My priestly journey
I was born in a small village on the island of Flores, in the Archipelago of the Azores. I was the last of nine children that God gave to my parents, Francisco and Maria A. Cardoso. My father was a farmer and with my mother provided for our family and gave us love, a sincere faith in God and reverence for the Church.
One of my older brothers had become a priest and I always wanted to follow him. My family, however, could not afford to pay for my seminary tuition. But God provides. My priest-brother happened to know Father Leal Furtado, who was a pastor in the Diocese of Fall River.
Father Furtado asked Bishop James L. Connolly if he would accept me as a seminarian for the Diocese of Fall River. Bishop Connolly agreed and sponsored me at the Seminary of Angra do Heroismo, on the island of Terceira.
At the end of my seminary studies, Bishop Manuel Carvalho of Angra ordained me a priest on June 15, 1958. Three months later I arrived in Fall River, where I have happily served as a priest ever since.
My desire to follow the Lord as a priest was not a conversion or sudden decision. It took me a long time to recognize my vocation and to follow it. The example and prayers of my family, as well as my prayers to God and to our Blessed Mother, helped to show me the way to grow in faithfulness to my priestly calling.
How I became a priest may be different from the story of the average young man who was born and raised in America. I entered the seminary in Angra right after my elementary school education. I completed my high school and college studies in the seminary before I began my study of philosophy and theology. In all, my seminary preparation extended over a 12-year period. During these years, I was given sufficient time to nurture and grow in my vocation to the priesthood.
Many of my classmates, because they decided they did not have a vocation or because they could not complete the academic requirements, left the seminary before ordination. Seminary studies were challenging and at times difficult. We had to learn Latin, French, English and, of course, Portuguese. Some of our books in theology were written in Latin, which made the studies more arduous, but, thanks be to God, I was always able to pass all my exams.
After my priestly ordination, I came to the Diocese of Fall River, and Bishop Connolly assigned me to St. John the Baptist in New Bedford. I celebrated the Mass in Latin and Portuguese and spent much of my initial time conversing with the many immigrants who, like me, had come and who were still coming from the Azores. But I also had to learn English quickly, not only because it was the language of this country but because many people of my parish, especially the younger parishioners, could only speak English. I was also named chaplain at St. Luke’s Hospital, where the necessity of speaking English became more acute.
Although my first years as a priest were in a different country, serving people with a different language and culture, I always found that the people accepted me and loved me and gave me courage to fulfill my duties as a priest. Through their encouragement, I became more fluent in English and became more confident in speaking the language of my new home in America.
After nine years at St. John the Baptist, Bishop Connolly transferred me to Immaculate Conception in New Bedford. While there was sorrow in leaving my first parish, it was an opportunity for me to meet new people and make new friends. During many years of priestly ministry, I have always accepted my bishop’s decision to transfer me to other parishes. Most of my time was spent in Fall River, where I served at Our Lady of Health, Espirito Santo and St. Michael’s parishes as well. As priests, we are called not to serve ourselves but to serve the people of God. Over all these years in different parishes, I have always found it a wonderful privilege to celebrate Mass, administer the sacraments, especially to the sick, and to serve.
As a priest, it has been my privilege to minister to people in many different ways, beginning with helping children become Christians in baptism all the way through life until helping them finish up their earthly pilgrimage and get ready for the biggest journey of all. It has been a wonderful life and a great privilege to be and serve as a priest. I have received many blessings from God.
I am now enjoying my retirement. I pray and hope that other young men will hear and accept the Lord’s call to be a priest in this diocese. May all of us, priests and laity, join together and pray for more vocations to the priesthood, because the Church needs more dedicated priests to continue the work of the Lord in this diocese.
Father Cardoso resides at the Cardinal Medeiros Residence in Fall River.