This is the third in Colleen Roy’s series of interviews with the four priests who form the Archdiocese of Vancouver’s vocations team. Previously interviewed were Father Juan Lucca and Father Raffaele Salvino.
I first met Father Mark McGuckin when we moved to Chilliwack in 2021. He was assigned as assistant pastor at St. Mary’s and I was thrilled that both he and Father Wilfred Gomes (a good friend) would be so close by.
Father Mark seemed kind, thoughtful, humble, sincere, and had a lovely smile. My mom remembers him as an authentically good listener. I looked forward to having him visit our home and meeting the kids.
Unfortunately, after just one visit, the lockdowns of 2021 stole my dream away and before post-pandemic sanity returned, Father Mark was sent far away to St. Joseph’s in Port Moody. But the brief visit we had, and my happy opportunity to chat with him for this interview, confirmed my feelings about him, and made me, once again, so grateful for how richly blessed the Vancouver area is in her priests.
Father Mark is now at St. Francis de Sales Parish in Burnaby and is victim number three of my vocations interview series.
Where did you grow up?
I was raised in Maple Ridge and attended St. Patrick’s parish. I went to a public elementary and secondary school but went to catechism on Tuesday nights.
I had a “Catholic rock” for a dad, who had a massive influence on my journey. My mom is not a Catholic but is very supportive. She didn’t always understand my journey to the priesthood… but is always open to hearing me and was continuously warming up throughout my years at the seminary.
When did you first consider the priesthood as a serious call?
Growing up, Dad had suggested it multiple times, and I laughed in response. “No way.” It was not on my radar. I loved sports, theatre, and creative writing; this was where I was heading. I met people in film, connected, and joined in with them. I was an inaugural member of the improv theatre group out at the University of British Columbia and really ventured into the deep end of the film world. I was a production assistant, editor, cameraman, and eventually a creative producer and on-camera performer… One show a friend and I pitched in 2006, Road Hockey Rumble, was picked up by CTV, and it aired for two seasons.
(Road Hockey Rumble can be found on YouTube, though Father is less than enthusiastic at the idea of people watching. In his words, “It is less than edifying, and has evaporated quietly, thanks be to God.” )
The show was my life; every moment was taken up with it. I was very quietly and privately practising the faith in Vancouver, mostly because Dad would call on Monday to make sure I’d gone to Mass on Sunday (take note dads). I was wrapped up in the show and what would be next. But I began to reflect, to get my bearings. There was a critical moment when I started to ask the big existential questions, in a haunting way: “Why am I here? What is the meaning, the purpose in this? Is there a god? Which god?” I felt empty.
This began an earnest period of investigation. I repelled away from my Catholic roots and moral accountability, but something kept pulling me back.
I came across the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and discovered the compelling science around it. This was a changing moment. I began informal personal prayer at night, just speaking to Jesus. “Show up, if you exist,” I asked him. I needed to find what was true.
In August 2009, in my apartment, the floodgates opened in a moment of pure grace. It was an exhilarating and scary experience. I had five days with waves of euphoria, being drawn into prayer, tears, and special mystical experiences. It was a total gift. I was locked up in my apartment, trying to process mentally what was happening in my heart.
I woke on a Friday and the Holy Spirit moved in me. Right there I knew I needed to go to daily Mass, something I had never dreamed of doing before. So, I went to St. Patrick’s with Father [Vincent] Hawkswell. Something came alive; I was nourished; it was just good to be there. And this started a new routine.
With this newfound joy, I thought, “Maybe I should talk to humans here.” I approached my friends, family, some agnostic atheists, or ex-Catholics to tell them, “This is what I’m going through. Don’t think I’m a nut!” I was always surprised at the end of the conversation, seeing that we were closer than we were at the beginning.
I set up a meeting with Father Hawkswell. It was my first time meeting with a priest other than confession. The priesthood came up, and I considered it as a call to serve after serving myself for decades. I wanted to give of myself.
I met with the vocations director at the time, not even knowing what the word “vocation” meant. On a wave of euphoria, I told Father Hien, “I gotta go to seminary!” He gently pumped the brakes and recommended I spend some time at Madonna House in Ontario, where they have spiritual formation for men discerning the priesthood.
I spent six months there. If it wasn’t for Madonna House, I wouldn’t have survived seminary. It was a time of community, work, prayer, Mass, and the Catechism. In the end, I knew I couldn’t live with myself without trying the seminary. In September 2010 I entered seminary.
The first three months were hard. But then I felt like I wanted to be there; I wanted to return. I had a deep sense of peace, like being at home. The summers spent in parishes confirmed my path to the diocesan life. It was a challenging but powerful and beautiful experience.
My time at St. Ann’s in Abbotsford with Father Hughes, was a time that made my heart sing: being with the people, worshiping with the people, navigating life with people. I was ordained a deacon in 2015, and in May 2016, a priest.
Do you have special memories from your ordination day?
(Laughing) My Grade 5 niece roasted me at the celebration afterwards. She even had a PowerPoint presentation. I had non-Catholic friends attend, which meant a lot.
My mom’s involvement was a beautiful gift from our Lord. There was a special grace to genuinely enjoy the day, and it became a blessed moment for her.
Father Tom Nicholson, my childhood priest, was present. I had shared my testimony at the breakfast before the ordination, and it included my relationship with him. In elementary school, he was always genuinely interested in what I was interested in. I was impacted by a real, genuine spiritual father. He was fun, he listened, and loved God.
I shared about his influence, and then was whisked to the ordination. At this time, Father Nicholson had the onset of dementia, and I didn’t expect to see him. But someone brought him to concelebrate. There he was, right in the middle of the procession waiting outside, on that beautiful day: May 14, 2016. It was truly a gift from heaven. We talked together, and he didn’t remember me, but on a supernatural level he did. He looked at me, and began tearing up, but not knowing why. Something inside him knew the gravity of the event on a deeper spiritual level. This set the tone for my whole ordination, after having that moment on the steps of the cathedral. It was a moment beyond reason.
Favourite Scripture verse?
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Cor 12). This verse was on my ordination card with an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The picture, to me, showed the vulnerability of Christ as he exposed his heart. I knew that I also must expose my own heart in following the Good Shepherd.
How do you deal with “off” days, days when you are discouraged, and your vocation seems frustrated?
I have to live my ministry day to day. My three pillars are prayer, laughter, and black coffee. If I have those, I know it’s going to be alright. There are storms that emerge, but also everyday blessings to count. I have a team I can rely on. I enjoy golfing, visiting family and friends, and give myself some down time. But the front lines involve seeing the depth and truth of people’s lives, seeing God working in their lives before they ever met him, in any crisis or heaviness, knowing they have a journey with God. This inspires me.
To live out my ministry I have to stop thinking that I’m doing this myself. What do I have to do is: trust in Jesus Christ and invite his presence into a room with people. Listen. Attend to people, then it flows, and the weight is lifted. “He must increase, I must decrease.” I get to collaborate with Jesus, but he is the main author, and my job is putting people in closer contact with him.
Favourite prayer?
Jesus, I trust in You.
Favourite spiritual book?
Searching for and Maintaining Peace by Father Jacques Philippe.
Favourite secular book?
Power and the Glory by Graham Greene.
Favourite movie?
The original Ghostbusters, The Passion of the Christ, and the Russian film Ostrov (The Island). The latter is a real hidden gem. I first watched that during the Lenten season at Madonna House.
Patron saint?
St John the Baptist: “I must decrease, He must increase.”
When you invite Father Mark to your home for a meal, or kindly offer to drop one off to him, he does not discriminate against people or food. (But he does enjoy a good red steak.)
And if there are any donors who want to support a local Catholic sitcom, Father has a working list of the oddities dealt with (events and people!) on a parish level, and thinks it would make for a pretty great show.
If you are interested in discussing a vocation to the priesthood, call (604) 443-3254 ext. 429 or email vocations@rcav.org What do you have to lose?
Read more from this series:
