Newly elected conventual prior Fr. Alex Juguilon, osc (center left), poses with his subprior Fr. Hubert Kavusa, osc (center right), and councilors Fr. Stephan Bauer, osc (left), and Fr. Dave Donnay, osc.
7-AUG-24 (Phoenix) — The U.S. Crosier Fathers and Brothers have elected Fr. Alex Juguilon, osc, as their new conventual prior for a four-year term. The election was held today during the weeklong 2024 Conventual Priory Chapter in Onamia, Minn. The rite of installation will take place Aug. 9 at Holy Cross Church in Onamia. Master General Laurentius Tarpin, osc, will preside over the ceremony. Also elected were subprior, Fr. Hubert Kavusa, osc, and councilors Fr. Stephan Bauer, osc, and Fr. Dave Donnay, osc. Fr. Alex succeeds Fr. Tom Enneking, osc, who served as the major superior for the past 13 years.
“To be asked to serve in this new leadership role is a privilege, and I am grateful for my confreres’ trust. I am both honored and humbled to receive their call. The opportunity to share in fraternal life, love, prayer and service for the Church is one of the main reasons I became a Crosier,” Fr. Alex said.
The process of a superior’s election is defined by the Crosier Constitutions and the conventual priory statutes and involves months of discernment, dialogue and prayer. Before an election, the Crosier members gather to discuss the qualifications, aptitudes and merits of possible candidates. The election itself is held in the priory chapel in a context of prayer and trust in God’s lead.
As national superior, Fr. Alex will oversee the conventual priory in the United States and represent the priory during international Crosier meetings. He will also be responsible for exercising creative leadership in the priory community and helping his fellow Crosiers live and work together in an atmosphere of love, friendship and unity. He is called to give them support through his leadership and advice. His responsibility extends to both the spiritual and temporal welfare of all members of the Crosier priory in Phoenix and Onamia.
It was through the Crosiers’ mission preaching efforts across the country that Fr. Alex became acquainted with them. He met Fr. Ernie Martello, osc, a native of Cleveland where Fr. Alex grew up, during one of Fr. Ernie’s home visits. Fr. Alex was ultimately inspired by the Crosier charism and fraternity.
He said that daily prayer, time in Adoration and asking for the Blessed Mother’s intercession helped him discover God’s desire for his life. It was during quiet moments of listening to God that Fr. Alex received his answer. He joined the Crosiers as a novice in 2011 and made his first profession of vows on Friday, Dec. 7, 2012, at the Crosier priory in Onamia.
Fr. Alex Juguilon, osc, was ordained to the priesthood by the Most Rev. Eduardo Nevares, auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Phoenix, on May 26, 2018, at St. Gregory Catholic Church in Phoenix.
Since his ordination, Fr. Alex has served in many different ministries. He was appointed director of vocations and postulants for the Conventual Priory of the Holy Cross. He also is a member of the conventual priory’s global development office and a supervisor for members in the program of accountability and care. He serves as chaplain for Young Catholic Professionals (YCP), Fellow of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) and Benedictine University in Mesa, Ariz., where he also teaches as an adjunct professor in theology and bioethics.
Fr. Alex currently assists at St. Gregory’s by celebrating Mass, administering the sacraments, teaching religion to 6th– to 8th-graders, teaching RCIA classes and assisting the pastor. His other duties include meeting regularly with directees as a spiritual director. He works closely as a spiritual advisor for men in discernment at the Nazareth House in Phoenix and the men at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Scottsdale during their propaedeutic year.
Fr. Alex was born in Manila, Philippines, and raised in North Royalton, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He attended St. Ignatius Preparatory High School in Cleveland and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Boston University. He was a member of St. Albert the Great Church in North Royalton, where he founded a monthly men’s prayer group, was an adult server at daily Mass and volunteered with RCIA. He has also been active in the Totus Tuus International Eucharistic, Consecration, Scapular and Rosary Novena Crusade, made in response to Pope John Paul II’s appeals.
Prior to joining the Crosiers, Fr. Alex worked as a doctor of sleep medicine in the Cleveland area. His training occurred in Circadian and Sleep Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. He has a Doctor of Medicine and surgery from the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery in Manila.
