On the evening of May 27, 2023, the eve of the Solemnity of Pentecost, Friar Alejandro M. ALDAVERO ROMERO, of the Province of Our Lady of Montserrat in Spain, was ordained to the diaconate at the Parish Church of San Francisco de Asís in Valladolid, Spain.
The celebration was presided over by the Most Reverend Luis ARGÜELLO GARCÍA, Archbishop of Valladolid, Spain, with a good number of priests concelebrating, including the Minister Provincial, Friar Juan Antonio ADÁNEZ SILVÁN; other friars of the Province; some religious from other Orders; and members of the diocesan clergy from the Dioceses of Madrid and Valladolid.
In his beautiful homily, the archbishop stressed the profound significance of the gift of a ministry, such as the diaconate, in the context of this Easter solemnity, “which speaks to us of the mystery of the Church as a communion of love and mutual service.” He also mentioned how “the Holy Spirit, who has inhabited us since the day of our baptism and sealed us even more deeply in confirmation, is forming us in the same mindset as Christ, who did not come to be served but to serve and lay down his life for his brothers.” The archbishop expressed his appreciation and affection for the charism of St. Francis and for the way that the children in Valladolid are being shaped by our presence in the parish and school. He invited everyone, especially Friar Alejandro, to follow the example of St. Francis, to live as lesser brothers and servants of all, motivated by love, especially love of the poor.
At the end of the celebration, the Minister Provincial, spoke about “‘diakonia,’ a strange word, so rarely used, which is actually the key of our vocation and mission in the Church as sons and brothers of St. Francis. It means to place ourselves at the feet of all, serving with simplicity and humility.”
Friar Alejandro currently resides in the San Francisco Friary in Valladolid, where he combines study and fraternal life with service at the parish and school that the Order has been running for more than fifty years.
We thank God for this new minister of the Word, the liturgy and charity. We ask the Lord of the harvest to bless the Province of Spain, and the whole Order, with new friars.
Communications Staff of the Province of Spain
