Father Paul MacNeil, a native of the Diocese of Antigonish in Nova Scotia, Canada, recalls his childhood warmly, noting that he came from a close-knit Catholic family where he was the youngest of six children. They attended public school but were active in the church.
“My faith was always strong in my life, but particularly in junior and senior high with the youth group, when I had an amazing growth in faith,” he said. It wasn’t until his second year of college when he was praying one night, that he first thought about the priesthood. At that point, a warm feeling of peace flowed over him.
“It was like God giving me a big hug,” Father MacNeil explained. From there he spent a lot of time in discernment, speaking with priests and his former youth leader, Sister of Charity Catherine Steele. He was 20 when he was first accepted by his bishop and entered the seminary at Augustine’s in Toronto, Ontario.
“Walking through the big bronze doors of the seminary there was a homecoming,” Father MacNeil said. “It was an affirmation from God I was in the right place.”
Father Paul spent 18 years serving in Canada, the bulk of it as a chaplain at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish. It was during a sabbatical at the North American College that he first became friends with many American priests, leading to visits here and a call to serve.
Father Paul said he originally considered applying to a diocese in Florida, but was convinced by Msgr. Cellini, of The Diocese of Charleston, that the climate and culture were both better in South Carolina. So, he received permission from his bishop to spend a couple of years here.
“A couple of years turned into incardination,” Father MacNeil said with a laugh. He adds that receiving the letter from Bishop Robert E. Guglielmone asking him to be a priest of the diocese is one of the highlights of his vocation.
When he first arrived in South Carolina, he was appointed parochial vicar at St. Gregory the Great, and served as an administrator at St. Peter for three years.
Father Paul was assigned as Pastor here in Pawleys Island at Precious Blood of Christ Catholic Parish in March of 2017.
Father Paul spends time cycling, swimming, and walking, plus quiet time in prayer. “I feel God has called me to be here,” he said. “I’m so content being a parish priest and contributing to the growth of the Church.”