Celebrating Our Jubilarians
Fr. Daniel Belanger, CSV Fr. Daniel Belanger, CSV, celebrated his 25th year as a professed Viatorian, during which he has served at nearly every Viatorian institution. “I never dreamed where Christ would take me and introduce me to so many awesome people,” Fr. Belanger said. He grew up in California, enlisted in the Air Force and was assigned to Las Vegas, where he met the Viatorians at St. Thomas More Catholic Community. His Viatorian life began as a religion teacher at St. Viator Parish School in Chicago and then serving as a youth minister at Maternity BVM Church in Bouronnais. He then headed back to Chicago to complete his Master of Divinity degree at Catholic Theological Union. He returned to St. Thomas More to work in pastoral ministry leading up to being ordained a deacon and ultimately a priest, in 2007. He went to the Viatorian foundation in Corozal Town, Belize. Upon his return in 2008, Fr. Belanger was named pastor of St. George Parish in Bourbonnais, in 2009. In 2014 he assumed the added duty of leading St. Mary’s Parish in Beaverville, IL. The leadership of the two rural parishes has continued to enriched him and renew his vocation.
Fr. Felipe Montes, CSV Fr. C. Gregory Jones, CSV Fr. Greg Jones, CSV, celebrated 25 years of priesthood this summer. “I love being a priest. It is the greatest joy of my life,” Fr. Jones says. “Even on the roughest day I find myself grateful for being so richly blessed.” He recalls his early encounters with Viatorians in various settings – fellow students, faculty members and as fellow travelers on the journey of life who shared their Viatorian stories. “I liked what I heard,” Fr. Jones says. “Especially attractive to me was the Viatorian mission of education and their desire to care for those of little importance in the world.” In 1996, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin ordained him to the priesthood. His priestly ministry included being an associate pastor at St. Viator Parish in Chicago and at Guardian Angel Cathedral in Las Vegas. He engaged in college chaplaincy at Southern Illinois University and at Ohio Dominican University in Columbus, Ohio. For 10 years he ministered at Food for the Poor, an interdenominational Christian ministry addressing food insecurity in 17 countries. He supplemented that role on weekends at parishes around the country, promoting the Viatorian missions around the world. Fr. Jones retired in 2017 and now lives in Tucson, AZ.
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Fr. Felipe Montes, CSV, celebrates 25 years of religious life this year, and nearly all of those have been spent in Bogotá. Fr. Montes professed his first vows in 1996 at the Colegio San Viator in Bogotá. During his early years as a Viatorian, he earned degrees in theology and psychology at Santo Tomas University in Bogotá, before teaching at the major seminary in Bogota, starting in 2002. He earned another degree in cognitive therapy and psychotherapy in 2005 at De Flores University in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Along with his academic work, Fr. Montes was ordained to the priesthood in 2001. He then served in parochial ministry at Cristo Rey Parish and San Juan Maria Vianney Parish, both in Bogotá. However, Fr. Montes continues to be interested in psychology. He wrote the book, “From the Ego to Passive Dynamics,” and he regularly contributes to several publications. In 2011, Fr. Montes returned to Colegio San Viator, to serve as chaplain. In 2016, he began serving as chaplain at Gimnasio Campestre, a bilingual school in Bogotá. “My 25 years of religious life passed quickly but they are full of countless experiences. After so many years I feel enormous gratitude to the province and most certainly to the Clerics of St. Viator, whose members are my family.”
