JACKSON HEIGHTS — When Paulo Salazar was growing up in Jackson Heights, he thought of St. Joan of Arc Church as his second home.
He was familiar with every nook and cranny of the church, where his parents Paulo and Carola Salazar were active parishioners and where he was a member of the parish youth group. For many years, his parents were Eucharistic ministers, lectors, and catechists. Today, the elder Paulo is a permanent deacon, and his wife is a catechist.
The younger Paulo Salazar remembered his parents having many priests over for dinner through the years, and he relished “being able to have these close encounters with such good and holy priests who truly enjoy their vocation and enjoy the life that they live.”
So when he decided to answer God’s call to become a priest, which he described as “this kind of gentle stirring of the heart,” it seemed a natural fit.
“I would say my vocation started at a very, very young age, around six or seven. Just growing up in the parish … and having my own parents who have been active in the community itself has been a tremendous support for me,” he explained.
Last year, the 27-year-old was ordained a transitional deacon and is now looking forward to being ordained a priest by Bishop Robert Brennan on June 28 at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Prospect Heights.
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His journey has included attending Catholic schools in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
He attended St. Joan of Arc Catholic Academy, Cathedral Preparatory School and Seminary, and the Cathedral House of Formation in Douglaston.
However, while Deacon Salazar felt most at home at St. Joan of Arc Church, his journey toward the priesthood took him far away.
He traveled thousands of miles from Queens to Rome, where he studied at the Pontifical North American College and earned a degree in theology. This September, he will return to Rome to study Canon Law.
During his years in Rome, he had the opportunity to meet two popes. In 2020, he and other seminarians went to the Apostolic Palace to meet Pope Francis.
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“Sometimes you can see him like this mystery, just far away. But to actually be able to be in the same room with him and to shake his hand and to show his humanity to us was a very powerful moment,” he recalled.
In 2024, he and his classmates spent Thanksgiving at the college with then-Cardinal Robert Prevost, who would later become Pope Leo XIV.
“He celebrated a nice Thanksgiving Mass,” Deacon Salazar said. “He stayed for the meal, and it was just a very beautiful moment to share with him.”
Deacon Salazar was in St. Peter’s Square when Pope Leo was introduced to the world.
“To witness the election of an American pope and have him come out and speak to us was beautiful,” he said.
Fresh from his June 20 arrival back home from Rome, Deacon Salazar is looking forward to his upcoming ordination.
“I’ll be fulfilling the very thing that I was created for,” he explained. “So for me, it’ll be a great, powerful experience.”
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Of all the duties of a priest, the one he is looking forward to the most is administering the sacrament of reconciliation, commonly known as confession.
“Confession is the part where it really hits home for me, because you encounter many people,” he stated. “The very fact that you’re acting in the person of Christ, you’re able to bring the soul back to life, imparting them that grace to be healed, to come back into the fold. It’s humbling.”
Deacon Salazar has known he has wanted to be a priest since he was a little boy, and now his dream is coming true.
What will he be thinking on ordination day?
“I think right now, here, at this moment,” he said, “this is where God wants me to be.”