New priest, deacon to be ordained in Fall River Diocese this week

FALL RIVER — The Diocese of Fall River has announced that two men will be ordained for ministry in the Diocese of Fall River, one as a priest, the other a deacon as Holy Orders are conferred by Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., in an 11:00 a.m. Mass on Saturday, June 6, in St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River.

Through the sacred rites of the Church, the bishop will ordain Deacon Kaíque Duarte Santos, 31, of Cape Cod to the priesthood and seminarian Lucas D. daCosta, 28, of Acushnet to the transitional diaconate.

Deacon Santos is currently serving at St. Joseph, Guardian of the Holy Family Parish in Falmouth.

“It has been a joy to minister to both the English-speaking parish community and the Brazilian community,” he shared recently.

“As I prepare for ordination, I feel grateful more than anything else. Grateful for my family, for the people who have supported me throughout my journey, for the priests and mentors who guided me, for the friends who walked beside me, and for the countless ways God has shown His faithfulness.”

Born in Teofilo Otoni, a city in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, he is the youngest of three children of Marizete and Aldair Burmann. His teenage years were marked by profound loss, losing a brother in a tragic accident and experiencing the death of his father two months later. Left spiritually adrift, he looks back on a 2010 youth retreat as a significant turning point, leading to a profound experience of Jesus’ love and a personal encounter with Him. Another retreat in 2011 awakened a vocational calling.

His journey of discernment and formation included time with the Brazilian Canção Nova Community where for ten years he lived a missionary life dedicated to evangelization and service, and a 30-day retreat at a Carthusian Monastery. A friend introduced him to the Diocese of Fall River and Bishop da Cunha, also a native Brazilian, and he was welcomed into the Diocese in 2023. Once in the U.S., he continued his priestly formation at the Immaculate Conception Seminary in South Orange, N.J. He was ordained a transitional deacon by Bishop da Cunha last December and then began his ministry at the Falmouth parish where he served last summer as a seminarian.

He will celebrate his First Mass at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, June 6, in St. Anthony Church in East Falmouth.

As his ordination to the priesthood approaches, Deacon Santos described himself as feeling “peaceful.” He went on to say that “Becoming a priest does not feel like something that will suddenly happen on one day. In many ways, I feel that God has been preparing me for this moment since He first called me as a teenager. The ordination will be the moment when the Church confirms sacramentally what God has been patiently forming in my heart for many years.”

The ordination of daCosta as a transitional deacon will begin the final leg of his journey towards the priesthood.

He is the son of Daniel and Fatima daCosta. He has one older sister, Ariel Moniz. Raised in New Bedford, his family later moved to Acushnet and his home parish is St. Francis Xavier in that town. He is a graduate of New Beford Vocational Technical High School.

After high school he spent a year in Portugal where he was able to become proficient in the Porgtuguese language. He entered Our Lady of Providence Seminary upon his return and began studies at Providence College from which he earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 2021. He then continued his formation at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton.

While on summer breaks, he has assisted at Santo Christo Parish in Fall River; St. John Neumann Parish, East Freetown; St. Joseph, Guardian of the Holy Family Parish, Falmouth; and Holy Family Parish, East Taunton.

“I am grateful to God for calling me to serve Him in this vocation and for sustaining me throughout these years of formation,” said daCosta. “I am also grateful to Bishop da Cunha, the priests, seminarians, parishioners, family members, and friends who have supported me with their prayers and encouragement along the way.

“My greatest hope comes not from confidence in my own abilities, but from trust in God. Knowing that Christ is actively at work in His Church gives me great peace and confidence as I prepare to serve as a deacon and, God willing, one day as a priest, where I will be able to share that hope with others.”

You can watch the Ordination to Priesthood and Diaconate as it is livestreamed on the Our Lady of Fall River website.