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Bishop Burbidge appoints seven new pastors for the Arlington Diocese

Catholic Herald Staff Report

CROP_new pastors combo photo.jpg

 Arlington Bishop Michael F. Burbidge announced June 1 the
appointment of seven new pastors and the retirement of Father Gerald Weymes as
pastor of St. Timothy Church in Chantilly. The changes are effective June 28,
except where noted differently. 

Father Brian G. Bashista will be pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann
Seton Church in Lake Ridge.

Father Edward R. Horkan will be pastor of Our Lady of the Valley Church
in Luray.

Father Stanley J. Krempa, as announced last week, will be the
founding pastor of St. Bridget of Ireland Church in Berryville, effective July
12.

Father Bjorn C. Lundberg will be pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church
in Winchester, effective July 12.

Father David P. Meng will be pastor of St. Timothy Church in
Chantilly, replacing Father Weymes.

Father Keith M. O’Hare, who has been serving at the Diocesan
Mission in the Dominican Republic for nine years, is returning to the diocese as
pastor of St. Louis Church in Alexandria.

Father Matthew H. Zuberbueler will be pastor of St. Anthony of
Padua Church in Falls Church.

In addition to the new pastors, there will be several new faces
on high school and college campuses next school year.

Father Keith D. Cummings will be the new chaplain at Saint John
Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries, replacing Father Lundberg.

As announced earlier, Father Stephen F. McGraw is leaving as
chaplain at Christendom College in Front Royal for service in the Diocesan
Mission in the Dominican Republic. He will be replaced as chaplain at Christendom
by Father Marcus A. Pollard.

Father Stephen J. Schultz will be the new chaplain at Paul VI
Catholic High School in Fairfax, replacing Father Michael J.R. Kelly, who was
appointed parochial vicar at St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Church in
Fredericksburg.

Father Brendan W. Bartlett will begin Canon Law studies at
Catholic University in Washington, D.C., with residence at St. Charles Borromeo
Church in Arlington.

Newly ordained Deacons Michael J. Folmar and Christopher F.
Tipton will be assigned to All Saints Church in Manassas and the Cathedral of
St. Thomas More in Arlington, respectively, effective June 12.

Three men are scheduled to be ordained to the priesthood June 10.
Once ordained, Father Steven G. Oetjen will be parochial vicar at St. James Church
in Falls Church; Father Stephen M. Vaccaro will be parochial vicar at Church of
the Nativity in Burke; and Father Jordan M. Willard will be parochial vicar at
St. Theresa Church in Ashburn.

Following are brief biographies of the
seven new pastors:
 

Father Brian G. Bashista, newly
appointed pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Lake Ridge, was born May
22, 1964, to John and Aileen Bashista. He was raised in Springfield with two
brothers and a sister. He attended Lake Braddock High School in Burke and
graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in Blacksburg in 1987, earning a
bachelor’s degree in architecture. He then went on to work in Charlotte, N.C.,
for seven years.

While attending Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., he
took part in the Spanish language program for seminarians in Puebla, Mexico,
and was an organizer for the Youth 2000 Prayer Festival held at the Mount in
1997.

Also in 1997, Father Bashista designed the pro-life memorial at
Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, and coordinated a vocations
awareness weekend for Scouts.

As an acolyte, he served at Holy Spirit Church in Annandale and
as a deacon, at Blessed Sacrament Church in Alexandria.

He was ordained by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde May 15, 1999,
at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington. He was parochial vicar at St.
Mary of Sorrows Parish in Fairfax until 2002, when he was named diocesan
promoter of vocations, a position he held through 2013.

From 2013 to 2015, Father Bashista served as chaplain and
director of campus ministry at Marymount University in Arlington. From 2015 to
2017, he was parochial vicar at St. James Church in Falls Church.

 

Father Edward R. Horkan is the newly
appointed pastor of Church of Our Lady of the Valley in Luray. 

He was born to William and Lilla Horkan. He was baptized at St.
Philip Church in Falls Church. He attended St. Luke School in McLean and
graduated from Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington in 1986. He earned a
bachelor’s degree at the University of Virginia in 1990, and earned his law
degree from the University of Virginia in 1993. He worked as an attorney in
Washington from 1993 to 1997.

He was accepted as a seminarian by Arlington Bishop John R.
Keating and did pre-theology studies at Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg,
1997-98. He continued his studies at the North American College in Rome from
1998 to 2001.

In 2001, Father Horkan earned a bachelor’s degree in sacred
theology from the Angelicum.

He was ordained a deacon June 2, 2001, by Arlington Bishop Paul
S. Loverde. As a deacon he served at St. Michael Church in Annandale, 2001-02.

In 2002, he returned to Rome to complete his studies and earned a
master’s in spiritual theology in 2003. He was ordained by Bishop Loverde June
7, 2003. He served as parochial vicar at Holy Spirit Church in Annandale, 2003
-07; St. Raymond of Penafort Church in Fairfax Station, 2007-08; St. Rita
Church in Alexandria, 2008-10; and St. James Church in Falls Church, 2010-16.

He became parochial administrator at Our Lady of the Valley
Church in Luray in 2016.

 

Father Stanley J. Krempa will be the
founding pastor of St. Bridget of Ireland Church in Berryville, effective July
12.

Born April 21, 1945, in Buffalo, N.Y., he was the only child of
Stanley and Charlotte Krempa. He attended Corpus Christi grammar school and
Canisius High School, both in Buffalo. He studied for the priesthood at St.
John Vianney Seminary in East Aurora, N.Y., and graduated in 1970.

He was ordained Dec. 18, 1970, by Buffalo Bishop James A.
McNulty. He served in parish ministry, as a high school chaplain, as an adjunct
professor at St. John Vianney Seminary and on the diocesan personnel board for
the Buffalo Diocese.

Father Krempa came to the Washington area in the mid-1970s to
attend George Washington University Law School and began helping out at
parishes in Northern Virginia. He was incardinated in the Arlington Diocese in
1985.

Father Krempa served as parochial vicar at St. John the Baptist
Church in Front Royal, 1985-86; St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Lake Ridge,
1986-88; and St. Louis Church in Alexandria, 1988-91. He was pastor of St. Mary
Church in Alexandria, 1991-99.

Father Krempa is a former member of the college of consultors and
a Gospel commentator for the Catholic Herald.

He has served as pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in
Winchester since 1999.

 

Father Bjorn C. Lundberg, newly
appointed pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Winchester, was born Nov. 26, 1974, in Nurnberg,
Germany, to John and Marlene Lundberg. He spent his childhood as a self-described “Army brat,” traveling with his family
from post to post.

While stationed in Northern Virginia, the family attended St.
Mary of Sorrows Church in Fairfax. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history
from Christendom College in Front Royal and interned at Vatican Radio in Rome
for two months before working as an associate producer for the Eternal World
Television Network (EWTN) for two years.

He was ordained a deacon in June 2005 by Arlington Bishop Paul S.
Loverde, and was assigned to St. William of York Church in Stafford. He was
ordained a priest June 10, 2006, by Bishop Loverde and was assigned to the
Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington.

Father Lundberg was appointed parochial vicar of St. Mary of the
Immaculate Conception Church in Fredericksburg July 1, 2009. He has served as
chaplain at Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries since
August 2012.

 

Father David P. Meng, newly appointed
pastor of St. Timothy Church in Chantilly, was ordained to the priesthood by
Bishop John R. Keating May 20, 1989.

He was born Nov. 1, 1963, in Washington to John and Barbara Meng.

He attended St. Francis College in Loretto, Pa., for one year
before transferring to St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., where
he earned a bachelor’s in philosophy in 1985. He completed his theological
studies at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., earning a master’s in
divinity in 1989 and a master’s with a specialization in moral theology in
1990. As a seminarian, he was assigned to St. Joseph Church in Alexandria in
1987.

After ordination, he was assigned to St. Bernadette Church in
Springfield as parochial vicar, 1989-93. He was in residence at St. John the
Beloved Church in McLean while serving as chaplain at Bishop O’Connell High
School, 1993-96. He served as parochial vicar of St. Theresa Church in Ashburn,
1996-99. In 1999, he was assigned as the founding administrator of St. Matthew
Church in Spotsylvania and named pastor in 2000. He served as pastor of St.
William of York Church in Stafford, 2004-08. He has been pastor of St.
Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Lake Ridge since 2008.

Father Meng also served a term on the diocesan college of
consultors and on the priest’s council.

 

Father Keith M. O’Hare, newly
appointed pastor of St. Louis Church in Alexandria, was born Feb. 25, 1972, to
Barry and Kathleen O’Hare. He has two brothers and one sister. He graduated
from Paul VI Catholic High School in Fairfax in 1990 and attended the
University of Miami on a full music scholarship from 1990-92.

He took classes for one year at Northern Virginia Community
College, before earning his bachelor’s degree in history from George Mason
University in Fairfax in 1996.

He spent his diaconate year at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in
Arlington. He was ordained June 8, 2002, by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde
and assigned to Queen of Apostles Church in Alexandria. He served as parochial
vicar at Our Lady of Angels Church in Woodbridge, 2007-08.

He has served as a pastor in the Banica Mission in the Dominican
Republic since 2008.

 

Father Matthew H. Zuberbueler, newly
appointed pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Church in Falls Church, was born March
14, 1970, in Del Rio, Texas, to John and Betty Zuberbueler. He attended
Comstock High School in Comstock, Texas, and graduated in 1992 from Christendom
College in Front Royal with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy.

He attended Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md. After
spending his transitional diaconate year serving at Our Lady of Angels Church
in Woodbridge, he was ordained to the priesthood by Arlington Bishop John R.
Keating at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington May 18, 1996. Since
then, he has served as parochial vicar of St. Timothy Church in Chantilly,
1996-99; Blessed Sacrament Church in Alexandria, 1999-2002; the Cathedral of
St. Thomas More, 2002-06; and Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Winchester and
its mission, St. Bridget of Ireland in Berryville, 2006-08.

In 2003, Father Zuberbueler was appointed defender of the bond
for a five-year term. He then served as chaplain and assistant principal at Saint
John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries from 2008 to 2012, when he
was appointed parochial administrator of St. Louis Church in Alexandria. He has
served as pastor of St. Louis Church since June 2013 and is a Gospel commentator for the Catholic Herald.

 

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