Name: Joshua Grandmaison, CC
Home diocese: Ottawa, Ontario
What was the highlight of your time at Sacred Heart Major Seminary? One of the highlights of my time at Sacred Heart was getting to know and study under the outstanding professors who live their Catholic faith and teach it with passion and conviction. All of the Scripture courses I took were also very inspiring and have helped me to better understand both myself and God.
What has been one or two highlights of your time serving as a transitional deacon? Preaching has been a great privilege as well as exposition of the Blessed sacrament during retreats and prayer gatherings.
How are you preparing for your priestly ordination? I'm preparing for my priestly ordination by taking my preparation for the STB (Sacred Theology Baccalaureate) exam seriously, because soon I will be in active ministry and I want to be able to share the wealth of knowledge (I've acquired) with others who don't have the opportunity to live the life of a seminarian. I'm also preparing for priesthood by investing in my practicum courses and staying faithful to prayer including the rosary.
What kind of priest do you want to be? I want to be a priest who is diligent, one who evangelizes, and one who is willing to do whatever it takes to help save souls and bring about conversions. I also want to be a priest who is a saint like my friend St. John Paul II, and if I'm not canonized like he was, I hope to at least be a priest who is pro-life and pro-family, like he was.
What are you looking forward to after being ordained? I look forward to preaching the Gospel on a more regular basis and having a more active role in the parish. I also look forward to hearing Confessions and seeing people’s lives transform the way mine was back in 2007. And in a naive way, I feel like Simba from The Lion King singing to myself "Oh I Just Can't Wait to be King (Priest)" so that I can help people discover God's preferential will for their lives; because as the founder of the Companions of the Cross, Fr. Bob Bedard, would say "there is nothing worth more doing than God's will."
Please join us in praying for Deacon Joshua during his final months of preparation leading up to his ordination.