FALL RIVER — Three seminarians studying for the priesthood for the Fall River Diocese will be ordained transitional deacons by Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V, in the context of an 11 a.m. Mass on Saturday, May 27, in St. Mary’s Cathedral, Fall River.

To be ordained are Matthew G. Gill, Juan Carlos Muñoz, and Daniel M. Nunes. As deacons, they will be will be able to assist the priest at Mass and be an ordinary minister of the Eucharist, proclaim the Gospel and preach, baptize, and minister at other services.

Their ordination to the transitional diaconate will begin the final leg of their journey toward the priesthood. It is anticipated that each will be ordained a priest next year.

Gill, 27, is the son of William and Mary Gill and has one brother. Born in Providence, R.I., he grew up in Attleboro, graduating from St. John the Evangelist School and Bishop Feehan High School there. He earned a bachelor’s degree from McDaniel College, Westminster, Maryland, before entering St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, Mass., to prepare for the priesthood. After his ordination as a deacon, he will be serving at St. Ann Parish in Raynham.

Muñoz, 35, was born in Medellín, Antioquia, Columbia, the son of Jorge Ivan Muñoz and Maria Victoria Montoya Rua. He has two brothers and two sisters. After attending primary and high school in Chigorodó, Antioquia, he went on to nursing school at Facultad de Enfermería Universidad de Antioquia; and medical school at Facultdad de Medicina Universidad de Antioquia, both in Medellén. He completed pre-theology studies at Immaculate Conception Seminary at Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J., and theology at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton. He will serve his diaconal year at Sacred Heart and St. Mary Parishes in North Attleboro, and at St. Mark Parish in Attleboro Falls.

Nunes, 33, is a Fall River native, the son of Paul and Karen Nunes, and grew up in Swansea with his one brother. He is a graduate of Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River. He attended Our Lady of Providence Seminary in Providence, earning a degree in philosophy from Providence College. He continued studies for the priesthood at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and St. John’s Seminary in Brighton. He will serve as a deacon at Holy Name Parish in Fall River.

In the days preceding the Transitional Diaconate Ordination, three separate Holy Hours for Vocations will be held: on Wednesday, May 14, at 7 p.m., at St. John the Evangelist Church in Attleboro; Thursday, May 25, at 6:30 p.m. at Christ the King Parish in Mashpee; and Friday, May 26, at 6:30 p.m. at Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in New Bedford (in English and Spanish).

Diocese of Fall River
Diocese of Fall River
Office of Communications