Alleluia! Father Alex Pumphrey, MIC is ordained!
September 2025
Here is the news report of the priesthood ordination of Fr Alex Pumphrey, MIC on 16 August 2025, so that our Marian Helpers and friends can share in the joy of the celebration. Watch the Mass:
There’s a new priest for the Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Father Alexander D. Pumphrey, MIC. Father Alex was ordained to the priesthood during the 9 a.m. Mass on 16 August 2025 at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
The Most. Rev. Edward B. Scharfenberger, DD, Bishop of Albany, New York, was the celebrant and conferred the Sacrament of Holy Orders.
A priest to serve
In his homily, Bishop Scharfenberger noted how happy Deacon Alex has been to serve as a deacon. “You have nothing to be afraid of. You are not about to lose your diaconate,” he reassured him, for the diaconate, which means “service,” is the foundation of the priesthood.
“A priest who is not a good deacon will not be a very happy priest. The same goes for bishops,” he said. “Every one of us must remember that we are called to serve our Master. And we are called to be His disciples. And the mark of discipleship is service.
“More importantly, it’s a process of constant conversion, of constant transformation, a willingness to be converted, to be changed, day in and day out. To be confronted with things we don’t understand, with people we may not particularly like, with challenges that we feel are way beyond our capacity to bear. And then what do we do? We turn to Jesus, Whose disciples we are. Always say, ‘Lord, it is not about me. It is about You. Let me be Your disciple.’
“Who better shows us that example than our Mother Mary, who was with Jesus?” he continued. “Mary was always there. She was always present. And she was ultimately present at the Cross inself.”
Whether clergy or laity, the goal for all Christians is the same, Bishop Scharfenberger concluded. “The way to truly find our identity is to empty ourselves and to more and more let God in,” he said. “For God to let us know who we really are, and to lead us to where we really must go in order to discover what His mission is for us, so that we can find our fulfillment in the service that we do.”
A final tribute
Following the Ordination Mass, all gathered for a festive celebration under the big white tent, where Fr. Alex could greet everyone and offer the special blessing of the newly-ordained.
Father Alex thanked everyone present, and those not present, for the role they played in his vocational journey. Finally, he paid a special tribute to his father. Rev. Tom Pumphrey is the Rector of the Episcopal Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Marietta, Georgia.
“My Dad is the reason I’m here,” Fr. Alex concluded. “If it weren’t for his model of what it means to be a good man, a good Christian, a good pastor, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t be here if not for his support and his prayers and his example.
“So Dad, my greatest prayer is that one day we can celebrate together at the same altar.”
Please pray for Father Alex Pumphrey, MIC, and all of our Marian priests, brothers, and seminarians!
Contact Deacon Alex at info@divinemercy.org.uk
