With a Full Heart

Fr. Jose Maria Castillo, F.J.H. provided another memorable Convocation for the Jesuit student body on Thursday (Dec. 4) in St. Anthony's Chapel. He shared his passion for helping others, and with his customary enthusiasm and musicality he conveyed personal fulfillment through love for the Lord.

When he graduated from Jesuit in 2000 as Orlando Castillo, Fr. Castillo was the recipient of the Fr. Charles J. Lashley, S.J. Award – the highest honor the school confers upon a graduating senior. He then enrolled at Notre Dame before transferring for his final three years to Franciscan University of Steubenville (Ohio).

Fr. Castillo returned to Tampa and joined the Family of Jesus the Healer, a small religious community founded in 1998 by Fr. Philip Scott of the Diocese of St. Petersburg. The group initially served the poor and homeless in Ybor City before relocating to Chaclacayo, Peru, in 2003.

Fr. Castillo and the Family of Jesus the Healer were the subject of the 2008 documentary film “The Calling,” chronicling the community’s beginnings and its move to South America. Fr. Castillo was ordained a priest in Aug. 2011. He has been back to Jesuit several times in the past few years, speaking at Convocation and theology classes.

See a photo gallery below from Fr. Castillo's Dec. 4 visit,  and click here for a video on the Jesuit YouTube channel.