By Katie Vasquez
Getting his hands dirty with a little engine grease isn’t a tough task for Deacon Alvaro Morales Sanchez.
When he was 19, the transitional deacon completed studies in diesel mechanics working with engines and heavy machinery.
“I was very good, or at least at that point, just following schematics and doing a lot of electrical, and diagnostics,” said Deacon Alvaro Morales Sanchez.
And it’s a profession he thought was his destiny, but there was a void in his life.
“I had all these things that are very good, but somehow, I still feel empty. I still felt unsatisfied. I still felt unhappy,” said Deacon Morales Sanchez.
His parents came to the U.S. from Mexico and Deacon Alvaro and his brother followed them four years later. While living in New Jersey, his family embraced the Neocatechumenal way, a spiritual movement that aims to deepen the faith of its members through ongoing formation.
“My parents, they entered the church and, their marriage also was, was rebuilt because they were also, on the verge of, of divorce for this year,” said Deacon Morales Sanchez.
He participated in vocation forming meetings and was surprised by his answers.
“I kept saying, yes, and I kept asking myself afterwards, why did I say yes? you know, but somehow I kept answering this call. and then the Lord kept, you know, opening every door for me to be there,” said Deacon Morales Sanchez.
But the moment he realized this was the path he belonged on was spending time with a priest in Michigan.
Deacon Morales Sanchez said, “I said, but, you know, maybe God can do the same with me to see the life that this priest was living. I said, maybe God can do the same with me. And that was it. you know, that was. it was just to see how this priest gave his life, you know, completely without reservation.”
And he’s glad that he listened to the lord and will be ordained in June.
“I see that this is a great gift, you know, that, I there’s nothing that I have done to say that I merited it, that i somehow deserve or earned this this, this gift and just very privileged, you know, really, truly to be called by the lord, to this vocation,” said Deacon Morales Sanchez.
Deacon Alvaro hopes to tune up the faithful with the word of God.
“You know, the joy of what it is, to see the lives of the people be transformed as my life was transformed. and so I’m very excited,” said Deacon Morales Sanchez.
Getting out from under the hood and into the sacred halls of the church.