Father Mike’s first Mass

Owego native Father Michael Fowler celebrated his first Mass of Thanksgiving last Sunday morning in St. Patrick’s Church in Owego, N.Y., his home parish, and less than 24 hours after his ordination to the priesthood.

Last Saturday morning in the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Rochester during a Solemn Mass of Ordination, Reverend Michael Gerard Fowler was ordained to the Sacred Priesthood of Jesus by His Excellency, the Most Reverend Salvatore R. Matano, Bishop of Rochester.

St. Patrick’s Church overflowed as the entrance procession led by the Knights of Columbus headed to the main altar to be reverenced by Father Mike, his Spiritual Director Father Bill Murphy, Director of Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary of Weston, Mass. St. Patrick’s Parochial Vicar Father Brian Carpenter and Deacon Michael Donovan. Then Father Mike incensed the altar and the cross.

In the Liturgy of the Word, the First Reading was read by Jim Raftis and the Second Reading by Ellen Keough.

In his homily, Father Murphy spoke of relationships and the role of a priest to bring the love of Jesus to others.

Father Mike celebrated the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Theme was sacrifice, thanksgiving and meal. His family presented the gifts for the Preparing of the Altar.

In the Eucharistic Prayer of Thanksgiving, Father Mike asked the Father to send the Holy Spirit upon the gifts of bread and wine to transform them into Christ’s body and blood.

The Communion Rite expressed unity in the body of Christ. All recited The Lord’s Prayer and exchanged The Sign of Peace. In the Breaking of Bread, the Elevation of the Host and cup and the invitation to the community to come forward and receive. After Communion, Father Mike offered all fathers, grandfathers, and godfathers a special Father’s Day Blessing.

St. Patrick’s Church Hall also overflowed for his reception. Father Mike greeted all individually. Later many asked him for his personal blessing.

Father Mike broke out in a big smile when Father Murphy presented him his Master’s Degree in Divinity from Pope John XXIII National Seminary.

Saturday afternoon after ordination at a reception in St. Ann’s in Rochester, Father Mike proudly showed his new and beautiful chalice – a sacred vessel in which the Eucharistic Wine is consecrated at Mass – and new priest vestment.

Father Mike graduated from St. Patrick’s School, Owego Free Academy and SUNY Geneseo. He’s the father of two and grandfather to two. His marriage was legally dissolved by the state and annulled by the Catholic Church. He retired after 30 years from Lockheed Martin/IBM Owego as a Quality Engineer.

A while back he began reading about the Blessed Mother’s apparitions and “a genuine spiritual rebirth began.” Then, after saying a rosary with him, close friend Jean Brill said he should have been a priest. From that moment on, discernment began for a second career in the priesthood.

Father Mike will be Parochial Vicar of St. Agnes in Avon, St. Paul of the Cross-Honeoye Falls, and St. Rose-Lima.

Two major coincidences. St. Agnes Church will be very meaningful since Agnes was his mother’s name. And he will live in very familiar territory – the rectory at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in front of SUNY Geneseo where he attended college.

Father Mike will celebrate his second Mass of Thanksgiving at 11 a.m. Sunday, June 28, at St, Joseph’s Church in Penfield where as a second year seminarian he spent his pastoral year.

Father Fowler became the fifth Owego resident to enter into the priesthood. The Owego Gazette of June 9, 1936, says the first two, with no additional details, were Father Long and Father Colgan.

Father Eddie Joe Waters, who lived with his parents on Delphine Street, was the third priest. He became the first Army Chaplain from the Diocese of Rochester.

In Tom Brokaw’s book “The Greatest Generation,” there is a picture of Army Chaplain Major Waters saying Mass for members of the American troops about to embark for Normandy at Weymouth, England, on June 6, 1944. Eight years earlier on June 6, 1936, he was ordained a priest in Rochester.

Chaplain Major Waters was assigned the First Division Artillery and served in Tunisia, North Africa, Sicily, D-Day, France to Berlin, Germany. He died serving as pastor of St. Patrick’s Church in Elmira, N.Y.

The fourth Owego priest was Father Robert Barzyk whose parents relocated from Nanticoke, Pa. for his dad’s employment at IBM Endicott. Father Bob was ordained in Galveston, Texas on May 24, 1958. He stayed in Texas to serve what he described as a new frontier that needed priests. He was elevated to Monsignor. He died March 10, 2007.

Other priests from Tioga County included the late Father Thomas Watts, co-pastor of St. Patrick’s in Owego, N.Y. and pastor of St. James in Waverly, N.Y.; Father Joseph Hogan of Waverly, N.Y., former Chaplain of Elmira Notre Dame; and living priests – the Rev. James Gould of Newark Valley of the Province of Society of Jesus, and retired Syracuse University Hospital Chaplain Father Bebel.