Father Silva is the new Sacred Heart pastor

Intermountain Catholic

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Father Eleazar Silva Galván

SALT LAKE CITY — A desire to be "a regular priest," a family crisis and seminary classmates brought Father Eleazar Silva Galván to Utah from Mexico, where he was born and ordained.

After six years as a parochial vicar in the Diocese of Salt Lake City, Fr. Silva has been appointed to his first parish as pastor, Sacred Heart in Salt Lake City, effective Aug. 7.

The appeal of being a parish priest, Fr. Silva said, is "being with people, working with them, talking to them, hearing their confessions, living right there with them. Being able to witness the beautiful miracle of how they grow in their relationship with Christ, which is something amazing."

Fr. Silva was born in Mexico City to a family strongly grounded in the Catholic faith: His father’s grandmother used to take care of a small chapel and his great-uncles all died in the Christero Revolution, he said. "Only my grandfather survived. We’re very close to the Church."

He recalls telling his parents, at the age of 5, that he wanted to be a priest, "and I never went away from that idea."

When he entered the seminary at 14, not only was his young age a concern, but also the fact that he is legally blind. Although he wore glasses, "it was very difficult. I used to crash into doors and things like that," he said.

He wasn’t able to see well enough to read books, so "I learned everything by listening," he said.

These days, after eye surgery, he can read, but he still memorizes the liturgy. When the new Roman Missal came out a year ago, he was forced to learn the prayers anew. He has memorized the parts of the Mass and the Eucharistic prayer already, he said.

"If I read something five times, then I know it," he explained.

After an introductory year in seminary in Mexico, he had the chance to transfer to Mount Angel Seminary in Oregon, where he served as a sacristan with Father Javier Virgen, now pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Magna; and sang in the choir with Father Mike Sciumbato, now pastor of Saint Ann Church in Salt Lake City. Father Bill Wheaton, now pastor of Saint Pius X Parish in Moab, "used to proof-read my papers," Fr. Silva said.

Fr. Silva continued his studies at the Universidad La Salle in Mexico City, where he obtained a degree in theology, and went on to post-graduate work at the Regina Apostolorum in Rome. He was ordained a priest on April 7, 2001 in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception by the Most Rev. Lorenzo Cárdenas Aregullín for the Diocese of Papantla in Veracruz, Mexico.

During his first years as a priest, he served as an auxiliary spiritual director, vice rector and fundamental theology professor in the seminary while, at the same time, as sacristan-dean in the cathedral. He also kept in contact with his seminary friends, and was asked to come to Utah several times to cover for them when they went on vacation.

"So I met Archbishop [George H.] Niederauer," Fr. Silva said. "And he said, ‘You’re coming so often to help us here in the diocese, why don’t you consider coming over here?’ I really liked the idea of doing that. I loved my teaching and all of that, but I also wanted to try out being a normal, regular priest."

Fr. Silva’s bishop originally denied his request to move to Utah because he was needed in that diocese. However, several years later, Fr. Silva’s father lost his job while at the same time his mother was stricken with cancer, and Fr. Silva felt the need to help them financially. Because he was serving in a poor parish, and his five-year commitment to the Mexican diocese was up, he again asked his bishop to release him. This time, his request was granted, and in 2006 he was assigned to Saint George Parish, where he served for three years before going to Saint Francis Xavier Parish, then to the Cathedral of the Madeleine. He was formally incardinated in the Diocese of Salt Lake City on March 10, 2011.

"This diocese has been very open, very friendly; the clergy makes this a beautiful environment of a brotherhood," he said.

Meanwhile, his father found a new job and his mother has been cancer-free for several years now, he said.

For Fr. Silva, the best parts of being a priest are celebrating Mass and hearing the Sacrament of Reconciliation, he said, because in both he feels that he is "a mere instrument of God ... and that’s very consoling .... knowing that it’s him, not me. It’s very humbling."