Today, Bishop Frank Betancourt announced the ordination of Brother Victor Ayala, FCR, to the deaconate  of the Catholic Apostolic Church in North America on Saturday, June 9, 2018.   The ordination was held at Holy Innocents Cathedral, Halcottsville, NY.  Brother Victor is pictured here while visiting Assisi, Italy. Congratulations to Brother Victor for completing his preparation and on his ordination.  

On May 23, 2018, Bishop Ron Stephens ordained Al Risdorfer a deacon of the Catholic Apostolic Church in North America, surrounded by the laity, clergy and bishops of CACINA at the General Assembly at St. Mary's of Providence in Elverson, Pennslvania.   See the slideshow video below:

The Star Tribune reports that "After a diverse career, including 10 years as a toy buyer; eight as a flight attendant; nearly two decades as a paralegal, and years as a project manager, the 70-year-old great-grandfather is answering a lifelong call."  Fr. Hartigan was ordained as a priest of the Catholic Apostolic Church in North America's St. Theresa’s parish. His ex-wife served as the ordination’s cantor and his three grown children had roles in the ceremony.  Fr. Harry has an active ministry in Minneapolis where he serves as spiritual adviser to clients in Minnesota’s Sex Offender Program.   He also serves the LGBTQ community there.  " 'These folks need to know that God loves them," he said, "that they’re human beings.' "

The articles continues, "The seed for his spiritual work dates back to 2008, when he fractured his shoulder after a winter fall. As he healed, he read  'The Book of Mychal,' about New York Fire Department Chaplain Mychal Judge who perished in the Sept. 11 terror attacks. 'His example of parking judgment,' Hartigan said, spoke to him. Hartigan decided to found 'The Order of Mychal' to do God’s work without restrictions. 'You never know,' Hartigan said, 'where God is going to put you.' "

To read the full article click the following link:  At 70, Minnesota man joins the priesthood, capping a life of ministering to others

On Tuesday, February 27^th, the Coalition Against Child Sex Abuse gathered at the State Capitol in Albany, New York. Across the country, this organization, composed of survivors and advocates, lobby legislators to strengthen laws or write new ones, to protect the most vulnerable in our midst. In New York there has been a great deal of effort to pass a Child Victims Act (CVA). This Act would revisit the statutes of limitations, which at this point do not give victims of abuse an appropriate amount of time in which they may file as a victim. Because of the deep personal trauma a victim experiences, they may not have the strength until later in life to report the abuse. Often perpetrators of such abuse “get away” with this heinous crime.

Father Vic and Mary DeSantis, from the parish of St. John of God, had the opportunity to speak publicly to their local legislators and share their perspective of the impact on a parent and family of a survivor. Tragically their son, Michael, had been abused by several Roman priests when he was a child. This did not come to light until he reached adulthood.  Mary continually clarified that the strongest opposition to Child Victims Act continually comes from the Roman Church. Mary’s consistent mantra was “All Romans are Catholic but not all Catholics are ROMAN!”  Those present seemed surprised to find there were other Catholics churches. The DeSantis explained CACINA as being a Catholic faith community, highly supportive of the bill. Where the Child Victim Act goes from here is in the hands of legislators. Prayer is always needed so that justice will prevail.