Novi — Fr. James Houbeck’s and his mother, Barb Houbeck’s, eyes may have been swelling up. But the newly ordained priest had an explanation.

“Some of you may have noticed the church looks different with people doing renovations, so pardon the dust,” Fr. Houbeck told the congregation. “My allergies must be bothering me, and my Mom, too, I can see.”

The Church of the Holy Family in Novi filled with laughter, as Fr. Houbeck began his remarks to the congregation after Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron ordained him as the Archdiocese of Detroit’s newest priest Oct. 7.

“This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad,” Fr. Houbeck said, quoting a popular Easter greeting. “Certainly it’s not Easter time, but it is a day the Lord had made in my life. This is why I’m here, to serve Jesus as a priest, and I give thanks with all my heart.”

After an extra semester to finish his studies, Fr. Houbeck became the sixth member of Sacred Heart Major Seminary’s presbyteral class of 2017 for the Archdiocese of Detroit.

With the new priest’s family, friends and fellow clergy in attendance, Archbishop Vigneron told Fr. Houbeck his ordination is another apostolic mystery showing God’s presence in the world.

“How many of you have never been present to a priesthood ordination?” Archbishop Vigneron asked, with many hands going up. “You and I are about to be present for a great mystery. “‘Mystery’ is the preferred word by the Greeks, our word is ‘sacrament.’ It’s about how God acts in history; using ordinary things to extraordinary results.”

Archbishop Vigneron explained it was God, not he, who was turning Fr. Houbeck into a priest, much like the way Jesus was transformed into the priest for the entire world after His resurrection.

“By looking at Jesus Christ, we understand what Jim is getting into,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “We can understand what he is letting the Holy Spirit do to him today. He becomes a continuation, a sacrament, a mysterious way of making present the priesthood of Jesus Christ here on earth.”

After Sacred Heart Major Seminary rector Msgr. Todd Lajiness presented Fr. Houbeck as a candidate to the priesthood, Fr. Houbeck made his final promise of obedience to Archbishop Vigneron before the archbishop and his fellow clergy laid their hands on him. Then, Fr. J.J. Mech, rector of the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, and Fr. Joe Horn, director of priestly vocations for the Archdiocese of Detroit, invested Fr. Houbeck in the priest’s chasuble.

“We understand and give God thanks and praise for what is happening here in our midst in Novi,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “Because God’s work in creation is not only something that happened long ago, in times past. There are things being done here and now.

“God gives us (Fr. Houbeck) as a priest as a sign of love for us,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “A man responds to the invitation to be consecrated out of an act of love. You are now a priest; you must be an ambassador for Christ, for love. You must preach it, to help people understand it, to live it. Your work is an act of love.”

At the end of Mass, Fr. Houbeck thanked seminary faculty, seminarians, clergy, parishioners and family who were in attendance.

“I want to give thanks to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit of Almighty God for the gifts of the priesthood,” Fr. Houbeck said. “I also want to thank Archbishop Vigneron for your leadership and being here today. For ‘Unleashing the Gospel’ in a new way, particularly here in the archdiocese.

“To my Mom and Dad, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Fr. Houbeck joked. “I want to say thank you very much for offering me to the Lord. It’s a great honor, a great privilege, and I look forward to serving the Lord joyfully.”



Fr. Houbeck’s parents, Joe and Barb, expressed their joy at seeing their son ordained.

“What a great day this is; we’re so happy all these people came to witness and show their love for James and for Jesus,” Joe Houbeck said. “It’s just a joy to see James have a dream — more than a dream, a calling — to fulfill it and be totally happy in the service of the Lord.”

“We feel blessed, very thankful he heard the call of God and he accepted the call,” Barb Houbeck added. “Ever since he was little, he used to pretend to be a priest. In the second grade, he wanted to become an altar server, and from there, you could see his attention was totally on the priesthood.”

Fr. Houbeck told his parents in his senior year of high school he was interested in entering the seminary, but had reservations about not having a family.

“I’ve always told him from the start when he wanted to become a priest that your congregation is your family,” Barb Houbeck said. “Every baby you baptize is your son or daughter; they become your children. Once he accepted that, everything was good. And we’re so happy to see him happy.”