Contact

Phone: (800) 529-1205
Local: 529-9003
E-Mail: vocations@dominicanfriars.org

Biography

William Garrott was born November 13, 1963, in Hagerstown, Maryland. He is the youngest of eight children and has 24 nieces and nephews. After obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and working several years in the field of technology transfer, he entered the Order of Preachers in August of 1988. After six years of spiritual and academic formation, he was ordained to the priesthood in May of 1994. Father Bill Garrott, O.P. spent four years serving as an associate pastor in Ohio where he gained experience with RCIA, adult education, Confirmation retreats, Bible studies, training and leading altar servers, lectors, and Pro-Life Marches.

Father Garrott then obtained a Masters in Theology from the University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (known as the Angelicum) in Rome. Currently Father Garrott serves as the Director of Vocations for the Province of Saint Joseph.

Programs

Father Garrott uses his musical abilities on piano and guitar to preach parish missions, weekend retreats, days of recollection, and various youth events. He composes his own music and plans to release his first CD in the near future. He was 17 years old and deeply caught up in the world of rock music when he first experienced the joy of knowing, loving and serving Jesus Christ. Through word and song, Father Garrott desires to draw listeners more deeply into that unconditional love which the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit reveal to us through the Catholic Faith.

Father Garrott's most recent mission "God, Are You On-Line?" follows a four-night format:

First Evening's Talk: "Our Father: The Ultimate Search Engine" (Focus: Faith in the Father's Unconditional Love)

Summary: The fruit of Christian baptism is to know experientially that your heavenly Father really loves you. While on the way to his martyrdom in the year 107 A.D., Saint Ignatius of Antioch wrote a letter to the Christians of Rome saying: "There is living water in me which speaks and says inside me, 'Come to the Father.'" These words echo what Saint Paul wrote fifty years before to the Galatians: "As proof that you are children, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, 'Abba, Father!'" Do you hear that cry in your heart?

Second Evening's Talk: "Christ Crucified: The Best Anti-Virus Protection" (Focus: Hope in the Power of the Lord's Cross)

Summary: In a world where winning the gold medal is all that counts and 2nd place is for losers, we are often crushed by frequent failures, signs of weakness and patterns of sin. We need the confidence of Saint Bernard who wrote in the 12th century: "What sin is there so deadly that it cannot be pardoned by the death of Christ?" Jesus Christ's death on the Cross is the supreme sign of the Father's love for us and the only true pathway to our own glorious transformation as children of God.

Third Evening's Talk: "Holy Spirit Inside: Millennium III Processor" (Focus: Learning the Language of Love)

Summary: Today, we speak of a one world language which has been achieved through a combination of zeros and ones – the language of computers. The world is connected electronically but genuine communication is rare. The human race needs to learn the language of love which the Spirit of Pentecost teaches. The vocation of Saint Therese is the vocation of every Christian, every family, every parish: "My vocation, at last I have found it . . . . MY VOCATION IS LOVE!"

Fourth Evening's Talk: which is an extended Homily during Mass: “You’ve-Got-Mail@eucharist.com” (Focus: Intensely Eucharistic Evangelization)

Summary: In 1994 Pope John Paul II wrote that "in the Sacrament of the Eucharist the Savior, who took flesh in Mary's womb twenty centuries ago, continues to offer himself to humanity as the source of divine life." Our Eucharistic Lord is the Pearl of Great Price which Catholics must share with the world. Saint Thomas Aquinas taught that "no other sacrament has greater healing power." If the Eucharistic Lord touches your life, share the wealth: forward the message to at least ten friends! .

Availability

Because of his vocation work Father Garrott can only accept a very limited number of parish missions each year. He is more readily available to preach about vocations at weekend Masses and offer a Sunday evening concert for parishioners.

Fee

The Dominican House of Studies is the seminary for the Province of Saint Joseph and depends on Father Garrott's preaching income to support the formation of the young men in their theological studies for priesthood. Father Garrott can only accept parish missions where he is permitted to take up a collection the last night of the mission or during the intermission of a Sunday evening concert.