'Trust the Lord and the Church to help you and lead you to where He is calling you'
an interview with
Father Ryan Browne
Who are you?
My name is Ryan Browne and I am thirty years old. I originally come from Bournemouth where I attended Corpus Christi Primary and St Peter’s Secondary school. After school I studied Philosophy and Theology at the University at Exeter. In 2019 I entered the Venerable English College to commence seminary formation for the priesthood. Whilst there I studied Philosophy at the University of St Thomas Aquinas and later studied Theology at the Gregorian University. I was ordained a deacon on 10th July 2024 and spent my diaconal year at St John’s Cathedral in Portsmouth. I was then ordained a priest on 19th July 2025 and assigned as Assistant Priest to St John’s Cathedral in Portsmouth, coupled with responsibilities as the Catholic chaplain to the University of Portsmouth.
What were you misconceptions about your vocation before ever discerning it?
A few years ago, Bishop Barron gave a great homily at a Mass for the ordination of priests in his diocese. In the homily he touched upon a really important point. He recognised that some men who present themselves for ordination to the priesthood sense that they have to supress aspects of their character, to become anything else but themselves. In the homily he said that candidates for the priesthood shouldn’t supress their personality, they should supress sin in their lives, but they need to be totally themselves as a priest. You can watch his homily here if you’re interested: https://www.wordonfire.org/videos/my-advice-to-young-priests-follow-your-gifts/ .
Before embarking on the journey to priesthood I certainly (naively) sensed that I had to become something different, almost alien from my personality. I would say this was a real misconception that I had of the priesthood before seriously discerning it. If God is calling a man to be His priest, then it means He is calling all of you, not just the bits that you sense in yourself are good and virtuous. He is calling the entire person to transform them into the very presence of Himself in the world today. It is so important to be real and authentic in any vocation.
Who inspired you on your journey to discovering your vocation?
It was definitely my parish priest when I was a child. His name was Fr John Dunne, who was known for his kindness and openness to all people. One story that someone told me once was that they turned up at the parish with their family expecting the usual Sunday 6pm Mass. The problem is that it was Easter Sunday and there was no 6pm Mass scheduled for that day. The family was quite upset and Fr Dunne came out to see who was outside. Fr Dunne invited them into the church to pray, little did they know that Fr Dunne went into the sacristy and came out to say Mass just for them! What a holy man he was and a real witness of the presence of Jesus in the world today, which is characterised by a sacrificial availability to God’s people.
'I sense God’s closeness and His Grace working through me, especially in the sacraments.'
How is the lived reality of your vocation different to how you perceived it before?
I think the pace of life is much more different to how I perceived the priesthood before ordination. As a priest, so many people want to speak to you to talk about the joys and sorrows. Life can throw up many unexpected things in people’s life and we priests simply have to be ready to respond when needed. For example, in the last week in Portsmouth a few of the parishioners have died in quick succession, which has meant I’ve needed to anoint the sick, to comfort their mourning families and to then meet with the families to organise the various funerals. You can’t prepare for these things; death simply arises and the priest has to be ready to respond. It’s a great blessing, but it means that no two weeks are the same.
How has living your vocation brought you joy?
Let me not lie to you. There are days which can be quite dark and lonely, but through it all I sense God’s closeness and His Grace working through me, especially in the sacraments. The sacrament of Reconciliation is a key example of this. At St John’s Cathedral in Portsmouth there are many people who come for confessions. Some Saturdays I can be in the confessional for three hours. It’s such a blessing to see the powerful work of Christ’s mercy and forgiveness in this sacrament. It is a real grace to see people lifted up from the things that weigh them down and burden their consciences. Being a minister of God’s love in a very clear way, through the sacrament of Holy Orders, brings me a lasting joy.
'Being a minister of God’s love in a very clear way, through the sacrament of Holy Orders, brings me a lasting joy.'
What would you say to someone else considering following Jesus in this vocational calling?
There are two things I would say:
First, If that small voice within you keeps saying priesthood, I think you need to try your vocation. Speak to your parish priest or deacon. Speak to the vocation’s promoter and director. Get in touch with Bishop Philip. Speak to a trusted friend. You can’t simply just think about it if the calling keeps interrupting your life. In the words of St Augustine, our hearts are restless until they rest in the Lord. You will not be able to live the rest of your life unless you pick up this rock of vocation and start to consider it more deeply. Take the initiative and go for it!
The second is don’t presume that you will be a priest just because you sense a calling in your heart. Just like the healthy ingredients to grow a plant (soil, water, and sunlight) there are three key ingredients to develop a vocation: You, the Church and God. You may sense that God is calling you to the priesthood, but perhaps the Church discerns that this is not, in fact, your calling. So don’t make presumptions, trust the Lord and the Church to help you and lead you to where He is calling you.
