Marian Brother Matthew Holladay, who grew up in the Archdiocese of Louisville, made his perpetual profession of vows with the Marians of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary during a Mass on Aug. 16.
The ceremony was conducted in the chapel of the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Mass.
“We were really touched by it — to see him giving his life like that,” said his mother, Judy Holladay, who attended the ceremony with her husband Steve and their two other children, Mike and Beth Holladay.
“He took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience,” she said during a phone interview last week. “Our family is really blessed. I thank God and the Blessed Mother.”
Brother Holladay grew up in Louisville and attended Our Mother of Sorrows School and Trinity High School.
His mother said during a phone interview last week that her 35-year-old son entered the Marian community based in Massachusetts in 2008.
Brother Holladay began his formation for the priesthood earlier this month at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C.
The congregation of the Marians of the Immaculate Conception has 500 priests and brothers serving in 19 countries around the world.
Their work is a blend of apostolic and contemplative service, according to the congregation’s website, www.marian.org.
