Basilian Fathers to Celebrate the Ordination of Kevin J.V. Mannara, CSB

On August 5, 2017, the Congregation of St. Basil, also known as the Basilian Fathers, celebrates the ordination of Kevin J.V. Mannara, CSB. The Most Reverend Ronald P. Fabbro, CSB, Bishop of London, Ontario, will preside at the Mass of Ordination, held at St. Mary’s Church in Rochester, New York at 9:30 a.m.

“I am humbled and honored to serve the Mission of Christ as a priest in the Congregation of St. Basil. The support of Father George Smith and my confrères have brought me to this moment; I’m confident that God will continue to teach me goodness, discipline and knowledge through them,” said Mannara.

As a newly ordained priest, Mannara will serve as Director of Campus Ministry at St. John Fisher College.

“I am looking forward to serving the St. John Fisher College community, whe­­re I hope to continue the work and dedication of our Congregation. I take to heart the words of the Congregation’s patron, St. Basil the Great, ‘I will try to fan into flame the spark of divine love that is hidden within you, as far as I am able through the power of the Holy Spirit,’” Mannara said.

“Kevin’s vocational journey has been an experience of grace for our entire Congregation, and we rejoice with him that God has called him into the mystery of Basilian priesthood,” said Very Reverend George T. Smith, CSB, Superior General of the Congregation of St. Basil. “I am particularly pleased that Kevin’s first appointment as a priest will be in the Diocese of Rochester, whose faithful people nurtured and nourished his vocation. God will bless his ministry there, and he will be blessed by the people whom God has called him to serve.”

Mannara grew up in Rochester, New York and came to know the Basilian Fathers as a high school student at The Aquinas Institute when it was administered by the Congregation.

He obtained his bachelor’s degree from Niagara University, Niagara Falls, New York; a Master of Divinity degree from Saint Bernard’s School of Theology & Ministry, Rochester, New York; and a Doctor of Ministry degree from The Catholic Theological Union, Chicago, Illinois. His doctoral research is in parish consolidations, as well as the development and arrangement of churches.

As a Basilian scholastic, he gained firsthand experience in parish consolidation at Our Lady of Assumption Catholic Parish in Windsor, Ontario where he served as pastoral intern from July 2015 to June 2017. He ministered to parishioners as they were coping with the closure of their church in 2014.

His research and pastoral experience led him to publish, That All May Be One: Consolidating Church Buildings When Parishes Merge, a valuable resource for pastors and pastoral planners dealing with parish mergers. The book combines relevant research in consolidations into dialogue with Church documents related to liturgy and the place where it takes happens with practical suggestions for those leading a parish consolidation.

Mannara professed his final vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience to the Congregation on April 21, 2017 and was ordained to the diaconate on April 22, 2017. Both Masses took place at the Chapel in the Cardinal Flahiff Basilian Centre in Toronto, Ontario, where the Curial office of the Congregation is located.

Founded in France in 1822, The Congregation of St. Basil, also known as the Basilian Fathers, is a vibrant community of priests, students for the priesthood, and lay associates who profess simple vows. Basilians serve God through their apostolic work in education and evangelization throughout France, Canada, United States, Mexico, and Colombia.