We would like to welcome back Fr. Jacques Rigaud who has returned to Prince Edward Island and is now serving as Pastor for Sacred Heart Parish, Alberton.
We are also pleased to be able to welcome our two new priests, Fr. Krys and Fr. Mahesh.
We recently asked Fr. Jacques, Fr. Krys, and Fr. Mahesh to share a little bit about themselves so that the Catholics of PEI would be able to know them better.
We asked them to share where they grew up; something about how they became a priest; why they are here; what their favorite hobbies are; what their favorite book is and why; and who their favorite saint is and why.
Their responses are quite interesting!
My name is Fr. Krzysztof Stanula but in Canada I use the name Fr. Krys, I think it is easier for everyone.
I was born a long time ago in 1967 in the north of Poland. There I finished school and when it came time to choose a profession, I wanted to be a doctor.
It then happened, in a parish church, a priest who had just been ordained was celebrating Mass in a very reverent and pious way, and I experienced an extraordinary stir of my heart. I knew little about the Church and congregations, but I chose the Congregation of Saint Michael the Archangel (CSMA), also known as the Michaelites or the Michaelite Fathers. God wanted it so! I was ordained a priest in Krakow, Poland, in 1994, and I worked in education for 10 years. In Krakow, I studied theology and education. There, I obtained two master degrees, a Master of Theology and a Master of Education. I also studied social work.
For the next 17 years, I was the superior of religious houses, a parish pastor, and the curator of the relics of the Blessed Bronisław Markiewicz, our Founder of the CSMA.
I am interested in classical music, and I have two favorite composers that I especially like: A. Mozart and L. Beethoven. I also like to read books.
In my pastoral work, I like to encourage Lectio Divina, that is, reading the Word of God with heart and meditation. I, as well, enjoy facilitating silent retreats.
I would like to share that after many years of work in Poland, I received permission to come to Canada and to join Michaelite Fathers in North American Vice Province. I have more recently been appointed to the Diocese of Charlottetown.
Now in PEI, I have been assigned to work as the Associate Pastor at St. Pius X Parish, and I am also the Chaplain at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. I hope that with the grace of God, and with the help of kind people, I will be able to work for the good of the Church in our Diocese.
My name is Fr. Mahendran Rathinasamy, SAC, and I am also known as Fr. Mahesh.
I was born on January 7, 1970 in Tuticorin Tamilnadu, India. I have three siblings and grew up in a Catholic family. My grandma and parents were instrumental for the initial stages of my spiritual upbringing. I was an altar server at my home parish and used to see the priests wearing cassocks and travelling by motorbike while tending to their pastoral duties. Seeing them impressed me at the early age of 5 or 6 and gave me the desire to become a priest.
God has been instrumental in my life, and I received a calling to the priesthood when I was only 16 years old. After 13 years of formation, I was ordained a priest in 1999 with the motto “to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.” I celebrated the Silver Jubilee (25 years) of my priestly ordination this year.
I belong to the religious congregation, Society of Catholic Apostolate, well known as “Pallottine Fathers.” It is a mission congregation where we (Pallottines) work in 50 plus countries. My favorite saint is Saint Vincent Pallotti whose ideals I follow. My favorite book is the Imitation of Christ, by Thomas à Kempis, which has helped me to grow spiritually. My hobbies are reading, playing cards, watching movies, and visiting new places.
During the initial years of priestly life, I worked at a parish in Rajaji Nagar Chennai Tamilnadu, India. I then worked for six years at a Pallottine seminary, three years as a prefect of students and three years as an administrator of that same institution in Madurai Tamilnadu, India.
After this, I was asked to go to France in 2007 and serve as the Chaplain at the Divine Mercy Shrine in Osny Paris.
In 2009, I moved to Canada and served fifteen years at the Archdiocese of Edmonton and worked as an associate pastor and pastor at three parishes. God has now led me to PEI and brought me to the Diocese of Charlottetown. I am currently serving as Associate Pastor at St. Paul’s Parish in Summerside.
I am happy as a priest ‘to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.’
My name is Fr. Jacques Rigaud (James in English).
I was born in Guérande in Brittany, known for harvesting natural sea salt, and I grew up near the Loire River on the west coast of France.
I moved to Canada in 2002 with a religious community I belonged to at that time. One day my spiritual director, in this religious community, asked me if I ever thought of becoming a priest. I had thought about it, but I was afraid. I told him that God should open the way for me because I was not capable of doing it. And HE did it.
I met the friend of the priest I was staying with, and this friend talked to me about Prince Edward Island sharing that they had a need for a French-speaking priest. He arranged different meetings for me. The first time I came to PEI was on July 1, 2004. My journey to the priesthood started from there, and I was ordained to the priesthood in 2009 at St. Dunstan’s Basilica Parish.
In 2013, however, I felt a strong desire to go back to France. Back in France, I spent 10 years in a rural area appointed to several small parishes where I celebrated many traditions in the villages in relation with the patron Saint of the village, especially Saint John the Baptist. I also joined the volunteer firefighters who showed me their life of sacrifice and of caring for others.
While I was doing my ministry there, I deepened my faith and hope in Jesus and his unconditional love for us revealed on the Cross. But because we did not understand, He reveals his love and his Mercy by showing his heart, hence the devotion to the Sacred Heart which leads us to the Cross. And my mission is maybe to discover more and more with the people I am ministering to now, and those I will meet, the source of all peace, joy and love.
Although I enjoyed my pastoral work in France, I could feel that God was no longer calling me to be there. And, God led me back to PEI. In September, I moved back to the Island and was appointed as Pastor of Sacred Heart Parish and Parochial Administrator of St. Anthony (Bloomfield) with its mission (Corpus Christi, Glenwood), St. Brigid (Foxley River), and Immaculate Conception (Brae) parishes.
I do love to read and if I were to choose my favorite books I would say, I believe in Love by Father Jean C. J. d’Elbée and The Courage To Be Afraid by Father Molinié.