So Ace, the pastor of St. Padre Pio Parish in Kleinburg, Ont., was “completely shocked” when Collins told him that Pope Francis had made the priest a monsignor, an honour Ace called “very special.”
Ace was one of six senior priests from the Toronto archdiocese whose “tremendous” contributions the Pope acknowledged by bestowing them with the title “Chaplain of his Holiness” and making them monsignors. He is joined by new Msgrs. Lawrence Bordonaro, Thomas Kalarathil, John Pilkauskas, John Weber and Paul Zimmer.
It is the first time the title has been awarded in the archdiocese since Collins became archbishop in 2007.
Two of the new monsignors, Weber and Pilkauskas, are retired. Zimmer is the pastor of St. Clement’s Parish in Toronto’s west-end. Kalarathil, the director of priest personnel, and Bordonaro, judicial vicar, serve in the chancery office of the archdiocese.
Zimmer had a similar reaction to Ace when he received his call from the cardinal.
“When I heard the cardinal was on the line I thought that he was phoning to put me on another committee or give me another job to do,” said Zimmer. “He took me totally by surprise. I wasn’t expecting anything like this.”
For Zimmer, who has served four parishes and functioned as a supervisor for 20 seminarians over the past 37 years, celebrating the sacraments with his parishioners has been the true highlight of his career.
“The highlights of my career are the little moments,” he said. “The celebrations of weddings for people, being there for the funerals for people that I’ve grown to know and love, baptizing babies, watching classes of children from my school graduate — those are my highlights. That’s where I really feel like a father and doing what I am supposed to do.”
To become a monsignor, the local bishop must put forward a recommendation which requires approval from the Pope. Pope Francis has refined the criteria for the title, according to Neil MacCarthy, director of the archdiocese office of communications. It is now given in recognition of a life of service, where in the past it was regarded as a form of “careerism” by some.
“In recent years monsignors were made up of three classes,” said MacCarthy.
“In late 2013 it was made public that Pope Francis would only approve one type of monsignor, namely the title of Honorary Chaplains of His Holiness, reserved for priests at least 65 years old who have made exemplary contributions through their service and dedication to the priesthood.”
MacCarthy said the refined title carries a greater sense of pride among the priests and the dioceses as a whole.
Kalarathil, an immigrant priest who spent 20 years working in parishes before receiving his current appointment, said he wants to share this recognition with other priests who’ve left their homeland to serve in the archdiocese of Toronto.
“This is an honour and recognition for all of the immigrant priests working in this diocese,” he said. “I see it that way and it is for them, the many, many hard working priests out there.”
Kalarathil is grateful for the title, but said he hopes to still be known as father to those he serves.
“I am grateful to the archbishop, I am grateful to God . . . (but) I want to identify with the priests,” he said.
“That is my current job, and Fr. Thomas will fit in better than Msgr. Thomas. I’ll be the same old Fr. Thomas.”
Weber, who served in five parishes after his 1963 ordination, said he was “totally surprised” to receive the honour “at this stage of my priestly life.”
“I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve this,” he said. “I’ve just enjoyed working as a priest in the archdiocese of Toronto with the people of God for 50 years. Anything I’ve ever done was because of the great support I received in the parishes where I’ve worked. They are really the ones who deserve the award, not me.”
The new monsignors will be publicly acknowledged at the Chrism Mass at St. Michael’s Cathedral, 11 a.m. on April 15.