Father
Paul F. deLadurantaye, executive director of the St. Thomas More Institute and
diocesan secretary for catechetics and sacred liturgy, has been appointed to
the English section of the Vatican Secretariat of State for five
years beginning Sept. 1, 2018.
“This appointment is a recognition of
Father deLadurantaye’s faithful priestly service and his many gifts and abilities,”
said Bishop Michael F. Burbidge. “In addition, the appointment bestows a great
honor upon the Diocese of Arlington and our priest.
“I ask you to join me in praying for
Father deLadurantaye as he prepares for his new assignment in service to the
Holy Father in the exercise of his ministry to the universal Church. May Our
Lord Jesus bless Father deLadurantaye and all his endeavors and may Mary,
Mother of Priests, watch over him always.”
Father deLadurantaye said his office will be in the Apostolic
Palace. His language skills will come in handy as the working language of the
curia is Italian.
“I can manage in Italian, can read French, Spanish and Latin
fairly well. I’m sure there are enough documents in Latin there,” he laughed.
The term is for five years.
“It’s going to be different, with many new opportunities to serve
the Lord and his church, especially in the person of the Holy Father,” he said.
“I’m grateful to be able to put whatever gifts and talents God has given me to
aid the mission of the church. In that sense, it is exciting.”
Father
deLadurantaye was born June 13, 1963, in Washington. He is the
son of the late Robert E. and Ann P. deLadurantaye. After graduating from
Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington in 1981, he studied for the priesthood
at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., earning a bachelor’s degree
in philosophy in 1984. He also earned a bachelor’s of sacred theology from the
Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome in 1988.
He was ordained to the priesthood May 29, 1988, by Pope John Paul
II, only 45 days after he was ordained to the diaconate. He earned his
licentiate degree in sacred theology from the Pontifical John Paul Institute of
Studies on Marriage and the Family in Washington in 1990, as well as a
doctorate in moral theology in 1997.
He served as parochial vicar of St. Bernadette Church in
Springfield (1988-90) and associate director of the Basilica of the National
Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington (1990-95). Since 1995, he has
served in the Arlington diocesan Office of Catechetics as the secretary for
religious education and sacred liturgy.
He was parochial administrator of Queen of Apostles Church in
Alexandria from December 2000 to August 2001, and at St. Bernadette from
October 2003 to February 2004. From 2005 to 2006, he served as pastor of Queen
of Apostles, and from April to June 2012, he served as parochial administrator
of Holy Spirit Church in Annandale.
Father deLadurantaye is on the faculty of the Notre Dame Graduate
School of Christendom College in Alexandria and the Marymount University
Catholic School Leadership Program in Arlington. He belongs to the Fellowship
of Catholic Scholars and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of
Jerusalem, is on the board of trustees at Catholic Distance University in Charles
Town, W.Va., and has served on the Presybyteral Council. He has served as a
diocesan judge since 1999 and serves as a diocesan censor, reviewing texts for their
theological content.
He has published several articles in Catholic journals including
the Homiletic and
Pastoral Review, The Linacre Quarterly, the National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly,
Teologia i Moralnosc,
and the Arlington
Catholic Herald.
He is the executive director of the St. Thomas More Institute for
Evangelization and Faith Formation, which was founded in 2017. He currently
resides at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington.
His duties begin Sept. 1. For now he is awaiting official
paperwork from Rome and trying to secure a place to live. “It’s all in God’s
hands,” he said.