On September 16, Bishop José Ornelas Carvalho, SCJ, was the featured speaker at the annual Dehon Lecture at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology.
The last time that the bishop walked the halls at SHSST was in 2013 when he was superior general of the Priests of the Sacred Heart. It was the final stop of his visitation of the US Province. Two years later he would complete his second, six-year term as head of the Dehonians.
His next assignment was to be in Angola. As a seminarian, he served in Mozambique for two years and he hoped to return to the missions.
“But the path ahead is often different than we expect,” he said. Soon after completing his second term as superior general, Pope Francis named him to serve as bishop of Setúbal (near Lisbon). In 2022, he was appointed as bishop of Leiria-Fátima. At the time, he was also serving as president of the Portuguese Bishops Conference, a role that he held from 2020 until April of this year.
When asked how being a Dehonian impacts his ministry as bishop of Fátima, Bishop Ornelas answered in two words: “Sint Unum.”
“Sint Unum is in our DNA as Dehonians,” he said. “May they be one. At Fátima, we welcome people from many nations. In our SCJ chapels, we do the same. During the celebration of the Eucharist here [at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology] I see people from around the world. This is our tradition as Dehonians. We come from different regions, we may not always sing the same, but we sing together, we are in prayer together. We strive to build a world with justice and peace. That was the dream of Fr. Dehon. That was the dream that Pope Francis shared with his vision of the Synodal Church.”
Fatima is well-known as a pilgrimage destination; people from around the world come to the Sanctuary of Fátima that commemorates the apparition of Mother Mary to three young children. Being bishop of a diocese so tied to Mary has made Bishop Ornelas reflect on the significance of Marian spirituality, part of the theme of his Dehon Lecture. His topic: “The Heart of Jesus and the Heart of Mary: Source and Inspiration for the Life and Mission of the Church.”
Click here to read more on the province website.
Click here to view photos from the Dehon Lecture and Mass.
Click here to view photos from Bishop Ornelas’ evening with Dehonians at Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake. He is pictured below, greeting Bishop Joseph Potocnak, SCJ, after Adoration.
