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Fr. Peter Weiss, SSJ
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Profile of a Josephite seminarian
(Brother Leo Udeagu, SSJ)
Meet one of our seminarians, Brother Leo Udeagu SSJ, the son of Denis and Maria Udeagu, from Obinofia Ndiuno, Enugu State, Nigeria. He and his family belong to St. Mark's Catholic Church there.
Born, September 24, 1977, Leo is the first of two brothers. To be first born son in Nigeria is a great honor and carries with it some serious responsibilities and obligations. It’s not easy being a first-born son and pursuing a vocation to the priesthood, especially to the Josephite priesthood. As a Josephite, Leo will devote his entire life to ministry in the African American community here in the United States.
For many years this longing to be a priest dwelt deep within him. In fact, at fourteen years of age, Leo wanted to attend the Minor Seminary near his home and begin his road to the priesthood. At the request of his father, Leo postponed that dream and attended the regular secondary school, so that he could help his dad with his business in the town’s marketplace. Assuming his responsibility as the eldest son, Leo was happy to do that for his father.
Ten years later, at the age of twenty-four, the day finally came in when his father gave his blessing for Leo to pursue the priesthood. What a sacrifice it was for his father to grant this long deferred request of his son. When asked why did his father finally agreed, Leo responded, “Because my father knew I was serious. My dream never left me.”
Leo held onto to this dream all those years, never giving up hope. It was a priest from the Spiritan congregation, who also attended St. Mark's Church, who suggested that Leo contact the Josephites. And so he did.
Because God has blessed Nigeria with many vocations, the seminaries there cannot accommodate them all. As a result, the screening process is long and tough. Leo, along with a group of 75 other young men, began the Josephite application process. He was one of 25 chosen from that group to go through to the next step. At the end of this process Leo, along with eight other young men, was chosen to begin studies with the Josephites.
He entered the Josephite formation program at St. Joseph the Worker Center in Iperu-Remo, Nigeria in 2003. His studies then continued at St. Paul Mission Seminary in Abuja. Having completed four years of formation in Nigeria, Leo came to the United States in January 2007 – just in time to experience the shock of a freezing cold winter!
That July he entered the Josephite Novitiate and one year later, on June 22, 2008, he made his First Promise as a Josephite. Leo now is taking graduate courses in Theology at the Dominican House of Studies, Washington, D.C. and hopes to be ordained a priest in 2012.
His journey has been difficult, but he stuck with it. He endured a lot, but persevered. He and his family have sacrificed much, generously. We are grateful for his “Yes” to God’s call to become a priest, a Josephite priest, and for the generous spirit Leo exhibits every day.
“To be a priest,” Leo reflected, “means to be the voice of God to his people. It is being another Christ. Having been chosen by God from among his people, a priest is one who – through his own struggle to maintain his personal sanctification– helps the people of God struggle with their’s, especially through the administration of God’s Word and the Sacraments.”
Leo continued: “I want to be a Josephite priest because I feel that God is inviting me into his gigantic vineyard, to work among the African-American community, leading them to Christ.”
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