Deacon Mwai’s calling rooted in Benedictine foundation

Note: Archbishop William E. Lori will ordain eight men to the priesthood June 24 at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Homeland. The following is a profile of one of those future priests. New profiles of the other new priests will be added to the Catholic Review site daily from June 15 to June 22. Click here to read them.

Deacon Nicholas Mwai grew up in Nanyuki, Kenya, close to a Benedictine monastery, one of the only places in the area that had grounds for football (soccer, to Americans), volleyball and more.

He started out playing there, and then praying with the Benedictine monks. 

“I grew fond of what they were doing. We could pray together with them. And then at around the age of 17, I was kind of getting attracted to the life that they lived,” he said.

When he got to age 21, he wanted to apply to join the order, but they suggested that he go to college first. 

After college, he became a paramedic, eventually joining the Benedictines for a couple of years before upheaval in the monastery led to closure of the formation program. “The hope was that they would open again and then unfortunately, it never happened,” he said.

In the meantime, he went back to working as a paramedic for German doctors in Kenya, the 44-year-old recalled about two months before his priestly ordination.

As he kept in touch with the monastery, the abbot eventually suggested he consider going to study in the United States, where he could connect Deacon Mwai with a cloistered community. The abbot expressed some concern that he might not thrive in that environment, but Deacon Mwai gave the Monastery of Christ in the Desert in Abiguiú, N.M., a try in 2014. 

“Unfortunately, it couldn’t work. I felt called to a more apostolic life, and their agreement was after two years, if I don’t feel like it was in my life, they could just send me back home,” he said. After expressing his desire to return to Kenya, the abbot suggested he might thrive in parish work in a diocese, suggesting a couple of dioceses he could contact.

Around that time, Dr. Mary Ann Sorra, an obstetrician from Baltimore, happened to be visiting the monastery. Deacon Mwai mentioned that one of the dioceses he was considering was Baltimore. Providentially, Sorra’s brother, Father James Sorra, was vocations director for the Archdiocese of Baltimore at the time.

So, in 2016, Deacon Mwai left the monastery to come to the East Coast, where he saw the life of the church in Maryland and was attracted to it.

One of his pastoral assignments while in the seminary took him to Holy Family Parish in Randallstown, where Father Raymond Harris, pastor, brought Deacon Mwai with him on his many visits to the nearby hospital. 

“Being able to join with the people, especially when they’re going through pain, I think it’s something that I saw was very substantial to me. I love the whole experience of being able to do that,” Deacon Mwai said. The way that Father Harris was able to minister to a diverse community in the Baltimore County parish was also informative.

He also learned from other parish experiences. 

At St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Crofton, he was able to visit those who were homebound or in hospice care. Monsignor James Barker at St. Ignatius in Hickory made sure he was immersed in all the aspects of parish life, from preaching to finances.

At St. Joseph in Fullerton, he was able to connect with people at both ends of life. As a deacon, he has conducted 96 baptisms. “I love doing infant baptism, especially when I sit down with the parents and journey with them as we prepare” for the sacrament. St. Joseph also has a large cemetery, and Deacon Mwai has conducted graveside committals, providing the opportunity to “strengthen people, especially when they’re grieving for their loved ones.”

He also has presided over two weddings during his diaconate year.

Deacon Mwai’s father died in 2020. He has a brother and a sister, but they will be unable to attend the ordination in June since his mother is caring for his sister, who is dying of cancer.

Email Christopher Gunty at editor@catholicreview.org.

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