Three priests, brother celebrate anniversaries By Fabvienen Taylor
JACKSON — In his 50 years as a priest of the Diocese of Jackson, Father Noel Prendergast, 74, said the really important thing is being of service to the church. “Service. And when I say church I am not just speaking about the institutional church, I am speaking about the people,” said the pastor of Yazoo City St. Mary and St. Francis parishes.
Father Prendergast, ordained June 7, 1958, will celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 27, at St. Mary Church.
A reception will follow at The Manchester, located across the street from the church.
Father Prendergast is one of three Diocese of Jackson priests celebrating anniversaries this year.
Marking 25 years are Father Anthony Quyet, 58, and Father William Cullen, 69.
Father Prendergast said it does not feel as if he’s been in ministry for half a century. “It feels like it was just a few years ago since I was ordained,” he said.
Father Cullen felt similarly. “I don’t believe it’s been 25 years. It seems like only yesterday I was being ordained at St. Richard.”
Ordained Jan. 8, 1983, Father Cullen celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving followed by a reception on Jan. 6 in Forest.
Prior to becoming a priest, Father Cullen was a Franciscan brother for 20 years.
He is pastor of Forest St. Michael, Morton San Martin de Porres, Newton St. Anne, and Paulding St. Michael.
The celebration took place at the United Methodist Church in Forest to accommodate the 300 guests, he said.
“It wasn’t a dio-cesan-wide celebration, I just wanted wanted something very simple,” he said.
“The goal was to bring the various cultural groups together as one church community to celebrate. For me it was very exciting. We celebrated in English, Spanish and Vietnamese,” Father Cullen said.
A reception followed in the church center.
“We talk about the Eucharist as a meal and then after the Mass, we had a buffet-style sit-down meal with 300 people.
“To me it was so symbolic of who we are as a people. Seeing all those people together was just a great spiritual uplift for me.”
Father Quyet, who is pursuing studies at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, will celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 28, at St. Therese Church.
A reception will follow in the school gymnasium.
Prior to going to Chicago, Father Quyet was pastor of St. Therese.
On a related note, Brother Ted Dausch, 68, will celebrate the 50th anniversary of his entrance into religious life. A member of the Congregation of Christian Brothers, he was ordained July 2, 1958.
A Mass of Thanksgiving will be celebrated at noon Saturday, June 14, at St. Mary Church in Jackson.
A reception will be held afterwards in the gymnasium.
“Service. And when I say church I am not just speaking about the institutional church, I am speaking about the people,” said the pastor of Yazoo City St. Mary and St. Francis parishes.
“It feels like it was just a few years ago since I was ordained,” he said.
A member of the Congregation of Christian Brothers, he was ordained July 2, 1958.