PeterClaver Kasasa Kiviiri’s call to the diaconate came from God, but he credits Columbus Bishop Emeritus Frederick Campbell with giving him the final push he needed.
Kiviiri, 38, will enter his final year of study for the priesthood of the Diocese of Columbus this fall at Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary in Weston, Massachusetts. He is to be ordained to the diaconate by Bishop Campbell at 7 p.m. Friday, May 27 in Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral.
Kiviiri’s path to becoming a deacon began in his homeland of Uganda, where he graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science degree in social and philosophical studies from Uganda Martyrs University Major Seminary. His academic performance there enabled him to receive a scholarship to St. John’s Seminary in Camarillo, California, which he attended from 2006 to 2008.
At that point, he began doubting whether he was being called to be a priest and decided not to continue his seminary formation. In 2010, he moved to Ohio, where a cousin and his family live, because the cost of living was lower here than in California.
He took a job with the Express Scripts online pharmacy and, as he put it, “for eight years, for one out of three Americans, I was the person responsible for their medicines leaving the pharmacy.” In 2015, he received a Master of Science degree in marketing and sales from Franklin University.
He also was volunteering with the Mid-Ohio Foodbank and taking part in activities at Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral, living a fulfilling life but sensing that perhaps his ultimate calling was to the priesthood.
That’s where Bishop Campbell entered the picture. Kiviiri attended the 2018 Columbus Catholic Men’s Conference at the state fairgrounds. Bishop Campbell, as was his tradition before retiring as bishop for age reasons the following year, was celebrant at the conference’s closing Mass.
“Before the final blessing, Bishop Campbell called upon young men to consider the call to priesthood and religious life,” Kiviiri said. “I thought I was too old to resume studying to be a priest, so I didn’t really pay much attention to what he said.
“During the procession at the end of Mass, the bishop reached out to say hello to my cousin and I and immediately asked both of us if we heard his message considering the call to the priesthood.
“My cousin told him that he is married and introduced his two boys to the bishop. He then turned his eyes to me, and I told the bishop that I wasn’t married but was above the age for priestly studies,” Kiviiri said.
“He kindly requested if I could wait on him as he took off his vestments, then got back to me. He gave me a lot of time and asked about my family and educational background and my profession.
“Eventually, we took a picture, and he directed me to Father Paul Noble, the diocesan vocations director at the time. Father Noble set up an appointment at St. John Neumann Church in Sunbury, where he was pastor. Father Noble asked me one question, and that was the game-changer.
“He said, ‘PeterClaver, Mother Church would like to know, do you have any criminal record you are aware of?’ My immediate honest response was, ‘PeterClaver is as clean as snow. No criminal record whatsoever.’ A background check confirmed this, and my journey to the priesthood began anew.
“I’m greatly indebted to Bishop Campbell,” Kiviiri said. “Thank you for being God’s messenger. Thank you for stopping by and delivering the good news that has made me who I am today. What a blessing and what a coincidence that Bishop Campbell is going to ordain me a deacon!”
Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary was set up in 1964 as the nation’s first seminary specializing in helping men age 30 and older discern whether they are being called to the priesthood. It has about 50 students, including 14 who are to be ordained to the priesthood this year and six, including Kiviiri, who anticipate being ordained as deacons this year and priests in 2023.
Kiviiri said he was named by his grandmother, who told him the Virgin Mary and St. Peter Claver always have been her advocates. St. Peter Claver was a Spanish Jesuit priest who spent 40 years in the 17th century ministering to slaves in what is now the South American nation of Colombia.
Kiviiri said his surname of Kasasa Kiviiri means “the torrent of joy” in his clan’s language. He is the third child in a family of three boys and five girls who grew up on farmland near Uganda’s capital city of Kampala and were educated in Catholic schools.
During his summer assignments in the Columbus diocese, he has worked at the cathedral, Columbus Holy Cross Church and Canal Winchester St. John XXIII Church and with the St. Vincent de Paul Society, the Joint Organization for Inner-City Needs and the St. Lawrence Haven food pantry. This summer, he will be at Sunbury St. John Neumann Church.
“The time I spent in the professional world equipped me with the skills, knowledge and the wisdom to work and relate with people of all walks of life,” Kiviiri said. “I can confess that I’m more mature than I was 15 years ago. I can communicate and understand well some of the challenges parishioners go through because I have experienced many of them as a former layman. In other words, I add something that is particularly mine through life experience.
“Jesus called fishermen, tax collectors, Pharisees and others to leave behind their former way of life in order to follow Him. He continues to do the same today. Across the dioceses in the United States, including Columbus, there are priests serving in our parishes who once had careers as police officers, accountants, firefighters, doctors, attorneys, architects, investment bankers, teachers, entrepreneurs and a host of other professions.
“It is so important that we are all open to hear our calling, no matter the age, or whether it is to become a priest, sister or lay minister,” Kiviiri said. “Our Lord is always calling us to make a difference. He calls the single, the retired, the married and the busy executives. We just have to put Him first, and when we do, we see that nothing is impossible with God.
“As I look forward to my diaconate year and as a future priest, it is my prayer that I do my best to bring people to Christ and bring Christ to the people through the celebration of the sacraments, enhancing the spirit of communion, and my presence to all people of God in good times and in challenging times,” he said.
“When a challenge shows up, there is always a way to deal with it – first, through prayer, calling on Mother Mary and St. Peter Claver to intercede for me to Jesus Christ. Secondly, I have and will continue to seek help, advice and guidance from my spiritual and formation advisers.”