Maryknoll continues to usher in a ‘new era of mission’ with the ordination of two Kenyan priests.

Astirring call to worship in Swahili, ululations and Kenyan drums brought the spirit of Africa to the Maryknoll campus in Ossining, New York, for the ordination of the two newest Maryknoll priests, Joshua Maondo and Charles Ogony, from Kenya.

Maryknoll missioners and attendees of different countries, languages and cultures packed Our Lady Queen of Apostles Chapel, including three Kenyan choirs from Minnesota, New Jersey and Seattle, as well as Hispanic parishioners from Chicago who drove 12 hours for the special occasion.

During the Mass held on June 8, Auxiliary Bishop Peter Byrne of the Archdiocese of New York evoked the innovative missionary spirit of early Maryknoller Bishop Francis Xavier Ford. “His episcopal model was condolere; to have compassion,” Bishop Byrne said. “First, we have to love people if we want to teach them and have them respond.”

As both men lay prostrate on the floor during the Litany of Supplication, Father Ogony says he dedicated the moment to the Blessed Mother, “so that my priesthood may be guided by her and I may remain part of the light that shines to guide God’s people.”

“All these friends of ours from all over the United States, some of them came with their entire families just for this event,” Father Maondo said. “I felt that each of them had a unique sense of the spirit of God.”

Nicholas Maondo, who flew from Kenya to attend his son’s ordination, looks on proudly as Joshua is ordained. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

Father Maondo’s father, Nicholas, beamed with pride during the ceremony. The older Maondo was able to travel from Kenya. His wife, however, was denied a visa to the United States. “We have been accompanying and supporting Joshua for a long time,” the senior Maondo said. “It’s been a long journey, but he did it.”

Father Maondo’s aunt, Sister Terry Makokha of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Mombasa, who is studying and serving in Pennsylvania, said she was happy that her young nephew is following “this special calling.” She conveyed her wishes: “I pray that he may continue answering God’s call.”

Sadly, Father Ogony’s parents were denied U.S. visas to attend the ordination. To represent his family, the ordinand chose Alfredo and Verónica Vega, a parishioner couple from the Mother of the Americas Church in Chicago where he volunteered during his formation. The couple, originally from Mexico, was the first to welcome Father Ogony to the parish when they mistakenly thought he did not speak Spanish. “Carlitos,” as they fondly call Father Ogony, became a source of strength for the Vega family through hard times.

Maondo and Ogony lie prostrate during the Litany of Supplication. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

“His words gave us a lot of peace and moral support. He’s almost like family,” Verónica said. 

“Charles, besides being humble, has a great calm that’s contagious,” said Alfredo. “He tells us not to hurry in life.”

The newly ordained Fathers Maondo and Ogony received the sign of peace from about 40 fellow priests to the song of Ndiwe Kuhani Hata Milele (“You Are a Priest Forever”). Afterward, the young priests distributed Communion, with Nicholas Maondo first in line to receive the host from his son Joshua.

The Mass concluded joyfully, as a procession of the Catholic Women Association from Kenya came singing and dancing down the aisle. The young priests, along with the rest of the congregation, joined in the celebration.

After the Mass, attendees lined up to receive the traditional first blessings from the newly ordained priests. The emotive custom took place in front of the statue of Our Lady of Maryknoll on the quadrangle of the Maryknoll Society Center. Then, honoring a Maryknoll tradition that began with the first mission departure in 1918, Father Maondo and Father Ogony each took a turn to wield a huge wooden hammer and ring the mission bell that marked their sending to proclaim the Good News.

Auxiliary Bishop of New York Peter Byrne, the ordaining bishop, lays hands upon the two Maryknoll ordinands. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

“This is a new era of mission,” declared Maryknoll Father Russell Feldmeier during the post-ordination sending ceremony, “where there is no ‘out there,’ but it is all in here, in this Church.”

The ordination of the new priests represents “a new intercultural reality within Maryknoll itself,” continued Father Feldmeier, where “we are called to expand our circles of care and compassion to go beyond boundaries of trial, language, race, gender and culture.”

The young priests, he said, bring their gifts, the blessings of their African heritage and their Maryknoll formation to their first assignment to Bolivia, where the Maryknoll Society began missionary work in 1942, and where Maondo and Ogony completed their overseas training in 2020.

Father Maondo extends his hand for the invocation of the Holy Spirit during the consecration. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

“Charles,” said Father Feldmeier as he addressed the new priests, “you have such a deep love for the elderly and the poor and for those on the margins, and you seek to be authentic to the needs of others.”

To Joshua, he said, “You bring great enthusiasm and radiate so much energy and seek to use that energy for those that need help, especially families. And you have great talent in music.”

Maryknoll Superior General Lance Nadeau presented the new priests with their mission crucifixes “to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ by your words and example.” Both said that Father Lance, a mentor for them since they were university students, not only influenced their decision to join Maryknoll but also modeled for them the style of priesthood they want to pursue.

“He preached unity,” said Father Ogony. “He brought real life issues and connected them to the Gospel.”

Father Maondo said, “I’ve seen Father Nadeau do things I’ve never seen any other person do. I have seen him wash student toilets. I have seen him polish the church floor. I have seen him stand up for students who were going to be expelled from the university unjustly.”

Father Ogony greets Maryknoll Father William LaRousse during the Sign of Peace. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

As part of the sending ceremony, Father Michael Briggs, superior of Maryknoll’s Latin America region, welcomed both men back to Bolivia. “You have listened to people, let their lives touch your lives, you’ve learned to dance with the people, celebrate with the people,” he said. “You are going to join us and give service to God in Latin America.”

Father Ogony, who served in ministries with the elderly and homeless of Cochabamba, Bolivia, is excited about his return. “I feel like I’m going back home,” he said.

Silvana Martínez, a Bolivian who met Fathers Maondo and Ogony during their Overseas Training Program in her country, said she is confident that both priests will “open new missions and encounter new challenges in order to bring the Maryknoll charism.”

In the same spirit of mission that Maryknoll has brought to the world since its inception, some years ago the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers began accepting overseas vocations from mission regions. The ordination of Father Maondo, 30, and Father Ogony, 31, was the second Mass of Holy Orders under this new protocol.

Fathers Maondo and Ogony, wearing their mission crosses, sing with Maryknoll Superior General Lance Nadeau during the sending ceremony held later that day. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

Father John Siyumbu, the first Maryknoll priest from overseas vocations and who was ordained in 2022, traveled from his mission in Tanzania for the ordination. Fathers Maondo and Ogony will “have the  opportunity to fly the Maryknoll flag of mission, to fly the flag of compassion,” he said.

“Joshua is a priest who can make things happen. We need a priest like that,” Father Siyumbu said. “Charles is going to be a listening priest and offer God’s grace to other people. The three of us, and many other young men who are coming from Africa, would like to participate in the mission that we have seen. We stand on the shoulders of legendary missioners.”

For Father Rodrigo Ulloa-Chavarry, Maryknoll’s vocations director, this moment brings forth the fruit of a long formation process. “[The ordination] is a triumph,” he said. “It’s a sign that the process worked and that God is in the process.”

(From left to right) Father Timothy Kilkelly, Superior General Lance Nadeau, Father Charles Ogony, Bishop Peter Byrne, Father Joshua Maondo, Father James Lynch and Father Juan Zúñiga pose for a photo. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)

Reflecting on their upcoming departure for mission, Father Maondo said that the duty of missioners is to plant “seedlings of faith, seedlings of hope and virtue everywhere” in those places where “people are wondering whether Christ is with them or not.” The world needs healing, he added. “I think that’s what mission is all about.”

“The world is hungering for love,” Father Ogony said, evoking the words of Mother Teresa. “It just needs that drop of love. God needs those pastors who go out of their way to meet the poor.”

Featured Image: Maryknoll Fathers Charles Ogony and Joshua Maondo (left, right) dance with Sisters Lydia Yala and Terry Makokha, Father Maondo’s aunt (far right), after their ordination Mass held on June 8, 2024 at the Maryknoll Society chapel in Ossining, New York. (Octavio Durán/U.S.)