If anyone expected the Ordinandi Dinner for Deacons Medard Kamanzi and Patrick Le to be a sedate affair, they were in for a surprise as friends and classmates toasted and roasted the two future priests who will be ordained Saturday.

The audience was treated to stories about the two men’s eccentricities, their dedication, and above all their faith, while the deacons in turn asked for continued spiritual support of the faithful.

“Keep us in your prayer so that we may be faithful priests for Jesus Christ,” Deacon Medard Kamanzi said to the packed Italian Convention Centre where hundreds of friends, family, and parishioners joined with the two deacons to celebrate their vocation and share memories of their discernment.


Deacon Patrick Le, from Christ the King Seminary, and Deacon Kamanzi, from Redemptoris Mater Seminary, will be ordained to the priesthood at noon Saturday at Holy Rosary Cathedral. The public is welcome.

Friends spoke about both deacons, sharing insight and anecdotes about their time in seminary.

Solomon Nguyen, a classmate of Deacon Le’s from the minor and major seminary, shared a reflection highlighting his friend’s love of learning and his Vietnamese heritage.

“We met in high school seminary, and my first impression of the guy was … ‘he is kinda weird.’ And after 12 years of getting to know him, of growing together, of becoming friends and then brothers, I can say I was right!”

But Deacon Le is also “a man of deep thought,” said Nguyen. A lover of traditional sacred music, he also “reads philosophers and the Church Fathers in the original Greek and Latin, even writing his theology papers in Latin.”

After sharing stories about wandering the community of Mission, terrariums grown in seminary bathrooms, and consuming wild mushrooms found in the woods surrounding the seminary – “they were growing next to a statue of Mary, so it’s fine” – Nguyen asked, “So who is Deacon Patrick Le?”

“Right now, he is a deacon sent to serve us, the people of God. And in less than two weeks, God willing, he will be ordained a priest – our priest.

“And there will be times when he will fail, and he will stumble and make mistakes. But I can assure you, as his friend and his brother, he will grow, he will learn, and he will be there for us, the people. He will do his utmost to make sure we are fed with the holy Scriptures and the Eucharist. To be the face of mercy in the confessional,” he said.

“Deacon Patrick, though many eclectic things, will never be a man of half measures. He is all in. My hope is that in 25 years we will gather to celebrate his anniversary and we will all have a weird Father Patrick story to share.”

Redemptoris Mater seminarian Ezequiel Medina-Sarabia spoke about Deacon Kamazi, sharing some of their experiences together in the seminary.

“I am going to speak from the heart,” Medina-Sarabia told the gathering. “When I first saw Medard I saw his scar, and he looked at me and said, ‘I know you have questions. You want to know about the scar,” before going on to joke that he got the scar fighting a lion in a manhood ritual.

For Medina-Sarabia, what touched him most was Deacon Kamanzi’s willingness to give everything of himself to serve his missionary vocation as a member of the Neocatechumenal Way spiritual renewal program. Part of the process involved casting lots for international missionary placements.

“Through many difficulties in his life I saw it, and I saw that even in those moments he was always patient, he was always generous with his time, and he was always a good example for me.”

Both quiet and charismatic, the deacon has “this grace that comes from God that is helping him in his mission,” Medina-Sarabia said.

“This guy comes from a very challenging place, and I want to be like him,” he said.

Many members of the Neocatechumenate attended to celebrate Deacon Kamanzi’s vocation. Neocatechumenal member Jane Gallow told The B.C. Catholic that the deacon and fellow member is known for his patience. “It is really nice to celebrate with someone when you have known them as a seminarian,” she said.

“He has grown so much since he came here,” said Kathy Johnson, another Neocatechumenal member. “We are very proud.”

See our earlier stories about Deacon Le and Deacon Kamanzi.

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