Rev. Joseph A. Serano, O. Praem

Rev. Joseph A. Serano, O. Praem

All four of my grandparents came from the Abruzzi in central Italy. My parents spoke Italian at home and learned English at school. Unfortunately, they didn’t pass the language on to my generation. However, what they did pass along was a deep faith in God’s goodness and a love for God’s church.

I was born in 1943, attended Saint Monica’s Grade School and St. John (then Bishop) Neumann High School in South Philadelphia. There I met the Norbertines, and I happily joined the community right after graduation in 1960. After a year’s novitiate in Paoli, I was assigned to Saint Norbert College outside Green Bay, Wisconsin. I did my B.A. in philosophy and Latin, with minors in English and French. In 1965 I was graduated magna cum laude, took solemn vows in the Norbertine community and was soon assigned to study theology with the Jesuits at Heythrop Athenaeum, on the outskirts of Oxford, England. Four years later, I was ordained a priest and returned to England for one more year to finish the Licentiate in Theology.
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Fr. Tom Rossi, O.Praem

I would say that my personal journey with God began with my family. Born and raised in a Catholic, Italian-American setting in South Philadelphia, I was exposed to religious and devotional activities at an early age. My education began in a Catholic Elementary School and, after 9 years of exposure to the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I moved on to the Catholic High School for boys in South Philadelphia.

As I reflect what led me to serve God as a priest, I realize that it was in this Catholic High School setting that the seeds of a vocation were 'planted' within me. Bishop Neumann High School had a rich and long tradition as an institution of learning in the City of Philadelphia. It was here where I first became acquainted with the 'white robed' priest who were called the Norbertines. This community of men first staffed this school, when it was called South Catholic, in 1934 as a student, I not only became aware of their long history as a community of teachers, but I was also a beneficiary of their kindness and encouragement.
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Fr. Joseph Laenen, O. Praem.

Fr. Joseph Laenen, O. Praem.

My family lived in a small village-Poederlee-in the Province of Antwerp-Belgium. My father and mother were farmers. I was the first born, followed by 2 sisters, one year and 6 years after me. I learned my letters and numbers in Kindergarten, run by the Sisters. After 2 years, I entered into the local "boys school". We had only 2 teachers for all the grades from one to nine!!!

When I was 12 years old, the parish priest convinced my parents to send me to an Apostolic board school, run by the Jesuits in Turnhout, where only candidates for future Missionaries were accepted. There was rigorous education in self-discipline, serious studies and spiritual life. Three times a year we went on vacation. During those days, especially in summertime, I had to help on the farm and in the fields. My parents were not rich, but made the sacrifice of permitting us all three to begin post-elementary studies.
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