Sometimes change is good. When Deacon David Dufresne is
ordained to the priesthood June 7 at the Cathedral of St.
Thomas More in Arlington, it will mark the end of a journey
full of change, but not always positive.
Deacon Dufresne was born Oct. 23, 1982, in Lafayette, La. His
family moved to Fort Collins, Colo., in 1985, eventually
settling in Denver.
When his parents divorced in 1987, he and his mother moved to
a smaller house in Denver, and he saw his father every other
weekend.
He was a gifted student, but began to hang around with the
“wrong crowd” at East High School in Denver, and that led to
bad behavior. He said he was “loud, obnoxious and desperately
unhappy.”
Hoping to stem his destructive behavior, his mother
transferred him to Denver University High School which had
smaller class sizes and individualized attention. That
individualized attention moved him to study Taoism,
existentialism, nihilism and the teaching of the Epicureans
and Nietzsche which he said “momentarily satisfied my hunger
for meaning and simultaneously gave me license to do whatever
I wanted.”
He was not raised in any specific religion, and this lack of
spiritual direction created an emptiness in his life that he
looked to fill with philosophy.
Eventually, Deacon Dufresne dropped out of high school and
took odd jobs to support himself. In 1999, he moved out of
his mother’s house to live with friends.
He said that he caused his mother a lot of stress, but they
eventually resolved their problems and now have a good
relationship. Since he did not see his father much growing
up, he said they are not as close as they should be.
Realizing that the lack of a high school diploma was holding
him back, he eventually received a diploma through a Colorado
home-study program.
In 2000, he met a girl and started a relationship that,
although ended after a short time, was instrumental in his
renewed interest in Christianity.
Deacon Dufresne said that, ironically, his first prayer was
as an atheist. It was when he felt his loneliest and most
vulnerable.
“I don’t understand how You can exist if I am so miserable,”
he prayed. “But if You exist, help me.”
He said this prayer was the small hole that God needed to
change his heart.
He began going to Mass, albeit mostly out of curiosity. He
received a Bible and rosary from a friend, and was introduced
to novenas, scapulars and other devotional materials. Even
though he was not baptized, the Divine Office became an
important part of his life.
Infrequent Mass attendance led to daily Mass at Notre Dame
Church in Denver.
In 2001, he entered the Rite of Christian Initiation of
Adults and was baptized, confirmed and received first
Communion March 31, 2002, at Notre Dame Church.
Deacon Dufresne said he felt a pull to the priesthood since
the beginning of his conversion. He looked at the Jesuits and
Franciscans, but eventually believed that he would be more
effective as a “general practitioner rather than a
specialist.” He wanted to lead ordinary people to Christ
through the sacraments.
Since he was such a recent convert, he was advised to wait
several years before applying to the seminary. He moved to
the Arlington Diocese where he worked for the American Life
League and at various parishes in the diocese.
In 2007, inspired by diocesan priests, he applied to
Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde for seminary formation. He
studied at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Ohio, and
earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and classics in
2010. For the past several years he has been studying at the
Pontifical North American College in Rome.
On June 7, Deacon Dufresne will be ordained a Catholic
priest, and he is anxious to begin his new life.
He said he is looking forward to doing the things that
priests do, like spreading the good news, forgiving sin in
God’s name and bringing the hope of Christ to the sick and
suffering.
There is no hesitation in Deacon Dufresne’s decision to
become a priest.
“He who has called me to be a priest will give me everything
I need to fulfill that calling,” he said.
