Pursuing the call to the priesthood was an uphill battle for Deacon Teko G. Teko-Agbo, from family challenges to a trans-Atlantic move. But God persisted, nonetheless.
Deacon Teko-Agbo was born Dec. 9, 1989, to Victor and Dede Teko-Agbo in Adakpamé, Togo. Growing up with three brothers, energy levels were often high, and his mom would often warn them, “Just wait until your father gets home.”
But he had to discover the Catholic faith for himself. “My family didn’t really practice any religion when we were growing up,” he said. He first discovered the Catholic faith one day while listening to the radio, when he picked up airwaves of the French version of Vatican Radio. “The signals were very strong,” he said. “So, I used to listen to that a lot.”
Later, his mother learned about the Bible, “So, she started sending me to a Baptist church.” One Sunday, on his way to church, he passed by a friend of his who was Catholic. The friend invited him to come to Mass, and he agreed. “After Mass, it turned out that was the day they were signing people up for catechism,” he said. His friend’s parents signed the two of them up for lessons, “and we started going, learning more about the Catholic faith.”
Three years later, he was baptized at age 14. A year later, he received confirmation. That’s when the desire to be a priest was “born” in his heart, he said.
Deacon Teko-Agbo said he initially didn’t know what to do with this desire for the priesthood. So, he kept it a secret for years. After he graduated high school, he confided in his aunt, whose daughter had entered a Catholic convent. “So, she talked to some priest, and they came and talked to my parents,” he said. His parents’ reaction was not positive at first. Deacon Teko-Agbo explained that in African culture, “we were very family-oriented; you were supposed to beget your own children, have a family. It didn’t seem (to them) that there was any legacy in becoming a priest.”
His parents gave another reason for refusing: They were planning to move to the U.S. “So, we moved to Alexandria, Virginia, and I got a job. I was working at a car place, changing oil and going to school, learning English, and so on,” he said. “But the desire persisted.”
Three years later, the call to the priesthood had not faltered, and he knew he had to pursue it. He told his parents, and “with much hesitation, they accepted.”
So, he traveled from Alexandria to Buffalo, N.Y., where he began studying with the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Three years later, he realized it was not a fit for him. So, he took a job as a social worker in the county child protection department. But, five years into the job, “I was convinced that I still wanted to be a priest, so I called the vocations director for the Diocese of Buffalo.”
He was accepted as a seminarian for the Buffalo diocese and spent a year studying at St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore. At the same time, he longed to be closer to his family in Northern Virginia. So, he called Father Michael Isenberg, former vocations director for the Arlington diocese. He began studying for the Arlington diocese at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., in 2023.
Looking back over the last few decades, Deacon Teko-Agbo compares his journey to the priesthood to that of the Israelites wandering in the desert.
“I’m convinced that God’s presence has always been there, guiding me,” he said.
