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Fr. Pius Pietrzyk, O.P.
Fr. Pius Pietrzyk, OP was raised in Phoenix, AZ where he attended Brophy College Preparatory. He graduated from the University of Arizona with a double major in English and Philosophy. From there, he went to law school at the University of Chicago, where he obtained his Juris Doctor. Upon graduation, he worked for three years in the Corporate and Securities practice of Sidley & Austin, a large international law firm based in Chicago. Upon reflection and discernment, he left the practice of law to enter religious life. He entered the novitiate for the Dominican Province of St. Joseph in 2002, where he took the religious name "Pius", after Pope St. Pius V, one of the four Popes who were first Dominicans. As part of his initial formation, Fr. Pius studied for the License in Sacred Theology. His thesis was on St. Thomas Aquinas's account of Knowledge and Love in understanding the persons of the Trinity. Fr. Pius was ordained to the priesthood on May 23, 2008 and served at the parish of St. Thomas Aquinas in Zanesville, OH. In 2010, Fr. Pius was appointed by President Barack Obama to be a member of the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation, an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that promotes equal access to justice and provides grants for high-quality civil legal assistance to low-income Americans. Fr. Pius is currently in studies pursuing a degree in Canon Law at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the Angelicum).
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It will be our job to help people get to know God
An article from the Irish Catholic Magazine Alive!
Posted by Fr. Pius Pietrzyk, O.P. on November 09, 2010
Recently professed as Irish Dominican Friars were (front, l to r) Eoin Casey, O.P., David McGovern, O.P., Ronan Connolly, O.P.; (centre) Daragh McNally, O.P., Stephen Hackett, O.P., Damian Polly, O.P.; (back) Gary Burns, O.P., James Cassidy, O.P., Stephen Jones, O.P., Patrick Desmond, O.P., and Conor McDonough, O.P.
Recently, the free Irish monthly Catholic newspaper Alive! published an article on the 11 newly professed members of the Irish Province of Dominicans. In the article, the writers highlight some of the new vocations in our own Province of St. Joseph. Reprinted below is the article from the October issue of Alive!
ELEVEN men have made first profession as Irish Dominican Friars, the largest number to do so in more than twenty years.
Having completed a year's noviciate in St. Mary's Priory, Cork, the group will now begin six years of study for the priesthood in St. Saviour's Priory, Dublin.
"This is a great time to be making profession," said Bro. Eoin Casey, 22, the youngest in the group.
"More and more people are discovering the emptiness of life without God. It will be our job, and our privilege, to help them discover the joy of knowing Jesus Christ."
The former trainee accountant pointed out that there have always been scandals in the Church, and opposition to her mission. But "the world needs the good news, it wants the hope and the joy which the Church brings," he said.
Vocations director, Fr. Gerard Dunne, told Alive! that young people today are attracted by religious groups that are loyal to the Church and have a clear sense of identity and mission. "It's a sign of the times," he added, "that many of our enquiries today come through our website."
Dominican Friars in the US have also seen a dramatic increase in numbers joining. Recently 21 young men "received the habit" and began their formation for the New York-based Province of St. Joseph.
During the 1990s an average of five men were joining each year, but in 2002 the province appointed a full-time director of vocations. Gradually the numbers began to rise, almost doubling this year from the 11 received in 2009.
Aside from its size, the new noviciate group is special in several other ways. The average age is 24, and eleven have just graduated from college. A further three hold doctorates.
Many of the men were attracted by traditional aspects of Dominican life, such as prayer in common and the wearing of the religious habit as a pointer towards God."We're living in very secular times, and the young are looking for a purpose in their life, they're looking for something transcendent," said vocations director Fr. Benedict Croell, O.P. "A lot of people are searching, they want more out of life."