Father Nickolas Naticchione celebrated his first Mass as a priest on May 17 at Saint James Church, a worship site of Holy Trinity Parish in Margate. Saint James is not only the church in which he grew up, it is where his vocation began.
“A kid from Ventnor is a priest of Jesus Christ! Wow!” Bishop Emeritus Dennis Sullivan said in his homily. He went on to talk about the people who helped Father Naticchione discern and grow in his vocation – from his parents and family, to pastors and parish community – and reminded the new shepherd that the priesthood is not lived away from the people, but among them. “From them you have been taken,” Bishop Sullivan said, “and to people just like them, you are sent as a priest of Jesus Christ.”
Before the final blessing, Father Naticchione reflected on the priesthood and those who helped him reach this milestone. “Above all, I first express my deep gratitude to almighty God for the great gift of my vocation and the grace of my ordination,” he shared. He thanked his family, brother seminarians, priests, parish communities, and all those who supported him throughout his years of formation.
In addition to Bishop Williams and Bishop Emeritus Sullivan, other clergy present for Mass included Father Michael Romano, former diocesan vocations director and current rector of Mount Saint Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, and Father Naticchione’s uncle, Father James Worth of the Archdiocese of Newark. Father Worth vested his nephew the day before, during Father Naticchione’s Ordination Mass in Camden.
Below, Father Naticchione poses for a photo with family, from left: brother Michael; grandmother Sheila; and his parents, Renea and Pat.
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