The Legionaries of Christ are more than a community of priests—they are a living testimony to God’s love at work in the world. Guided by His call, they dedicate their lives to service, following Christ in obedience, chastity and poverty. There are seven Legionaries in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, including Father Jacob DuMont and Father Matthew Summe, who both work in the archdiocesan offices.

Father DuMont is the Deputy Superintendent of Catholic Identity and Faith Formation in the archdiocesan Catholic Schools Office. Prior to his ordination, he wrestled with the idea of joining a religious order.

“I never felt a desire to become a priest until I met a Legionary priest who had passed through my hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan,” said Father DuMont. After visiting the Legionary Seminary in Cheshire, CT, God showed him the way to priesthood.

“While on retreat at the seminary, I remember making a visit to the chapel there and pouring out my heart to Jesus, explaining to Him why I shouldn’t be a priest… then, I heard in the depths of my heart His response, ‘Come follow me,’” said Father DuMont. “These words brought a deep sense of peace and trust in the Lord that I had never experienced before in my life. I knew that I had to give the Lord a chance … and enter the seminary to see if He was calling me to be a priest.”

God’s voice called another man to choose the priesthood, Father Summe, now the Managing Director of College and Young Adult Evangelization for the archdiocesan Center for the New Evangelization.

“When I was at college, I heard a prayer to become a priest,” said Father Summe. “I met two Legionary priests who came to visit a friend of mine at college, and in the course of the conversation, the Lord made it abundantly clear that this was where He wanted me to go.”

Founded on January 3, 1941, the Legionaries of Christ have been in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati since 2012 and are part of Regnum Christi, an international Catholic Federation. The Societies of Apostolic Life of the Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi and the Lay Consecrated Men of Regnum Christi are also part of this Federation.

“Internationally, in 2020 there were a total of 42 parishes entrusted to the Legionaries of Christ, of which 25 are in Mexico (23 in the Diocese of Cancún-Chetumal), eight in Italy, three in Western Europe, two in Brazil, one in Argentina and three in North America,” said Father DuMont. “These parishes provide pastoral services to about one million people.”

Their vocations as Legionary priests profoundly shaped Father DuMont and Father Summe’s lives and ministries, influencing both their spiritual growth and approach to service, leadership and evangelization.

“The formation and the many experiences of my Legionary life have prepared me to evangelize in the current cultural and Church environment,” said Father Summe.

Father DuMont added, “The spirit of a Legionary is contemplative and evangelizing. By their contemplative nature, Legionaries seek prayer, union with God, silence and reflection, and give prominence to God’s action in their sanctification and their apostolate. By their evangelizing nature, they give themselves with passionate love and zeal to the task of announcing the Kingdom and bringing the light of the Gospel to the whole world.”

Legionaries of Christ remind us of the powerful ways God calls each of us to serve. Through their work in the archdiocese and beyond, these priests are living witnesses to a deeper call to holiness and service.

This article appeared in the November 2024 edition of The Catholic Telegraph Magazine. For your complimentary subscription, click here.