VOCATIONS: Fr Jessie: Revisiting the question ‘Who do you follow?’

By Catherine Sheehan

Burnie-Wynyard Administrator, Fr Jessie Banez, said being a priest meant always revisiting the question ‘Who do you follow?’ Just as Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say I am?”, it was important for a priest to ask himself that question each day and to reaffirm his faith in Christ.

“Priesthood is a vocation to love, not merely a commitment,” Fr Jessie said.

“Renewing our ‘yes’ each day sustains that love and keeps the flame of faith alive. This is challenging because a priest cannot fulfil his vocation through his own strength, but only through God’s grace and daily prayer.”

Fr Jessie was raised in a Catholic family in the province of Albay in southern Luzon, the largest of the Philippines’ three main islands.

He first began thinking about the priesthood at the age of seven while he was an altar server at his local church.

As a young man he helped to rescue young children abandoned on the streets by their poverty-stricken parents. While undertaking this work he was inspired by the Salesians and the example of St John Bosco.

“Salesian priests strongly influenced my vocation when I began volunteering in 2000 to rescue vulnerable children living on the streets.

“Inspired by the spirit of St John Bosco’s guidance of young people during the Industrial Revolution, I spent years supporting children abandoned by their families because of poverty.

“This experience strengthened my conviction and led me to pursue the priesthood.”

After working as a secondary teacher for several years, he entered the seminary in Manila at the age of 39 to begin his studies for the priesthood. He completed his studies at Corpus Christi Seminary in Melbourne.

Fr Jessie was ordained to the priesthood at St Mary’s Cathedral in Hobart on 9 April 2021.

“My path to becoming a seminarian for Tasmania was unexpected,” Fr Jessie said.

“After my application to a diocese in Victoria was unsuccessful, a former seminary classmate referred me to Tasmania, where I was accepted.

“When one door closed, Tasmania opened a much larger one, placing me in the right place at the right time.”

He served in the Cathedral Parish for one year, then for a couple of years at Launceston, before becoming Administrator at Burnie-Wynyard where he has served for the past two years.

Fr Jessie said he is sustained in his priesthood by a devotion to praying the Rosary and to the Blessed Virgin Mary who he considers “the Mother of all priests”.

For Fr Jessie, a poem titled ‘The Priest’ by Fr Jean-Baptist Henri Lacordaire OP best captures the meaning of priesthood. Particularly these lines:

“To live in the midst of the world without wishing its pleasures; To be a member of each family, yet belonging to none; To share all suffering; to penetrate all secrets; to heal all wounds.”

One of the most rewarding aspects of being a priest, Fr Jessie said, was being invited into the hearts and lives of others.

“This trust allows a priest to encounter their vulnerability, help heal their wounds and pain, and share in their suffering with grace.

“To any young man considering the priesthood, I echo Pope John Paul II’s words: ‘Do not be afraid.’

“Clarity often comes only when you take a leap of faith into the unknown, trusting the One who says, ‘Come, follow me’.”

For enquiries regarding vocations to the priesthood please contact Vocations Director, Fr Steven Smith, on 0493 122 283 or at steven.smith@aohtas.org.au