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Bishop Richard Malone, leader of the Western New York Roman Catholic Diocese will ordain a married priest this weekend.
The Reverend John Cornelius will be ordained Saturday in Wellsville.
Pope Benedict, last year, directed that married former priests from the Episcopal and Anglican churches can become Catholic priests.
Reverend Cornelius is a former Anglican priest. He and his wife have three children.
To prepare for the priesthood, the married father of three spent every Saturday for 20 weeks taking a distance learning course from the University of Houston.
Following his ordination, he will lead the Fellowship of Saint Alban in Henrietta (Diocese of Rochester), a small community of former Anglicans who have joined the Catholic Church. When available, he will also assist with ministry at parishes in Allegany County, according to a statement from the Buffalo Diocese.
From The Fellowship of St. Alban,
Cornelius's Order of "Catholics of Anglican Heritage
Here's his biography and photo:
Born and bred in Bolivar, New York, Fr. Cornelius went to Allegany College, SUNY at Fredonia, then into the U.S. Navy. After receiving his Masters of Divinity degree from the Episcopal Seminary at Northwestern University, he served as an Episcopal priest for 20 some years in Florida, New York State, Rhode Island and Texas. Following his reception into the Catholic Church with his wife Sharyl, he is currently serving as a pastoral associate at Ss. Brendan and Jude church in Almond, NY.
