Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama ordained Brother Emmanuel Mandona Bolangi, C.I.C.M., to the priesthood at St. Eugene Church in Wendell January 29.
Born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Deacon Emmanuel joined the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 2008. Assigned to the United States as a missionary since 2015, he learned to speak English while serving in Arlington, Virginia. And he learned to speak Spanish while working in Puerto Rico. He continues his internship supervised by the Oblate School of Theology at St. Eugene.
“I will ordain you a priest,” said Bishop Luis. “Mary says yes to the Lord, you are saying yes to the Lord. Hold hands with Mary and ask her to help you to surrender yourself to the love of her son, Jesus Christ, and you will see how wonderful and great life is.”
Addressing the congregation, Bishop Luis said, “This is such an honor for me to do this, because it is a great moment of grace and a celebration of a beautiful sacrament, giving us another priest filling us with hope and joy.”
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