One of Deacon Caesar Cruz’s strongest memories of growing up in the Philippines was of his neighborhood’s vibrant tradition of attending confession weekly.
“I was in elementary school, and every week we would walk up the hill, into the church and [go] to confession,” Cruz reflects, “and then we would go down in the valley where street vendors were selling delicious food. I remember that it was a big event; there were always lots of people in line for confession, adults and children.”
It was in this vibrant religious upbringing (nearly 80% of the Philippines is Catholic) that priestly discernment was an unsurprising consideration for most young men, and Cruz was no exception.
“When I was in high school, I was really active in my faith, and I thought I would like to be a priest, but I quickly realized that I wanted to get married someday.”
Cruz attended Siena College of Taytay in the Philippines, as well as Emilio Aguinaldo College, where he met his wife Amy, a devout Catholic who had also grown up discerning religious life. God’s divine plan sent them on a different path; they married, moved to the United States, where Cruz practiced physical therapy, and had three children.
Eager to connect to a faith community, they joined a non-denominational Bible study.
“I started becoming lukewarm,” reflects Cruz, “At one point, the pastor joined our Bible study, and he started challenging us, questioning why we were Catholic. The group started saying bad things about the faith and about the Church, and I started to wonder if what they were saying was true. And even though I believed in the Catholic faith and its teachings, I couldn’t explain why to them. That was when I started searching.”
Cruz started listening to Catholic radio, watching EWTN, and reading Catholic books. “From then on my faith was on fire. All the things I had believed before, I now understood why I believed them.”
Cruz and his wife started their own Bible study, a Catholic one. They started a Filipino choir that would rotate to different parishes, and they started attending a Filipino Mass. Cruz joined the OCIA team. He attended Catholic conferences and seminars and enrolled in the Catholic Biblical School of Michigan. When Cruz’s three children grew up and left home, Cruz first considered becoming a deacon, but he wanted to be confident that God was calling him, he wanted a sign.
“I told God, ‘Give me a sign, send me a priest that will tell me that God is calling me.’” He didn’t have to wait long for confirmation. Within a year, a priest friend suggested he would be a good fit for the diaconate; Cruz looked into the program and applied to the Archdiocese of Detroit to begin formation “after much prayer and waiting.”
“I was scared. You know, it’s a hard thing to do. When you do things for Christ, things will be difficult and challenging, and there will be trials. And I didn’t want to experience that. But with my wife and kids’ encouragement, I went.”
The seven years of school were not easy. “It was a lot of work, juggling work and school, and managing things at the house, but I think if God is really calling you, he will find a way and make you through it.” Cruz’s prayer throughout was like a mantra that pulled him through, “You called me to this, be with me through it all.” “And sure enough, he was. “It was really the grace of God pouring into me because I don’t know how I was able to do it again with my schedule. God really provided for everything that I needed.”
The seven years of grueling studies culminated on October 7, 2023, when now-Deacon Cruz, along with his classmate David E. Smith, was ordained at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
“At the reception after the ordination, somebody asked me, ‘How do you feel now?’ And it was without hesitation and with certainty it just came out of my mouth, ‘I am in the right place. This is where God wants me now. I am in the right place.’”
Deacon Cruz was assigned to serve at St. Thomas a’Becket Parish in Canton. In his short time there, Cruz, who characterizes himself as a shy person by nature, has already felt growth. “ I'm more outgoing now. I'm not shy anymore. I greet people when they come to church. It's a very joyful feeling. I don't know how to describe it.” He’s adjusted to his new busier schedule, which includes baptisms, weddings, and funerals. “It’s busy now, but there’s a real joy in serving.”