I grew up in Flowery Branch, Georgia, and attended Flowery Branch High School. I’m the youngest of 4, making my family 6 total. My family and I are from El Salvador, and I love the country, culture and being Hispanic. I’m a cradle Catholic, and my family and I were very immersed in the different programs at my parish. As a family we participated in Alpha and Equip for families, and individually, I was an altar server, Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, member of the Hospitality Team Member, catechist, and a member of  youth ministry leadership.

I love sports (you name it, and I’ll play it); building with Legos; learning the lives of saints’ trying new foods, building puzzles; drawing; singing (especially in Spanish, Latin, and musical theater); playing board games (especially when it’s heated) and talking, as I’m a very extroverted person; hiking; lifting weights and being in nature with all the flora and fauna.

My absolute favorite scripture is from the letter of St. Paul to the Romans. The verse is: “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us. For creation awaits with eager expectation the revelation of the children of God; for creation was made subject to futility, not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it, in hope that creation itself would be set free from slavery to corruption and share in the glorious freedom of the children of God,” (Romans 8:16-21).

I greatly enjoy this bible verse from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans because it encapsulates so much truth. We are in fact God’s children despite our sins, beliefs, if we even practice the faith, or believe in Him being Christ. God gave us free will, and how we choose to exercise our free will doesn’t change being His children, and by being His children, we’re heirs to the Kingdom of God. I also enjoy this verse, because it describes that with Him we aren’t tied down with shackles and enslaved into the evils of the world and that what we experience now whether strife or prosperity, is incomparable to the grace and peace we will experience in His eternal kingdom.

While I don’t have one favorite saint, but multiple, I’d have to go with St. Francis of Assisi, my confirmation saint. I personally love and constantly pray for the intercession of St. Francis because of the amazing example of complete and total surrender to God’s will in one’s life he demonstrates. I desire to be like St. Francis in a sense that he was capable of surrendering his life of lavishness and riches, to a life of discipleship and poverty. In contrast to the prodigal son, St. Francis didn’t take his fathers riches with him, yet, he disposed of them, and gave them to the poor. St. Francis could’ve inherited his father’s large company but wanted to serve God entirely. I wish to be capable of detaching myself fully from my earthly attachments and entering into the full grace of God, as we’re all meant to do.

St. Francis’ inclination to nature also fascinates me a lot, as I love and appreciate nature greatly; and I especially love the story of how he helped this troubled town with a vicious wolf that was terrorizing the people, by praying over it and liberating the town from the harm of the beast. I also am very interested in St. Francis because of how willing he was to do what God told him to do; He’d tell him, and he’d do it. St. Francis’ stigmata is also one of my many fascinations because I personally have a deep appreciation of the stigmata because it allows the individual who has the stigmata to partake in the suffering that our Lord Jesus went through, bearing the cross, and appreciating His love for us ever more.

I was around six or eight years old, and I vividly remember being in Mass, looking at the amazing Fr. Eric Hill, and thinking, “I want to be a priest someday.” Ever since, I just feel as if I’ve have many affirmations such as many, many dreams about the priesthood; dreams about being a priest (celebrating the Mass and hearing confessions); dreams about opening my letter of acceptance five days before I got accepted; dreams of talking with priests, and a dream of Him telling me to be a priest. I am no St. Joseph, who had a dream prior to accepting his calling to being Jesus’ father, but I do believe that my dreams mean something. I’ve had many inspirations from other priests, and saints, and especially members in my family such as two of my aunts, Hermanas Aurelia and Rita, and my parents, who have supported me greatly.

I just started, and am living day by day, but it has been truly rewarding and amazing.

I look forward to being an administrator of the sacraments, especially hearing confessions. I especially look forward to hearing confessions because the aspect of acting in persona Christi in the sacrament of reconciliation, being the bridge between the transitory and eternal, truly makes my heart burn with excitement, joy, love and appreciation to God, for being so good and just. The sacrament of reconciliation in itself is simply amazing, but absolving a person’s sins, and bringing them back into the fullness of God’s grace, makes me shout with joy.

For those that are young, don’t believe that because you’re young it is impossible to live out your vocation and enter seminary. As someone who applied right out of high school, and even graduated a year early just to start, starting my discernment journey fully while young has been truly wonderful. However, no matter your age, maintain a solid prayer life, growing in virtue and not in vice, going to confessions regularly, and simply be human. Acknowledge that you’re fully man, fully human. You’ll make mistakes, and struggle with sin, and don’t have the mindset that being in seminary formation will liberate you from being a sinful person through the transformation of being a holy seminarian. While many men grow in virtue and develop into better people in seminary, us seminarians are still human, and still make mistakes, and are especially tempted in a way that makes you doubt yourself, and your vocation at times, but one simply has to surrender fully to God’s wonderful will, and allow Him to take control over us, as His way is the only way.