Catholics celebrate 100th anniversary of priestly ordination of St. Josemaría Escrivá

A scene from St. Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer’s trip to Jaltepec, Mexico, in June 1970. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei/Flickr

Madrid, Spain, Mar 24, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

On March 28, the centennial of the priestly ordination of St. Josemaría Escrivá, the founder of Opus Dei, will be celebrated with liturgical and academic events in Zaragoza, Spain, and in Rome.

The Spanish saint was ordained a priest in Zaragoza in the chapel of the current St. Charles Borromeo seminary.

Escrivá entered the seminary in September 1920, transferring from the seminary in Logroño. In addition to studying theology at the Pontifical University of Zaragoza, he also studied law at the state university.

The newly ordained priest celebrated his first Mass on March 30, 1925, the Monday of Holy Week, in the chapel of Our Lady of the Pillar Cathedral. The new priest offered the Mass for the repose of the soul of his father, José Escrivá, who had died in November 1924.

Various activities have been planned in Zaragoza to mark the anniversary. On March 27, an academic event will be held with the participation of the archbishop of Zaragoza, Carlos Escribano; priest and historian José Luis González Gullón; the prefect of the Dicastery for the Clergy, Cardinal Lazzaro You Heung-sik; and the prelate of Opus Dei, Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz.

In the afternoon, a Mass will be celebrated at Our Lady of the Pillar Basilica to be followed by a prayer vigil for priestly vocations at St. Charles Borromeo Royal Seminary.

The following day, a solemn Mass will be celebrated in St. Charles Borromeo Church, and Ocáriz will hold various meetings with priests, families, and young people.

On Sunday, March 30, at the town of Perdiguera where the founder of Opus Dei served as parish priest, his first apostolic assignments after his ordination will be commemorated.

To celebrate the centennial, a commemorative holy card has been designed, available in 13 languages, with a photo of the saint during his years as a seminarian, requesting his intercession so that “holy and abundant vocations” may come to the seminaries.

In Rome, the auxiliary vicar of Opus Dei, Monsignor Mariano Fazio, will celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving in the St. Apollinare Basilica on March 28. In the afternoon, Luis Cano, a member of the St. Josemaría Escrivá Historical Institute, will give a lecture for priests.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.