May 19, 2010

Jubilarian priests mark milestones

By Denver Catholic Register

On March 30, during the annual Chrism Mass, the Archdiocese of Denver honored those priests who are celebrating milestone jubilees of their ordination to the priesthood this year.  Below are brief biographies of those priests celebrating 40 and 25 years in the priesthood.

40 Years

Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.
Born in Concordia, Kan., on Sept. 26, 1944, to Joseph and Marian DeMarais Chaput, Charles J. Chaput attended Our Lady of Perpetual Help Grade School in Concordia and St. Francis Seminary High School in Victoria, Kan. He joined the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, St. Augustine Province, in 1965.
After earning a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from St. Fidelis College Seminary in Herman, Penn., in 1967, he completed studies in psychology at Catholic University in Washington, D.C., in 1969. He earned a Master of Arts in religious education from Capuchin College in Washington, D.C., in 1970 and was ordained to the priesthood on Aug. 29, 1970.  A year later, he received a Master of Arts in theology from the University of San Francisco, after which he served as an instructor in theology and spiritual director at St. Fidelis until 1974 and as executive secretary and director of communications for the Capuchin Province of St. Augustine in Pittsburgh from 1974-1977.
In 1977, he became pastor of Holy Cross Parish in Thornton, Colo., and vicar provincial for the Capuchin Province of Mid-America. He was named secretary and treasurer for the province in 1980, and he became chief executive and provincial minister three years later.
He was ordained bishop of Rapid City, S.D., on July 26, 1988. Pope John Paul II appointed him archbishop of Denver on Feb. 18, 1997. A member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Tribe, Archbishop Chaput is the second Native American to be ordained bishop in the United States, and the first Native American archbishop.

Bishop Joseph F. Martino
Originally from Philadelphia, Penn., Joseph F. Martino is the son of Eleanor and Joseph Martino.  After being ordained in Rome on Dec. 18, 1970, he held many pastoral, formational and archdiocesan assignments for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. 
In 1996, he was named auxiliary bishop of that same diocese and in 2003 Pope John Paul II named Bishop Martino as the ninth bishop of Scranton.  Now the bishop emeritus of Scranton, he serves the churches of the Rocky Mountain West as spiritual director and professor at both St. John Vianney Theological Seminary and Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary in Denver.

Abbot Joseph Boyle, O.C.S.O.
Joseph Boyle was ordained a priest of the Cistercian Abbey of St. Benedict at Snowmass, Colo., on Aug. 20, 1970, and has spent the last 40 years seeking to hear and live the word of God in prayer, work and community in the life of a Cistercian Trappist monk. He was elected abbot in 1985.

Msgr. Robert Amundsen
Ordained on Dec. 19, 1969, in Rome,  Robert Amundsen has served as pastor of four parishes: Presentation of Our Lady and Christ the King in Denver; Blessed John XXIII University in Fort Collins and Immaculate Conception Parish in Lafayette, where he is currently. He has served as the dean of both the Fort Collins and Boulder deaneries. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI named him a monsignor.

Father John Grabrian
John Grabrian was ordained on May 30, 1970, in Denver.  After two assignments as parochial vicar at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Denver and All Souls Parish in Englewood, he became pastor of St. Paul Parish in Idaho Springs.  Later, he was pastor at St. John the Evangelist in Loveland and finally, Christ on the Mountain Parish in Lakewood, where he still serves.

Father Robert Halter, C.Ss.R.
Robert Halter was ordained a priest of the Redemptorist order in Waterford, Wis., on June 26, 1970.  For many years he worked with the Redemptorist Mission Preaching Team out of St. Michael’s Parish in Chicago, Ill., traveling the country giving week-long preaching events at parishes. Incardinated into the Archdiocese of Denver in 2008, Father Halter now serves as consulter for his order, handling business and property dealings.

Msgr. Robert Kinkel
Ordained on May 30, 1970, Robert Kinkle held the position of assistant pastor at St. Rose of Lima Parish in Denver before being named pastor at Cure d’Ars parish.  He held the same position at St. Jude in Lakewood and Spirit of Christ in Arvada.  He was dean of the North Denver Deanery and was named monsignor by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009.  Msgr. Kinkel is currently pastor of St. Clare of Assisi in Edwards and its mission, St. Mary in Eagle.

Father Michael Sheeran, S.J.
Originally from New York, Michael Sheeran was ordained a priest of the Jesuit order on June 4, 1970.  He has been editor of America magazine and served as chaplain at Aquinas Institute and Princeton University in New Jersey.  In Denver, Father Sheeran has served at Regis University as dean, academic vice president and president, a position he currently holds.

Father Walter Watson,  S.J.
Ordained a priest of the Jesuit order on May 30, 1970, Walter Watson spent many years teaching and serving as chaplain at both Regis Jesuit High School in Denver and DeSmet High School in St. Louis.  He has also served as chaplain at J.K. Mullen High School in Denver.  In pastoral work, Father Watson has served as assistant pastor at St. Joseph in Fort Collins, Notre Dame in Denver and St. Joan of Arc in Arvada.  He currently is parochial vicar at Sts. Peter and Paul in Wheat Ridge.

25 Years

Auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley
A native of Overland Park, Kan., James D. Conley was ordained to the priesthood on May 18, 1985, for the Diocese of Wichita.  He served as associate pastor for St. Patrick in that city and as diocesan director for the Respect Life Office.  Later he became pastor of St. Paul Parish at Wichita State University.  Called to Rome in 1996 to serve the Holy See as an official in the Vatican Congregation for Bishops, he also served as chaplain to the University of Dallas Rome Campus and as adjunct instructor of theology for Christendom College in Rome. In 2001, Pope John Paul II named him a monsignor. After a decade in Rome, he returned to the Wichita Diocese and was named pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish. In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI named him auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Denver.

Father Philip Denig
Born in New York City, Philip Denig was ordained a priest of the Denver Archdiocese on Jan. 26, 1985. He immediately was assigned as assistant pastor at St. Mary Magdalene Parish, and later, at Holy Family Parish in Denver.  He also served as parochial vicar at St. Vincent de Paul and Queen of Peace parishes as well as chaplain for St. Anthony Hospital.  Father Denig then went to work for the Military Archdiocese as a chaplain, ministering to armed forces personnel.  Today, working from his New Jersey home, he continues to tend to the spiritual needs of those in uniform at Fort Dix, Maguire Air Force and the Veterans Administration Hospital in Philadelphia.

Father Chrysostom Frank
Chrysostom Frank was ordained a Greek Orthodox priest on May 26, 1985. He became a Byzantine Catholic in 1998 and was incardinated in the Archdiocese of Denver in 2004.  He served as pastor of the Greek Orthodox Church of the Virgin Mary and the Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas of Japan, both in Johannesburg, South Africa,  and is currently pastor of St. Elizabeth Parish and of its Sts. Cyril and Methodius Russian Byzantine community, located on the Auraria campus in Denver.

Father James Jackson, F.S.S.P.
A native of Wilmington, Del., James Jackson was ordained a priest of the Fraternity of St. Peter on May 18, 1985.  He served as assistant pastor at Blessed Sacrament Parish, head chaplain at Bishop Carroll High School and vicar at St. Mary Cathedral, all in Wichita, Kan.  Father Jackson then served as pastor at Queen of the Holy Rosary Parish in Vienna, Ohio, and St. Peter Parish in Tulsa, Okla.  He also served as a U.S. Navel Reserve chaplain with the 1st Marine Division during Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1991. Today, Father Jackson is pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Latin Rite Church in Littleton.