Deacon Luke Uebler, just a month before being ordained a priest to the Diocese of Buffalo, introduced himself as a "Renaissance Man." Articulate and intelligent, the 26-year-old seems to have the credentials of a person who spans genres of interest.

Bishop Richard J. Malone, bishop of Buffalo, will ordain Rev. Mr. Robert Ikpe Agbo, Rev. Mr. Martin F. Gallagher, Rev. Mr. Luke P. Uebler and Rev. Mr. Cole T. Webster to the priesthood at St. Joseph Cathedral in downtown Buffalo at 9:30 a.m. June 3. Each of the deacons graduated from Christ the King Seminary, East Aurora, on May 12 with a master's degree in divinity.

A South Buffalo native will be among the four men ordained to the priesthood on June 3 at St. Joseph Cathedral in downtown Buffalo. Transitional Deacon Martin Gallagher, who attended high school and college in Western New York before studying theology at Christ the King Seminary, reflected on his strong Catholic upbringing and the factors that led to his decision to become a diocesan priest.

Eileen Warner from Christ the King Saminary is joined by Father David Munoz, OMI, who serves as an instructor in their Hispanic Pastoral Institute Certificate program.

Bishop Richard J. Malone announced the new assignment of Deacon Brian C. Walkowiak to diaconal ministry at Infant of Prague Parish, Cheektowaga. His appointment was effective April 1.

In about a month, the Diocese of Buffalo is set to welcome four new priests, as Transitional Deacons Robert Agbo, Martin Gallagher, Cole Webster and Luke Uebler will be ordained by Bishop Richard J. Malone at St. Joseph Cathedral on Saturday, June 3. Peak into the lives of these men as they prepare to take the final step of their journey to the priesthood in our new photo gallery.

The Diocese of Buffalo continued a time-honored Holy Week tradition that renewed the promises of all diocesan priests and enabled Bishop Richard J. Malone to prepare sacred oils for use in sacraments throughout the diocese. The Chrism Mass, held at St. Joseph Cathedral in downtown Buffalo April 11, also included the participation of "The Elect," soon-to-be Catholics initiated later in the week.

In the Lenten season, the Catholic faith emphasizes the importance of self-denial, discipline and a sense of planning and preparing oneself for the future. However, Father Ryszard Biernat, who serves as secretary to Bishop Richard J. Malone, strives to live these in his life all year long through vigorous workouts, a strong will and devotion to his spiritual life that came from his desire to make sure he is healthier.

In its next commercial for the Ford Escape, Ford Motor Corporation might want to consider making Father Dennis Mancuso the spokesman for the small sport utility vehicle. It's the vehicle he uses to cover 400 square miles of Allegany County on a regular basis.

The Pre-Theology program at Christ the King Seminary.

WILLIAMSVILLE — Come and give God your time. During Lent, prepare yourself and your families to grow in holiness. Set aside the time and listen for the ways in which God is calling to you to join Him for three nights.

Father William R. Bigelow, retired pastor of the Diocese of Buffalo, will celebrate his Golden Anniversary of ordination to the priesthood this March. Father Bigelow was ordained a priest by Bishop Paulus Rausch at St. Paul's Church in Innsbruck, Austria on March 11, 1967.

To shine a spotlight on the profound impact of Catholic sisters in our communities and around the world, and in conjunction with National Women's History Month, the third annual National Catholic Sisters Week (NCSW) will be held March 8-14. National Catholic Sisters Week is supported by a $3.3 million grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, is headquartered at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minn.

Bishop Richard J. Malone has announced new assignments for Deacons David H. Harvey, Joseph A. Pasquella and Thaddeus V. Pijacki.

The priestly formation process, for me, has been about developing a larger theological and ministerial toolbox.

Msgr. Frederick D. Leising, a retired diocesan priest, will receive the Clarence Chamber of Commerce's Lifetime Achiever of the Year Award. The chamber's 2017 awards dinner will take place at 6 p.m., on March 2, at Samuel's Grande Manor in Clarence, where Msgr. Leising will receive his award along with others from the area.

When intending to provide the best assistance to discerners, especially to those of high school age, it has become clear to me that family members, especially parents, play a large part. In many cases, parents have been of tremendous help on their sons' vocational journey, and much appreciation is due to them. Sometimes, when a high school student musters up enough courage to share that he is feeling a call to priesthood, the parents are stopped in their tracks. This surprise can be followed by a number of possible reactions.

Bishop Richard J. Malone has named Father Edward "Ted" F. Jost Jr. pastor of St. Mary of the Lake Parish, Hamburg, for a term of six years, effective Jan 1. Father Jost had been serving as the parish administrator there since September 2015.

Since 1997, when St. John Paul II declared the first World Day for Consecrated Life, the global Catholic Church has set aside a specific day each year to pray for men and women who have chosen to dedicate their lives to service in the Church. Each year, it falls on Feb. 2, the date of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, and in 2017, diocesan parishes will be celebrating the special occasion on Feb. 4 and 5.

After devoting most of her life to spreading God's word in schools and in her own books, Sister Ruth Penksa, a Grey Nun of the Sacred Heart, has died from injuries sustained in a fire. Sister Ruth was rescued on Dec. 20 from a fire in her high rise apartment on Hertel Avenue. She was rushed to the Erie County Medical Center suffering from burns and smoke inhalation. She remained in the Burn Treatment Unit of ECMC for more than a week before passing on the morning of Dec. 28. She was the only one seriously injured in the fire.

Bishop Richard J. Malone recently announced the following clergy assignments.

Bishop Richard Malone talks about the joy of Christmas and mentions Christmas TV Masses available for those who are home bound.

During the Christmas season, a tradition has developed in which Bishop Richard J. Malone and Father Ryszard Biernat join Meals on Wheels to visit numerous clients during meal delivery. For the fourth year, the pair were eagerly received by clients who wanted to share a prayer and receive Holy Communion. Each client also received a hand-made card and ornament created by children through a local religious education program.

"The Tibetan Book of the Dead," believed to be the work of eighth-century Buddhist master Padma Sambhava, is designed to be read to a person who has died to prepare the soul for reincarnation. In a similar vein, Msgr. Dino Lorenzetti, a retired priest from the Diocese of Buffalo, has written "Addio: See You in Heaven," which serves as a guide to prepare the living for heaven.

"Come here, you free citizen of the world, whose life is safeguarded by human morality and whose existence is guaranteed through law. I want to tell you how modern criminals and despicable murderers have trampled the morality of life and nullified the postulates of human existence." - Zalman Gradowski, murdered at Auschwitz, 1945. What a challenging invitation and a sobering reminder of the recurring power of evil.

As many families decorate their Christmas trees and set up their Nativity scenes underneath, Father Roy Herberger will be unboxing nearly 600 different versions of Mary, Joseph and the Baby Jesus at his parish, SS. Columba & Brigid Church in Buffalo.

A young woman from Peru traveled nearly four thousand miles to profess her perpetual vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in the congregation of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities. The Eucharistic liturgy took place in the St. Mary of the Angels convent chapel in Williamsville on Saturday, December 10.

The annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection will be held Dec. 10-11 in the Diocese of Buffalo. Coordinated by the National Religious Retirement Office, the parish-based appeal benefits nearly 33,000 senior Catholic sisters, brothers and religious order priests whose communities lack retirement savings.

The patients huddled in the waiting room of Mercy Hospital in Buffalo had no idea of the effort made by the religious sister tending to their needs. Sister Donna Lord, GNSH, fought the Snowvember storm of 2014 to reach the hospital to fulfill her duty as a chaplain.

Throughout her years of serving as a Sister of Mercy in the Diocese of Buffalo, Sister Mary Ann Schimscheiner, RSM, has made many contributions to the field of health care in the Western New York area, including serving as the chief executive officer of Kenmore Mercy Hospital for 18 years. Last month, she spoke with the Western New York Catholic about the history of the hospital, as well as the Retirement Fund for Religious.

A published author and enthusiast of world religions, Sister Mary Francis "Sister Fran" Gangloff, OSF, currently manages health insurance and government benefits for women religious in the Western New York region. Sister Fran discussed her ministry, as well as seeing firsthand the great need for the Retirement Fund for Religious, last month at her office at St. Mary of the Angels Convent in Williamsville.

The Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, one of the smaller orders of religious women in Buffalo, live with the charism "love and service to the poor." Ten sisters from the Italian-based order serve in Lewiston. Most teach at Sacred Heart Villa, but one sister offers a ministry of prayer and crafting in Our Lady of Peace Nursing Home. Sister Elena Sinatra, SSHJ, lives with cancer and asthma that keeps her tethered to an oxygen tank. A teacher for 52 years, she now volunteers at the very same nursing home where she lives.

Twenty-nine years ago, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops had the foresight to anticipate the retirement needs of congregations of women and men religious who had worked for the Church in the United States since the late 18th century.

Parishes throughout the Diocese of Buffalo will join parishes across the country on the weekend of Dec. 10 and 11 in holding a special collection for the Retirement Fund for the Religious. The collection, which was initiated in 1988 by Catholic bishops of the United States, helps underwrite retirement and health care expenses.

The artist in Father Bill Quinlivan cannot be silenced, nor can his love of the Advent and Christmas season. The Singing Priest of South Buffalo has released a book for the season, called "Coming Home for Christmas Through Advent," which offers reflections on themes of the season that come from his two Christmas albums. Topics span the range of holiday ups and downs from gift-wrapping and cooking baking, to nativity sets and being alone.

EAST AURORA — For six, third-year seminarians finishing their pastoral year at Christ the King Seminary, the inaugural "Spiritual Summer" program was a transformative step on their paths to the transitional diaconate and ultimately priesthood.

Among the most recent appointments made by Bishop Richard J. Malone are some priest reassignments and new assignments for seven deacons.

As a newly-ordained young priest serving at St. Mark Parish in Rushford, Father David Griffin, who is now retired, conducted his first wedding ceremony, that of Desider and Dorothy Simcoe III, on Sept. 10, 1966. Today, the couple has been married for 50 years and, to commemorate their golden anniversary, the Simcoes and Father Griffin held a celebration at St. Mark's with a congregation of family members.

Father Sean E. DiMaria has taken on the additional responsibilities as pastor of Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph Parish, Belmont, and St. Mary Parish, Bolivar, for a term of six years. He previously served as the priest moderator for both parishes. Father DiMaria continues his duties as pastor of Immaculate Conception, Wellsville; Blessed Sacrament, Andover; and SS. Brendan & Jude, Almond-Alfred, making him pastor of half the Catholic parishes in Allegany County. Bishop Richard J. Malone announced the appointment was effective Sept. 1.

WASHINGTON, DC - The annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection will be held Dec. 10-11 in most U.S. parishes. Now in its 29th year, the collection is coordinated by the National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) and benefits nearly 33,000 elderly Catholic sisters, brothers and religious order priests whose religious communities lack adequate retirement funding.