August 8, 2009.

Fr. Gerald, 40, was born to Hyacinth and Agnes Okoli in Ezikwo, Nigeria and has three sisters and three brothers. At home he is known by his middle name, Chigbogu, to his family, close friends and peers. The name means “May God bring an end to war” and was bestowed on him at his birth which took place during a Civil War in Nigeria.

Fr. Gerald attended elementary and high school in Abor, Nigeria. He attended the Spiritual Year Seminary in Ekpoma, Edo State, Nigeria, the SS Peter and Paul Major Seminary in Ibadan, Nigeria, and Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium. He also worked a number of jobs including as a Catholic school teacher and served a clinical pastoral residency at a state hospital in Oregon before his discernment process ultimately led him to apply, and be accepted, as a seminarian for the Diocese of Gaylord. He was ordained a transitional deacon by Bishop Bernard A. Hebda on January 9 of this year.

Both men completed preparation for priesthood through Sacred Heart School of Theology in Hales Corners, Wisconsin.

At the conclusion of the Liturgy, Bishop Hebda invited each of the newly ordained priests forward to receive their assignment and to impart a special blessing upon everyone in the assembly.

Fr. Sylvestre has been assigned as Associate Pastor to the Catholic Community of Manistee, and assignment he will begin after he returns from a trip back to Kenya.

Fr. Gerald has been assigned as Associate Pastor to the parishes of Holy Family in East Tawas and Sacred Heart, Oscoda. Fr. Gerald is planning a trip to his homeland at a later date.

A reception was held following the ordination in the parish hall of St. Mary Cathedral.

On Sunday, June 13, the new priests offered Masses of Thanksgiving at their respective home parishes in the Diocese of Gaylord: Fr. Sylvestre at St. Joseph, West Branch and Fr. Gerald at Holy Childhood of Jesus in Harbor Springs.