Priests of the Archdiocese of Louisville gathered May 5 at the Cathedral of the Assumption to honor 11 fellow priests who are celebrating jubilees in 2025.
The annual liturgy, celebrated by Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre and concelebrated by the jubilarians, recognized priests marking 25th, 50th and 70th anniversaries of ordination. The archbishop prayed for God’s blessings on the jubilarians and thanked them for their years of service.
“Somewhere along the line, I quietly, calmly came to the conclusion this is what I want to do. This is what I want to be. I finally said, ‘this is what I want, this is what I think God wants.’ ”
— Father Gary Davis
Father Gary G. Davis, celebrating his golden jubilee, delivered the homily, in which he shared his vocation story.
Father Davis said he wanted to be a history teacher as a child and could think of no other career path. As he grew older, however, “things began to shift under my feet and I started realizing maybe there’s more to life than history,” he said to his listeners.
While he had no plans to become a priest, Father Davis said, he witnessed the example of a “wondrous” priest at St. Agnes Church, where he attended Mass. A vocation slowly took root.
“I slowly allowed the seed to be planted. I also was surrounded by people who told me ‘you are crazy. … You don’t want to do that, do you?’ ” said Father Davis.
When he shared with his parish priest that he might have a vocation, the priest sent him directly to the Vocation Office, he said. He still wasn’t sure he should be a priest, “But I came back; I looked and listened and prayed, back, forth, back, forth and said, ‘I’m going to try this.’ ”
Father Davis said he wished he had heard a voice telling him which way to go, but that didn’t happen. Instead, “Somewhere along the line I quietly, calmly came to the conclusion this is what I want to do. This is what I want to be. I finally said, ‘This is what I want; this is what I think God wants’,” he said.
Fifty years later, Father Davis said he is thankful for his vocation and considers himself fortunate for having followed his path to the priesthood. He was ordained on May 24, 1975.
This year’s other jubilarians are:
70 years
Father James E. Flynn was ordained March 26, 1955. He served as pastor of St. William Church and as associate pastor at St. Ann, Our Lady of Lourdes and Mother of Good Counsel churches. He was the founding pastor of Epiphany Church, where he served as co-administrator. He served as sacramental moderator of St. Martin de Porres Church. Father Flynn has worked for decades advocating for the rights of immigrants. In 1993, as part of the Kentucky Interreligious Task Force on Central America, he was one of 20 U.S. citizens who accompanied exiled Guatemalan refugees as they returned home from Mexico. In the early 1990s, Father Flynn served in Nicaragua with the group Witness for Peace. Father Flynn has also worked to help Catholics understand and put into practice Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.”
50 years
Passionist Father Christopher Gibson was born in Argentina, where he joined the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ in 1964. He professed vows on Feb. 27, 1968, and was ordained Dec. 20, 1975. He moved to the U.S. Holy Cross Province in 1997. He served as a missionary in India from 1982 to 1993. From 2004 to 2007, he served as mission secretary of the congregation in Rome. He served as a seminary director and vocation director for his community. He has served in Passionist communities in Illinois, Texas, California and Kentucky.
Father Robert L. Stuempel was ordained May 24, 1975. He served as pastor of St. Lawrence and St. Bernard churches and of St. Michael Church in Fairfield, Ky., and All Saints Church in Taylorsville, Ky. He was associate pastor of St. Leonard, St. Edward, Holy Trinity, Holy Family, St. Pius and St. Albert the Great churches. Father Stuempel served as director of the Office of Youth Retreats and associate director of the Archdiocesan Youth Program. He was chaplain at Sacred Heart Academy and co-chaplain at Holy Cross High School. He also served as coordinator of campus ministry at then-Bellarmine College, now university.
25 years
Father Jeffrey D. Gatlin was ordained June 3, 2000. He is pastor of St. Brigid Church in Vine Grove, Ky. He served as pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church, Sts. Simon and Jude and Most Blessed Sacrament churches. He was associate pastor at St. Aloysius Church in Pewee Valley, Ky.; Annunciation Church in Shelbyville, Ky.; St. John Chrysostom Church in Eminence, Ky.; and St. Margaret Mary, Holy Spirit, St. Polycarp, St. Clement, St. Peter the Apostle and St. Albert the Great churches.
He served as administrator at St. Martin of Tours Church in Flaherty, Ky., and St. Brigid Church in Vine Grove. He has served Sacred Heart Academy and the Archdiocesan Committee on Scouting as chaplain.
Carmelite Father Thomason A. Jose was ordained on Dec. 27, 2000. He serves as administrator of St. Martin of Tours Church in Flaherty. He was born in Chalakudy, Kerala, India. He has served in Manila, Philippines; in the Diocese of Gibraltar and in Kerala, India, in various roles, including as a vicar, a prefect, as a chaplain for a hospital and convents, as a school manager and as a bursar/secretary for a shrine.
Franciscan Father George M. Munjanattu is pastor of Holy Family Church. Father Munjanattu comes from the St. Maximillian Kolbe province in Kerala, India, where he served as treasurer. In India, he also taught seminarians. He arrived in Louisville in 2015 and has served as a campus minister at Bellarmine University since then. He is also the director of the Divine Mercy Syro Malabar Mission in Louisville.
Father David W. Naylor is retired. He served as pastor of St. Francis Xavier Church in Raywick, Ky., St. Charles Church in Lebanon, Ky., Holy Name of Mary Church in Calvary, Ky.; Our Lady of Fatima in Phillipsburg, Ky.; St. Aloysius Church in Shepherdsville, Ky.; St. Benedict Church in Lebanon Junction, Ky.; St. Clare Oratory in Colesburg, Ky.; Holy Spirit Church in Jamestown, Ky.; Holy Redeemer Church in Greensburg, Ky.; Good Shepherd Church in Columbia, Ky.; and St. Ignatius Church. He served as associate pastor at St. Joseph Church in Bardstown, Ky.
Passionist Father Justin Nelson Alphonse professed religious vows on May 28, 1995, and was ordained to the priesthood on May 7, 2000. He is pastor of St. Bernard Church. Following ordination, he was the associate pastor and later pastor of Our Lady of Velankany in Randham, Tamil Nadu, India. He was the director of Prison Ministry in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. In the archdiocese of Louisville, he also served as associate pastor and as pastor of St. Agnes Church.
Father Joel Rogers, a member of the Fathers of Mercy, is pastor of St. Helen Church in Glasgow, Ky. He made vows in August of 1997. He was ordained on June 10, 2000. Father Rogers served as associate pastor of St. Helen Church and Our Lady of the Caves Church in Horse Cave, Ky. He also served as pastor of Our Lady of the Caves. From 2015-2020, he served his community in Auburn, Ky., as house superior.
Father John A. Schwartzlose was ordained June 3, 2000. Father Schwartzlose serves as associate pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Church. He served as pastor of St. Gregory Church in Samuels, Ky., and at St. Gabriel Church. He was associate pastor of St. Aloysius Church in Pewee Valley and St. Augustine Church in Lebanon, Ky. He served as administrator pro tempore at St. Thomas and St. Monica churches in Bardstown, Ky. He also served as sacramental moderator at St. Teresa of Calcutta Church. From 2022-2024, he served as mission director for Catholic Charities of Louisville.
