Campus ministry chaplain Fr. Hood starts new role as director of priestly vocations

After five years cultivating 'mini vocations' on college campuses, Fr. Hood looks forward to helping men discover God's will

DETROIT — Fr. Matthew Hood already has a job helping college students connect with their faith. 

Now, he has a new role helping men of all ages discover whether God might be calling them to the priesthood.

Beginning July 1, Fr. Hood is the new director of priestly vocations for the Archdiocese of Detroit, a role to which he was appointed by Detroit Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger in addition to his ongoing role as director and chaplain of Detroit Catholic Campus Ministry.

Fr. Hood succeeds Fr. Craig Giera, 48, who has served as vocations director since 2020.

“I am so grateful that the archbishop has entrusted this very sacred and important responsibility to me; I’m humbled to be chosen for this role,” Fr. Hood, 36, told Detroit Catholic. “It’s something that very much is dear to my heart, wanting to be able to encourage and promote vocations.”

As chaplain to Detroit Catholic Campus Ministry, Fr. Hood frequently celebrates Mass at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Detroit's Midtown, while leading Bible studies, faith formation and fellowship with college students from local campuses.

For the past five years, Fr. Hood has been the director of Detroit Catholic Campus Ministry, which coordinates and unites Catholic campus ministry efforts at Wayne State University, the University of Michigan-Dearborn, the College for Creative Studies and Henry Ford Community College, working with college students to cultivate Catholic life and faith on campus.

To a certain extent, Fr. Hood already serves a model of priestly life for young men who might hear God's call. He sees fostering vocations as a natural extension of his ministry.

“I love being a priest, and being able to share the love of the priesthood with the young men that I work with is such a tremendous joy,” Fr. Hood said. “To help men see if it is God’s plan in their lives to pursue a vocation to the priesthood — and how it can bring a great amount of joy and fulfillment in their lives — is something I'm excited about.”

As director of priestly vocations, Fr. Hood will serve as a first point of contact and a resource for men who might be interested in discerning a vocation, acting as both a spiritual guide and a practical source of knowledge.

A man doesn't need to be ready to apply to seminary to reach out — although Fr. Hood can certainly help with that.

“It’s the promotion of vocations through lots of different means across the archdiocese,” Fr. Hood said. “Then it’s the accompaniment of the men who are in the application process, so they can be prepared and supported through that fairly extensive process.”

When he was discerning the priesthood, Fr. Hood said it was the example of his own vocation director, Fr. Timothy Birney — who now serves as the archdiocese's vicar general and moderator of the curia — that made a big difference.

“Fr. Birney was an incredible support for me at a time that was so crucial in the heart of a young man, trying to figure out God’s will for my life,” Fr. Hood said. “There were things I was anxious or concerned about, and he was very helpful in addressing those issues. He helped me understand what seminary life was like and what it means to discern the priesthood, and that was a huge support for me.”

As a young seminarian, Fr. Hood's first job was serving as an intern in the Office of Priestly Vocations, so in many ways, he knows what questions to expect.

In addition to his dual roles in campus ministry and as director of priestly vocations, Fr. Hood also co-hosts a podcast, "Cinema Verbi," on faith and movies, along with Fr. Brian Meldrum. As a priest with many roles and experiences, Fr. Hood said he hopes to be a resource and a spiritual guide for men seeking God's will in their own lives.

“The vocations director doesn’t call guys to the priesthood; God calls somebody to the priesthood,” Fr. Hood added. “When I was discerning the priesthood, it was more about my own relationship with the Lord and growing in my own faith and my own openness to the will of God.”

Fr. Hood said his dual roles as director of Catholic campus ministry and director of priestly vocations — an arrangement that is common is dioceses throughout the country — place him in a unique position to guide young men through many stages of spiritual development and discernment.

“All over the country, young people are asking those deeper questions about the purpose and meaning of life, and they're not any finding satisfaction in what the world offers in response to those questions,” Fr. Hood said. “There's a great openness among young people to really ask, 'What is the desire of my heart?' In Jesus and in the Church he founded, we can know the truth, know our purpose and know the ultimate meaning of our lives.”

In a way, Fr. Hood said he’s already served as a “mini vocations director” for the past five years, noting that three young men whom he first met through campus ministry are now seminarians.

“It's been such an intrinsic and important part of my role, and I see stepping into this role really as a continuation of what has already been a passion of mine, to be able to help young people discern God's will for their lives,” Fr. Hood said. 

As he begins his new assignment, Fr. Hood asks everyone to pray for him — and, more importantly, to pray for and encourage young men to dutifully discern a priestly vocation.

“It is the invisible work, the behind-the-scenes work that we don't always see, that makes a difference,” Fr. Hood said. “If there is a young man that you know, or if you yourself are considering a priestly vocation, please reach out through the Office of Priestly Vocations.”