“He heard
an interior
voice, ‘Dan,
if this is
what you
want, don’t
think I will
withhold
grace.’”
were not true, it should be abandoned,
but if it were, it had to mean everything.
Convinced that Christianity was true,
he gave his life to Christ and knew “he was
going to live forever.” Later at a Detroitwide function for teens, he experienced a
“leave-everything-to-follow-him moment”
and believed he was called to priesthood.
Fearful at first, he heard an interior
voice promise, “Dan, if this is what you
want, don’t think I will withhold grace.”
Making a perspicacious decision to
delay entry to the seminary but further
prepare for theological studies, he studied history and Greek at the University
of Michigan. There, he became associated with the Servants of the Word, a
lay brotherhood, and served in various
apostolates in London and Brussels, Belgium, and as a junior high school teach-
er in Ypsilanti, where he earned Master
of Arts degrees in education and English
at Eastern Michigan University.
His priestly studies for the Archdiocese of Detroit began in Rome, where
he received the STB from the Pontifical
Gregorian University before his ordination. Afterwards, he continued study in
Rome, where he earned the STL, Diploma and STD in theology and patristics
from the Institutum Patristicum Augustinianum. The description for his book,
Christus Sacerdos in the Preaching of St.
Augustine: Christ and Christian Identity,
asserts that the “study is notable for its
attention to how Augustine’s Christology functions in his broader thought, especially his pastoral care.” It does seem
that the hand of God has formed Father
Jones as a formator of shepherds.
Auxiliary Bishop Michael J. Byrnes, former vice rector of Sacred Heart, testifies to
Father Jones’s efficacious work: “Much of
Father’s impact is of the hidden kind, but
it is manifested most plainly in the lives
and ministry of many young priests here in
Detroit and other dioceses throughout the
Midwest.” Father Jones describes the Sermon on the Mount as the Magna Carta for
Christians. Commitment to following the
Evangelical Counsels—being poor in spirit,
chaste in heart, and obedient in love—motivates this priest who joyfully directs seminarians to confirm their own direction as
they follow the Son, Christus Sacerdos.
Martha Demerly graduated from Sacred Heart
with an MA in Theology. She now is involved
in the Faith Formation and Women’s Ministry in
her parish, St. Thomas More, in Troy, Michigan.
shms.edu
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