Faith makes transitions easy, priest says By Fabvienen Taylor
JACKSON — In the life of Catholic parishes, the transition around a change in pastor is fodder for articles, books and in some larger dioceses, work for a diocesan counsultant.
But after years of experience, Father Thomas Lalor, 67, knows what made a smooth transition for him and the parishes he served.
“The same thing happens again and again,” he said, “everywhere I have been.”
It happened at Greenville St. Joseph, at Magee St. Stephens, at Jackson St. Mary and Natchez St. Mary, at Jackson St. Therese and it happened, for a second time, at Cleveland Our Lady of Victories.
“In every parish, what makes an easy transition is the faith of the people and their profound welcome for us, all the priests, any time we enter a new place. Really it is what church means,” he said.
“And I felt it yesterday in Tupelo, when I spent several hours there meeting with the parish staff and the liturgy committee at St. James,” Father Lalor said.
St. James’ pastor, Father Henry Shelton, 65, is retiring.
Father Lalor is one of seven diocesan priests receiving assignments to new parishes, or additional ministry in the diocese.
In addition, a religious order priest received an appointment.
Priests recently received word of their assignments and announced their new appointments in their current parishes at Mass.
In addition to Father Lalor, Fathers Sean Atkinson, Kent Bowlds, Charles Bucciantini, Matthew Simmons, and Jeffrey Waldrep received new assignments, effective Feb. 1, 2008. Effective Dec. 1, 2007, Father Lenin Vargas, 35, appointed associate pastor of Madison St. Francis of Assisi Parish and assistant vocations director and Father Malcolm O’Leary (SVD), 77, was named chaplain of St. Mary of the Pines Retirement Community in Chatawa.
Father Charles Bucciantini, 61, appointed pastor of Leland St. James Parish and its mission, Hollandale Immaculate Conception, Indianola Immaculate Conception and St. Benedict the Moor parishes.
Prior to his 2002 appointment to St. James, Father Bucciantini was pastor of Cleveland Our Lady of Victories, chaplain of Delta State University and sacramental minister at Rosedale Sacred Heart Parish.
A native of Natchez, he was ordained in 1972.
Father Sean (John Thomas) Atkinson, 62, appointed pastor of Cleveland Our Lady of Victories Parish.
He has been pastor of Indianola Immaculate Conception and St. Benedict the Moor parishes since 2002 and before that served as pastor of Leland St. James Parish.
Prior to that he served as pastor of Crystal Springs St. John Parish.
A native of Athenry, County Galway, Ireland, Father Atkinson was ordained in 1969.
Father Matthew Simmons, 37, pastor of Crystal Springs St. John Parish and its mission, Hazlehurst St. Martin of Tours, appointed pastor of Brookhaven St. Francis of Assisi Parish and its mission, Meadville St. Ann.
Father Patrick Noonan, 70, is retiring.
In 2003, Father Simmons was appointed associate pastor of Meridian St. Patrick and St. Joseph parishes following his ordination.
Father Kent Bowlds, 51, appointed administrator of Crystal Spings St. John Parish and its mission, Hazlehurst St. Martin of Tours and diocesan director of vocations.
Father Bowlds was appointed associate pastor of Madison St. Francis of Assisi Parish in 1993 following his ordination. He also served as associate pastor of Meridian St. Patrick and St. Joseph parishes; and pastor of Clarksdale St. Elizabeth and Immaculate Conception parishes.
In 2004 Father Bowlds was appointed vocations director and associate pastor of Jackson Holy Family and St. Richard parishes.
Father Jeffrey Waldrep, 43, appointed administrator of Jackson St. Therese Parish and assistant judicial vicar.
Father Anthony Quyet, 59, has been granted permission to pursue studies in spirituality.
In 2005, Father Waldrep entered a three-year program of Canonical Studies at St. Paul’s University in Ottawa, Canada.
Ordained in 1990, he was appointed associate pastor of Madison St. Francis of Assisi. He also served as associate pastor of Greenville St. Joseph and Jackson St. Richard parishes; and pastor of Starkville St. Joseph Parish and its mission, Macon Corpus Christi.
Divine Word Father O’Leary, ordained in 1961, last served in the diocese as pastor of Clarksdale Immacualte Conception Parish from 1980-84.
He began his tenure in the diocese in 1967 as assistant pastor of Yazoo City St. Francis of Assisi Parish and later pastored Jackson Holy Ghost Parish.
In Cleveland, Father Lalor is planning another one-day trip to St. James (its mission is St. Thomas Aquinas in Saltillo) to continue planning with the staff for Lent, which begins Feb. 6, less than a week after he will arrive as pastor.
“I also want to meet with the pastoral council and meet the teenagers on Wednesday night,” he said. “But I am going there on my day off. I don’t want to cheat Our Lady of Victories out of one day. They are too special to me, they have been wonderful to me.”
Cathy Bishop, Our Lady of Victories, secretary, repaid the compliment to her departing pastor.
“He is the most caring, spiritually uplifting, super nice person and he has been so involved with his parishioners,” she said. “He has helped nourish all of the parishioners’ spiritual, as well as emotional and physical needs. “We will love Father Sean, we know we will, but we just didn’t want to lose Father Lalor. We love him.”
Father Lalor especially appreciated the response last year from his parishioners during an illness. “It was wonderful,” he said, noting the numerous cards, telephone calls, visits and for six weeks, meals prepared by the women in the parish.
“I kept every card and wrote back to every single person. That’s been typical of the whole diocese. Everywhere I have been, people have been so lovely to me,” he said.
Father Lalor said he, and he thinks all of the priests, have many friends in parishes from all over the diocese.
“It is and continues to be a privilege to be a priest in the Diocese of Jackson,” Father Lalor said.
mas Lalor, 67, knows what made a smooth transition for him and the parishes he served.
Effective Dec. 1, 2007, Father Lenin Vargas, 35, appointed associate pastor of Madison St. Francis of Assisi Parish and assistant vocations director and Father Malcolm O’Leary (SVD), 77, was named chaplain of St. Mary of the Pines Retirement Community in Chatawa.
Father Sean (John Thomas) Atkinson, 62, appointed pastor of Cleveland Our Lady of Victories Parish.
Father Kent Bowlds, 51, appointed administrator of Crystal Spings St. John Parish and its mission, Hazlehurst St. Martin of Tours and diocesan director of vocations.
Therese Parish and assistant judicial vicar.
Divine Word Father O’Leary, ordained in 1961, last served in the diocese as pastor of Clarksdale Immacualte Conception Parish from 1980-84.