Tony Ferrer, the Priest

The young generation may not know it but Tony Ferrer was once a popular actor in local action movies. This is not his story, however, but another with the same name. Is the latter as popular as the actor?

Yes. To the young kids in his parish running towards him every time they see him, he is.

Fr. Antonio “Tony” H. Ferrer is a Filipino diocesan priest from the Archdiocese of Davao who is a missionary in New York, USA.

His assigned parish, the St. Joseph Parish, is the result of the merging of two former parishes of Immaculate Conception, composed of the Italian/Spanish community, and St. Mary’s, where parishioners are mostly Irish. The merging of these two parishes is due to the dwindling number of church members since the old generation had already died and the youth are in school. The latter are mobilized to help especially those from the public schools.

Church invitation for members’ participation gets only a limited response so far, Fr. Tony laments. But he does not lose hope. The youth are active though under the supervision of the adult. The clergy’s engagement with this sector is reserved affected by the controversial sexual harassment issues against a few members of the US clergy. Disciplining kids also would need creativity since corporal punishment is prohibited by law.

Fr. Tony finds working with this Italian/Spanish/Irish community not as difficult as he first thought for they are similar to Filipinos who have close-knit families.

Call to the priesthood

Vocation is a special gift. Fr. Tony’s call only came in his teens. There was no indication before that. It actually came as a big surprise. His uncle was a pastor in a sect and he grew up in a non-Catholic atmosphere in Cotabato. Later, when his family transferred to Tibungco, he had the chance of serving the Church as an altar boy and then as a reader or lector.

In college he took up Accounting in Ateneo but he was not happy. He found himself one day walking from Ulas to Xavier College Seminary (XACOSE). It was only when got there that he learned that an entrance examination was scheduled that day. Was it just a coincidence?

Of course not. God works in mysterious ways. It was Him who brought Tony there on time. That summer before June, his father, who works as a postman, gave him money and told him, “Suportahan nako imong tinguha. Bahala magkano basta makahuman ka.”

His mother was a different story. She was against his becoming a priest. Fr. Tony is the third in a brood of 4.

His seminary fees were discounted. The late Archbishop Mabutas was his big supporter in his theology years. In 8 to 9 years, he finished his formation.

Before his New York mission, Fr. Tony served in various parishes in the Archdiocese of Davao such as Sto. Rosario in Toril, San Pablo in Juna, St. Francis Xavier in Maa, the parish in Calinan, San Antonio in Agdao and Sta. Ana in Sta. Ana Avenue. The latter was his last assignment before leaving for the missions.

To date he has already spent 19 years in the priesthood. He shares that he is happy doing mission work. He feels that he has grown a lot there. Recently, Fr. Tony came home for a week vacation.

Simplicity, humility and detachment from material things are what keep a priest like him loyal to his vocation. “Once detached ka,” Fr. Tony shares, “Makita nimo ang meaning sa pagkapari.”