Paulist Fr. Michael Hennessy is a native of Manchester, NH, the son of Justin and Karen Hennessy.
He is a 2004 graduate of St. Anselm College where he studied history. He taught that same subject for eight years at Central High School in Manchester.
Fr. Mike discovered the Paulist Fathers through "The Busted Halo Show," a radio talk show hosted by Paulist Fr. Dave Dwyer on SiriusXM's The Catholic Channel.
He entered our novitiate in the fall of 2012 and made his first promises to our community during a special Mass on July 27, 2013.
He served his pastoral year at Immaculate Conception Church, the parish we serve in Knoxville, TN.
In 2016, he appeared in a new video about "The Journey" / "El Camino," a small-group faith-sharing program by Paulist Evangelization Ministries.
He made his final promises to the Paulist community on September 1, 2017.
On September 2, 2017, he was ordained a transitional deacon by Bishop Barry Knestout in the crypt church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
Fr. Mike was ordained a priest on Saturday, May 19, 2018, by Cardinal Joseph Tobin (archbishop of Newark, NJ) at our mother church, the Church of St. Paul the Apostle, in New York City.
He has served as an associate pastor of the Cathedral of Saint Andrew in Grand Rapids, MI, and as our vocations director.
Some fun facts:
- Birthday: May 12, 1982
- Favorite Saint: St. Benedict
- Hobbies: Travel, reading, American history, recreational sports (golf, volleyball, dodge ball)
- Favorite Food: New England Clam Chowder
- What he enjoyed most about being a theology student: "I loved having the opportunity to grow in my Paulist identity and spirituality within a greater context with other seminarians and religious at the Catholic University of America. Academically, it was exciting to think of the ways I can use the information I learn in my classes with the Paulist mission of evangelizing North America."
Fr. Mike's January 28, 2023 homily on pain, the human condition, and the Beatitudes.
Fr. Mike was ordained a priest on May 19, 2018 alongside Paulist Fr. Ryan Casey. Here are highlights:
In advance of his ordination to the priesthood, then-Deacon Mike spoke about his life and vocation story:
"Life in the priesthood is one of humility," said then-Deacon Mike in this interview with Jennifer Szweda Jordan recorded shortly before his May 2018 ordination as a priest.
On Friday, Sept. 1, 2017, he made his final promises (or "final profession") to the Paulist Fathers community during a special Mass in the chapel at St. Joseph's Seminary in Washington, D.C.:
An interview after he made his final promises to the Paulist Fathers on September 1, 2017:
On Sept. 2, 2017, he was ordained a transitional deacon. The Mass took place in the Crypt Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., on the campus of The Catholic University of America: