(This is the first in a series of articles profiling the five men who will be ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Boston at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on May 20.)



BRIGHTON -- Looking back, Deacon Peter Schirripa can see how his family planted the seeds of his vocation to the priesthood.

Born in Lexington, he grew up with his parents, three brothers, and two sisters. His family was part of Opus Dei, and he received faith formation at their centers. He loved sports, and his favorite school subjects were history and English.

He studied history and education at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire. The college is run by Benedictine monks, and some of Deacon Schirripa's classmates joined the order. This helped him develop admiration and respect for religious, but he did not see himself following that path.

While in college, he worked as an English and social studies teacher at a public middle school. He loved the "relational side" of teaching, and the students helped him learn about "the potentiality of people." But he also felt that something was missing.

"I went into teaching because I wanted to teach kids how to live well. And I was pouring myself into that. But the more I thought about it, in order to live well, Christ has to be part of that equation. And I felt that I couldn't do that in a public school," Deacon Schirripa said.

His vocation became clearer after he got involved with leading the Life Teen program at St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Dedham.

"That was making me see that this love I have for people, and guiding young people in particular, could be such better suited if I were all in for Christ as a priest," he said.

One particular experience impressed upon him the role of the priest as an intercessor. In the summer of 2016, a colleague asked him to pray for her brother, who had been in an accident and did not have anyone else to pray for him. Deacon Schirripa was struck by the request and took it very seriously, going to a church every day to pray for this intention.

"As I was doing that, it became very clear I was doing the job of a priest. The priest prays for people in the world, especially for those who have no one to pray for them. So, it was bringing so much life to my day, this idea that someone was benefiting from these prayers, and the Lord was asking me to enter into that and shoulder this burden," Deacon Schirripa said.

He entered St. John's Seminary in the fall of 2017. He said he was surprised by "the beauty of communal life" there.

"Now I see that the community is what helps you discover if you're being called to be a priest," he said.

He had also thought he would have to give up his personal interests, such as sports. But the seminarians played sports with each other, including soccer and basketball.

"God calls your particular humanity to be a priest, so all of your human interests and gifts are tools he'll use to bring the Gospel to people. So now, on the other side, I see that everyone's healthy, human hobbies and interests only get enhanced and refined by the seminary," Deacon Schirripa said.

His first summer assignment was at St. Mary's in Hanover, part of Our Lady of the Angels Parish, which also has a Life Teen program.

During his time there, a Weymouth police officer, Sgt. Michael Chesna, was killed in the line of duty. His funeral was held at St. Mary's and was attended by hundreds of officers from across the country. Witnessing this, Deacon Schirripa "saw very tangibly that everything begins and ends with the priests."

"You have all these important people, politicians, police officers, all grieving, and they were looking to the priests for guidance. Observing Father Chris Hickey handle that really well was a great grace for me," Deacon Schirripa said.

His later assignments included serving at St. Patrick's Manor in Framingham, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Brighton, and St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish in Cambridge. He also studied for a time at the Institute of Priestly Formation in Omaha, Nebraska.

Deacon Schirripa said he is looking forward to showing people "that they belong to God, that they belong to the Church, and that their life matters deeply." He said it is powerful when a priest can do that, because he speaks in the person of Christ.

"I'm looking forward to using my priesthood to instill that in people, because people feel really anonymous and lost and unknown in the world, and I want to silence that lie," Deacon Schirripa said.