PALM BEACH GARDENS | When most people learn that Deacon Jude Okeke has been studying for the priesthood for 20 years they think he’s kidding. But it’s no joke. In native Nigeria, it’s normal for boys to enter the seminary early and prepare for about 18 years.
His long journey to the priesthood will culminate with ordination Saturday, May 3, beginning at 11 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola in Palm Beach Gardens. Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito will preside and confer the sacrament of holy orders with hundreds of fellow clergy, family members, friends and well-wishers in attendance.
Deacon Okeke, 30, from Umualumaku, Ehime Mbano, Imo State, Nigeria, is the fourth among six children (with two sisters and three brothers). His faith journey began at age 8 when he decided to live with his grandmother in her village because she needed assistance. She was pious, religious and loved priests and seminarians, he said.
Influenced by his grandmother, Deacon Okeke began as an altar server at age 9, then enrolled in the seminary at 10 years old. When his parents learned that he wanted to become a priest, they worried that they didn’t have the resources to support him for that long.
“I remember as a very young kid then, telling my mom not to be afraid, that if it be the Lord’s will that I be a priest, the Lord will provide the means through which that would happen,” he said in a recent video announcing his priestly ordination.
Deacon Okeke recalled his parents giving him a hug and saying goodbye when he entered the seminary. “But one thing I could see in their faces was that total abandonment to the will of God for me. They believed that I was a gift to them from God and that they could not stop me from making the choice to give my life to being a priest,” he said.
He studied six years in the minor seminary until 2011 and was promoted to Spiritual Year Seminary in preparation for the senior Bigard Memorial Seminary in Enugu, Nigeria.
Deacon Okeke studied four years at the senior seminary and received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the Pontifical Urban University in Rome in affiliation with the Bigard seminary. He also earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
He had been in seminary 17 years when he moved to the United States and was accepted in June 2021 for formation in the Diocese of Palm Beach. Deacon Okeke had many fears, but he took it to prayer.
“I must say that, since I came to our diocese, it’s been a very beautiful journey, and I do not regret making that choice to come here. I feel that the Lord really heard that prayer,” he said.
When he was leaving Nigeria, one of his most profound inspirations was the life of the Christian missionaries who brought the Gospel to Africa, often suffering and dying in a foreign land.
“That was one of the things that really encouraged me when I was coming here, knowing that I was going to miss my family, miss my friends and also lose some opportunities,” Deacon Okeke said. “But I felt really encouraged because it’s nothing in comparison with the missionaries who brought the Gospel to us, the challenges that they encountered. But the Lord was always with them, supporting them in their ministry. And I look forward to the Lord sustaining me in my ministry here also.”
Since being ordained a deacon by Bishop Barbarito last April, Deacon Okeke has been ministering at Our Lady Queen of the Apostles Parish in Royal Palm Beach while completing studies in the master of divinity program. He feels blessed to be ordained a priest by Bishop Barbarito, who accepted him for the diocese’s Priestly Formation Program.
Deacon Okeke said he is looking forward to having his mother and some siblings at the ordination. “It will be my mom’s first time coming to the U.S.,” he said.
“Remember that I came from Africa, not knowing anyone here, being in a new place,” Deacon Okeke added. “I feel like here is my home now because I’ve been welcomed. The people here are super nice. They love the seminarians and they welcome them. That’s so beautiful, especially for someone coming from outside of the United States. I feel very comfortable that I can proudly call here my home.”
For information on vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life, contact Father Daza-Jaller at 561-775-9552 or vocations@diocesepb.com, by visiting www.palmbeachvocations.com or following the Vocations Office on Facebook and Instagram.
