February 8, 2022 — On Saturday, February 5, Michael Manalastas, SJ, of Jesuits West, was ordained a deacon at Parroquia San Francisco Javier y San Luis Gonzaga in Madrid, Spain. Cardinal D. Carlos Osoro Sierra, Archbishop of Madrid, presided at the Mass, during which seven other Jesuits were also ordained deacons.
Manalastas is currently studying theology at the Pontifical Comillas University in Madrid. As a Jesuit in formation, ordination to the diaconate is the final step in preparation for priestly ordination in the Society of Jesus. Manalastas will be ordained to the priesthood in June 2022.
Manalastas earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Berkeley, and then worked as a CPA. Prior to entering the Society, he was actively involved at St. Ignatius Parish in San Francisco and volunteered as a basketball coach and confirmation teacher at an inner-city school. During his Jesuit formation, he attended Saint Louis University for first studies and performed his regency as a teacher of religion at Bellarmine College Preparatory School in San Jose, California.