Upcoming Priestly Ordinations

The Diocese of Portland is excited to announce the upcoming ordinations of three men to the diocesan priesthood.

Bishop James Ruggieri will ordain Deacon Erin Donlon, Deacon Hoa Tien Nguyen, and Deacon Thanh Duc Pham to the priesthood on Saturday, May 31, at 10 a.m. at the Basilica of Ss. Peter & Paul, 122 Ash Street in Lewiston.

Deacon Nguyen and Deacon Pham are originally from Vietnam, while Deacon Erin Donlon grew up as a member of Good Shepherd Parish in Saco.

"I feel the world right now needs love more than ever, and I want to bring that love from God to everyone, to the world, to the people that God will send me to," said Deacon Pham.

"I think the big thing that I'm looking forward to is the sacramental life," said Deacon Donlon. "It's the sacramental life, especially the Eucharist and the sacrament of penance because the priest that really inspired me growing up was Father Ron Labarre, and one of the most profound moments of my life was in a moment of confession with him."

"I would like to be here as a missionary to serve the people in Maine. I just look forward to becoming a priest first and to trying to work with the pastor and the diocese to serve the people here," said Deacon Nguyen.

Everyone is invited to join in the celebration, which will bring together priests and the faithful from throughout the state. If you are planning to attend, please park in the nearby municipal parking lot located at 1 Oak Street in Lewiston. There will be shuttle service from the lot to the basilica beginning at 7:30 a.m.

In addition to the Ordination Mass, all are invited to join Bishop Ruggieri and the men to be ordained for a Holy Hour for Vocations and Solemn Vespers the evening before at the Cathedral at the Immaculate Conception, 307 Congress Street in Portland. The service will begin at 6 p.m.

Meet the Seminarians

All three of the men who will be ordained said they grew up in devout Catholic families, who were active in the Church. The deacons said they all first felt a possible call to the priesthood at a young age.

Deacon Erin Donlon

Deacon Erin Donlon was raised in the Biddeford-Saco area, where he grew up attending the churches of Good Shepherd Parish. He is one of seven children born to Michael and Rebecca Donlon, devout Catholic parents. From a young age, he and his twin brother, Ryan, served as altar boys—first at St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Biddeford and later at St. Joseph Church in Biddeford, where one of his earliest influences in discerning a vocation to the priesthood was the late Father Renald Labarre.

Each year during the summer, his parents took him and Ryan to a discernment camp in the Diocese of Rockford, Illinois, where they had family. It was there that he first encountered seminarians and began to consider a priestly vocation. At the same time, coming from a military family—his father and both grandfathers served in the U.S. Navy—he also felt called to military service.

He attended Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, earning a Bachelor of Science in Marine Systems Engineering in 2017. While at the academy, he founded a Knights of Columbus council and was appointed chairman of the Knights of Columbus College Council Advisory Board for the Supreme Office. Through that connection, he attended a retreat at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where a priest asked if he had ever considered serving as a priest in the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA.

In December 2017, he commissioned as a Strategic Sealift Officer in the United States Navy Reserve. He then entered the Navy's Chaplain Candidate Program in 2020. Co-sponsored by the Diocese of Portland and the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, he pursued seminary studies at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

Father Donlon will begin his priestly ministry with three years of service in the Diocese of Portland, after which he will transition to active duty as a U.S. Navy chaplain.

Deacon Hoa Tien Nguyen

Deacon Nguyen is originally from Nghe An Province in north-central Vietnam. The son of Hue Van and Menh Thi Nguyen, he was raised in a traditional Catholic family with nine siblings. 

Deacon Nguyen says his family was always active in the church, which was less than a two-minute walk from their home. He rose early every morning to attend Mass, and his family headed back to the church in the evening for prayer.

Deacon Nguyen says his extended family includes priests, sisters, and brothers, and he has wanted to be a priest since he was in middle school. Around the age of 12, at his request, his family sent him to live at the rectory with the parish priests, which he said is a common practice in Vietnam for those discerning a vocation to the priesthood. He stayed there through high school.

He worked for a brief time, but the call to the priesthood remained, so he decided to pursue higher education. He received a bachelor's degree in literature from Phu Xuan University and then received a Master of Arts degree in Vietnamese Literature from Hue University of Sciences in Hue City.

He considered getting a doctorate and becoming a university professor, but the call to the priesthood returned. He served as a missionary at two parishes for a year and then joined required vocation groups in preparation for taking an exam enter the seminary for his home diocese. He said there were 410 candidates, but only space for 40, and while told initially that he passed, he found out he had fallen one slot short, by a half point.

Through a partnership between the Church in Vietnam and other countries, his bishop proposed sending him to Australia to study, but Deacon Nguyen said that he did not want to serve in a rich country, so instead, he went to the Philippines, only to discover he was not happy there. He said he came to believe it was because he was trying to do his will, not God’s, and when given the opportunity to go to the United States, he agreed.

He was accepted as a seminarian for the Diocese of Portland and attended Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, beginning in 2020.

While in seminary, his summer assignments included serving at the Parish of the Precious Blood in Caribou, Our Lady of the Eucharist Parish in Lincoln, Prince of Peace Parish in Lewiston, Parish of the Resurrection of the Lord in Old Town, and St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Bangor. He also completed a summer clinical pastoral education (CPE) program at Maine Medical Center in Portland.

He was ordained to the transitional diaconate by Bishop James Ruggieri on May 25, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland and will be ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Ruggieri on May 31, 2025, at the Basilica of Ss. Peter & Paul in Lewiston.

Deacon Thanh Duc Pham

Deacon Thanh Duc Pham is originally from Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) in Vietnam. He is the youngest of 10 children born to Han Sy Pham and Dao Thi Tran. 

He was raised in a devout Catholic family and said he first felt a call to the priesthood when he was just five years old. He attended Mass with his grandmother and remembers asking her what the priest was drinking. When she explained that it was wine, made from grapes, that had been transformed into the blood of Christ, he remembers thinking, "I love grapes. That is my favorite fruit! I want to be a priest, so I can drink that."

At home, he would play Mass. At church, he became an altar server, a member of the choir, and an emcee. He was also involved in youth ministry.

Because there were many religious orders serving in his area, he first thought that was his path. In 2005, he was accepted as a candidate in the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) with whom he studied for four years.

He then had to fulfill mandatory military service for 18 months. When he returned home, he began helping out his parish, including as director of the choir and a youth ministry leader. It was then that his spiritual director asked him to consider whether his calling might be to the diocesan priesthood rather than with a religious community.

After spending three days discerning during a retreat, he decided to apply to the seminary with the Archdiocese of Ho Chi Minh City. He began attending St. Joseph Seminary there in 2013.

While a seminarian in Vietnam, Deacon Thanh said he was approached about going to the United States through Formation Support for Vietnam (FSVN). He said he had always felt a missionary call but thought it might lead him to countries in Africa or elsewhere in Asia, rather than to a country that has a more prosperous economy. After taking time to pray about it, especially to the Blessed Virgin Mary, to whom he has a devotion, he said yes.

He was accepted as seminarian for the Diocese of Portland, and with limited English-speaking skills, he first took English as a Second Language classes at St. John's Seminary in Boston, Massachusetts. He then began his studies at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, in fall 2018.

While in seminary, his summer and pastoral assignments included serving at the Parish of the Holy Eucharist in Falmouth, the Parish of the Precious Blood in Caribou, the Parish of the Resurrection of the Lord in Old Town, St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Bangor, and St. John Vianney Parish in Fort Kent. He also completed two units of clinical pastoral education.

He was ordained to the transitional diaconate by Bishop James Ruggieri on May 25, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland and will be ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Ruggieri on May 31, 2025, at the Basilica of Ss. Peter & Paul in Lewiston.