Lifetime calling

[Cobbfmly]

In his first six months in a job he long sought, ‘Padre Uriel’ gets an education in the burdens and blessings of being a priest

This September morning at Woodland Memorial Hospital, the room behind the nurse’s station is cool and quiet. A nurse wraps a baby girl in a white blanket with pink and blue stripes. She lays the infant on the counter and steps away.

The Rev. Uriel Ojeda moves closer and makes the sign of the cross. Guadalupe was stillborn less than two hours before. The priest whispers a prayer.

Three times in two months the new priest has been called to bless a baby who died at birth. He has presided over 11 funerals, more death than he expected, more heartache than he imagined. The babies’ grieving families visit his dreams.

Read the rest of the article at sacbee.com/101/story/598543.html

Also, don’t miss the slide show at sacbee.com/1053/story/597235.html

 

[Cobbfmly]

I thought that there was going to be one article about Fr. Uriel Ojeda, but it is a series. Here is the second article.

**As one of the U.S. Catholic Church’s few new Spanish-speaking priests, the Rev. Ojeda feels the pressure - and pushes himself to the limit
**

He puts the identification card on the kitchen table, the most recent picture of his wife.

“Is this what they want?” he asks in Spanish.

The Rev. Uriel Ojeda looks at the form from the funeral home and then at the photo.

Read the rest of the article at sacbee.com/101/story/600220.html