Father Eric Mah
Two of questions that I remember from my application to the seminary are: “What’s the best thing to ever happen to you?” and “What’s the worst thing to ever happen to you?” My answer to both was and still is the death of my father. But before I get into that though, perhaps I should share a bit of background about my family. My parents both grew up in modest circumstances before immigrating from China to British Columbia; and getting married in Vancouver before moving to Maple Ridge, which is about an hour from Vancouver.
My mother almost died when she was six years old because of kidney disease before she was restored to life after having been anointed by a priest. My father himself was unbaptized and worked as a boatbuilder and real estate salesman while my mother worked as a housekeeper before he himself was baptized, confirmed and anointed by a priest before finally passing away after a long battle with liver cancer. Up to that point, my Catholic faith formation had been limited, mainly because my parents hadn’t been taught their faith in a really systematic sort of way; but the priest who did my father’s funeral waived the donation in exchange for a promise that my mother, my brother and I would make a concerted effort from that point on to go to Mass on a regular basis, which is why I still say to this day that the best and worst thing to ever happen to me and my family was the death of my father.
When I moved to Vancouver with my family after my father’s death, I went to the University of British Columbia to study English Literature before moving to Halifax to study law school in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In the student residence where I stayed, I met a very devout Catholic young man who would eventually go to St. Augustine’s in Scarborough, Ontario; and who stayed in contact with me after I too moved to Ontario to work in Toronto as a lawyer. Shortly after moving, I visited my friend in the seminary, who in turn introduced me to another seminarian, who would eventually introduce me to my first spiritual director.
Once I started learning and practicing my faith, especially through regular Confession and daily Mass, with the guidance of my director and other excellent priests throughout the Archdiocese of Toronto, I found it much easier to discern my vocation to be a priest, which is why I continue to this day to emphasize catechesis and the sacramental life when it comes to bringing people closer to Christ and helping them find their true vocation in Christ.