Short Biography

Father João Paulo Jäger was born on May 31, 1992, in Guaramirim, a small town in northern Santa Catarina. He entered the Vocational Center of the Legionaries of Christ in 2007 in Curitiba, Paraná, where he stayed for three years. In 2010, he made his candidacy at the Vocational Center of Porto Alegre, in southern Brazil, and in the same year, he began his novitiate in Arujá, São Paulo. He took his first vows on March 11, 2012. From 2012 to 2014, he studied Classical Humanities in Monterrey, Mexico. He studied philosophy in Rome, at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum, from 2014 to 2017, and during his apostolic practices, he accompanied Father Martin Baranowski in Bavaria as a member of the auxiliary team of ECyD. Returning to Rome in 2019, he studied theology at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum until 2022. He made his ad vitam profession on January 3, 2021. On July 9, 2022, he was ordained a deacon along with three other Brazilian Legionaries at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption in São Paulo. He currently serves his priestly ministry as a formator at the Vocational Center of Curitiba, Brazil.

 Vocational History

“Mathew, getting up, followed Him.”

Going forward, Jesus saw a man called Matthew, sitting at the tax collector’s booth, and said to him: “Follow me.” And he got up and followed Him. (Mt. 9:9).

When Jesus calls, He calls whom He wants. This is the story of each one’s calling. He called me because He wanted to. And He called many others to work in His vineyard because He wanted to. Matthew was, according to the people, a sinner, because he was a tax collector; he was viewed negatively by everyone, a man who exploited others. But Jesus’ gaze completely changed Matthew’s life. In this account of his vocation, Matthew does not use more than a verse to express what this gaze was. Just one verse to tell what this encounter with Jesus provoked in him. Jesus looked at him, called him, and he left everything to follow Jesus.

What was it about Matthew that made you do this? Weren’t you happy with your work, with your money? Matthew felt strongly in his heart that what truly matters is choosing the best part, the one that will not be taken away from you… The Gospel continues: “and rising, he followed Him.” And what joy he felt, experiencing the Master and no longer wanting to be apart from Him. With Jesus, Matthew quenched the deep thirst he felt within, in his soul, in his heart.

The encounter with Christ always transforms. One day I was also looked at in the same way by Jesus, and that gaze also transformed my life, made me leave everything to follow the Master and Lord who was calling me. Jesus also looks at each of us this way, as He looked at Matthew that day, and not only does He look at us with love and mercy, as written in Pope Francis’ motto, but He also calls us to begin an adventure of love by His side, and that is vocation.

All that Matthew left behind was nothing compared to what he received afterward, now being with Jesus. Matthew listened to His preaching, saw His miracles, also ate His bread, the bread of the Eucharist that gives us Eternal Life. Christ does not take anything from us; He gives us everything, and as He told His disciples, He gives a hundredfold, much more than we have or could have.

Speak, Lord, your servant is listening

Our whole life is a blank page that God and we write together. We are writing our story along with God. A story not always of happiness, but of struggles, pains, trials, and sacrifices. But every story is unique and precious in the eyes of God. Each person has their own story. But every story is different, and if our story is written with God, then even better to be told.

I am the youngest of four children, with two brothers and one sister. My family has always been Catholic, sometimes quite practicing, other times not so much. But the example of certain people marks our history and the direction it takes. In my case, my maternal grandmother and my father are the people I saw as models of faith.

My grandmother prayed a lot and spoke often of God. My father was always with a rosary in hand and prayed frequently. Moreover, even when sick, he made no effort to go to church. His example really influenced me because I didn’t see myself in good health or with the desire to go to church.

God always calls us at some point in life. We see that Saint John writes in his Gospel that it was the sixth hour when Jesus said to him and Andrew: “Come and see.” To Samuel, God called him from a young age, when Samuel, just a child, served the Lord in the Temple. To Jeremiah also, God called him as a young boy, so much so that the Prophet laments: “But Lord, I am only a child, and I do not know how to speak.” In my case, I cannot say exactly when I was called by God, because from a young age, just like Samuel and Jeremiah, I already felt the desire to follow Jesus in my Heart, to do something great, something that would change the world.

The place where I most felt this call from God was when I had an experience at the Maria Vocational Center, Mother of the Immaculate Legionaries of Christ in Curitiba, about 3 hours from my city, in northern Santa Catarina. God always has His plans for each one. I believed I was going to Curitiba for an internship at the diocesan seminary, but I ended up at the Vocational Center.

At the feast of Our Lady of Aparecida in 2006, I went to church. Our house was very close to the neighborhood chapel. After the Word celebration, since it was also the day of Our Lady of Aparecida and Children’s Day in Brazil, there was to be a snack for children in the church hall. I no longer felt like a child, so when the liturgy ended, I was already heading home. My Uncle Antonio called me and asked if I would stay at the children’s party. I replied no (my mother was sick). Then he gave me 10 reais and asked me to stay at the party.

I decided to stay for this reason, and after a few minutes, my former catechist (from my First Communion, as I was already in catechism for Confirmation) approached me and asked if I was interested in a convivence at a diocesan seminary. I said I would like to, that it would be a different experience. Then she told me that the next day, the coordinator of the catechists would come to my house so my parents could sign the authorization.

I couldn’t contain my joy (because I was finally going to see the seminary) and went home. I told my mother: I will go to the seminary. My mother thought I was joking or that it was not serious, and she said: of course, you can go. The next day, I went to school in the morning and waited for the coordinator in the afternoon, but she didn’t come. I was very sad because I was very excited to see the seminary. Over time, I gradually forgot this desire to see the seminary.

One day, when returning from school, I saw my father sitting, thoughtful, and my mother preparing lunch, with a tearful face. I immediately thought something had happened, and my father quickly told me that the coordinator had come in the morning and that the next day I would go to the seminary in Curitiba. I was very happy at that moment, started jumping with joy, and my mother was crying even more.

Thanks to God, everything went well for the trip. I went to the city’s main church where Father Sávio Zanetta and Brother Mateus Nuar were waiting to take us to Curitiba. It was the first time I would be three days away from home. I was very happy; I was going to see the seminary after so long. I was convinced that God was calling me, and from the first moment, I wanted to respond to His call.

During the trip, we had the famous mountain bingo that Father Sávio always organized. I was very excited by the joy of Father Sávio and Brother Mateus. Another experience that marked me deeply from that first moment was seeing priests dressed as priests, which until then I had only seen in movies and on TV. Upon arriving in Curitiba, Father Sávio told us we would visit the House’s Lady, and I thought we would visit a nun who was the Mother Superior taking care of the Seminary, but the priest took us to a grotto of Our Lady, and there we prayed a prayer to the Virgin Mary. At that moment, I understood that Mary is the mother of all those who leave their homes to follow the Lord’s steps. My mother also always told us that when she was not present, Mary was our Mother in Heaven, who never abandons us.

Quickly, listening to the priests speak in a foreign language, because they were foreigners, I understood that it was not a diocesan seminary but a religious congregation. I saw the apostolic seminarians (minor seminarians) leaving the chapel and was very happy because I had never known minor seminaries, and a great hope arose in me. Could I also be one of them? That was my first thought. And inside me, I was already decided: this is my place.

During those days of convivence, everything caught my attention: charity, attention, the fervor of the brothers during prayer moments in the Vocational Center Chapel, discipline, order, cleanliness. And above all, the care they had for each of the boys we were visiting in the seminary those days: attentive service, the gesture of carrying our bags… in short, the charity that reigned in that place.

On the last day of convivence, Father Sávio called me to see if I liked it and told him that if I could, I would stay there. So I was invited to do the summer course in January. During this period, I faced many temptations and difficulties. Fears began to arise, questions, invitations to enter the diocesan seminary and thus be closer to my family, but I was sure that where God had led me, in such a providential way, was where He wanted me to be. My mother helped me a lot during this time, telling me I should be generous with God. Also, my brothers and father always supported my decision to follow Jesus.

With God’s help and the generosity of many people, I obtained all the necessary material for the summer course, which was the greatest concern especially for my family: how to get everything, but God always finds a way. And in my case, it was no different. The days passed, and I was already on the eve of departure. I was very determined: I would go and not return. I was going to start a new adventure with Jesus, far from home. I began the summer course on January 4, 2007. It was an incredible experience. That month, I got to know Jesus better, learned so many new things, and each passing day, I was more convinced that the Vocational Center was my place. I made an effort every day to be a better friend of Jesus and to help the community grow. On February 2, I received the apostolic uniform. It was a joy after an intense summer course.

In the apostolic, I learned much more to truly love Jesus and had a great desire to follow Him. These years I spent in the Apostolic were the best of my life; I have many memories of that time: the consecrations to Mary in May, the help of my formators, the community…

The pre-candidacy was also marked by the help of my formators, the support of the community, the desire to be holy, and the preparation to become a novice. It was there, at the Vocational Center, where I laid the foundations for my vocation. God plants the seed of vocation in each heart, and we have the duty to make this seed grow, and I believe that it was during these years that my seed grew the most.

Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. That was Samuel’s response to the Lord when, at night, he heard the voice of God calling him in the Temple. After the beautiful years at the Vocational Center, it was time to take a new step, to row out to sea. And what I said to the Lord was: “Here I am,” just like little Samuel. Leaving the Apostolic and moving to the novitiate was a smooth step for me. In São Paulo, the contact with Jesus through daily adoration, the new duties and responsibilities, all caught my attention. These were also difficult years for us as an institution, years of many discoveries related to our founder. But if our eyes are fixed on Jesus, then we can always move forward. These two years in São Paulo, in the novitiate, were full of meaning, full of God.

I professed my religious vows on March 11, 2012. That year, Our Lady of Guadalupe was chosen as the patroness. I have always taken the theme of the patron very seriously. Even in the Apostolic, I had learned that it is the saint who chooses us, not just chance. I didn’t understand why Our Lady of Guadalupe had chosen me. I thought we already had a good relationship, but a few months later, when I was assigned to the Humanities in Monterrey, Mexico, I understood everything.

From 2012 to 2014, I studied Classical Humanities in Monterrey. I remember these two years in Monterrey with great affection: the new experiences, my formators and teachers, the brothers… Everything was new, even the language and culture. But one thing remained the same: the desire to do God’s will. Humanities was a period I remember fondly because it was a time of big decisions for me. At that time, I had the desire to be a monk, to dedicate my whole life to God in prayer and silence. With the help of my spiritual director and contact with a Carthusian monk from Ivorá, Rio Grande do Sul, I gradually realized that God did not want me outside the charism I had already embraced, but that I should bring to the community the talents He had given me.

After these two years of intense decision-making in Mexico, it was time to go to Rome. Starting philosophy, everything was new again: the community, which at that time was made up of many brothers from different parts of the world. I also carry many memories from Rome in my heart. The years studying philosophy were marked by experiences that also shaped my life: living with religious from many parts of the world, seeing the reality of the Church as a universal Mother, pilgrims in Rome, and especially living the Legionary mystique: concelebrations with many priests, the singing during Mass, etc. Philosophy was also a time of preparation for apostolic practices for me.

From 2017 to 2019, the practices were also a period of formation, and mine were quite significant. As a mission, I was entrusted with accompanying Father Martin Baranowski. We always visited many families and organized many ECyD activities. What I most remember from my practices is the zeal that many priests I worked with had for souls, that desire to do apostolate, to lead all people to a true knowledge and love of Jesus. The example of the priests working in Germany and Austria greatly inspired me and made me reflect on what it means to give oneself totally for the Mission, as I had heard many times before. I could write much more about this beautiful stage of my formation and include concrete examples of the priests too. But to avoid an endless story, I will leave only this brief overview, the most significant of what apostolic practices meant to me.

After the practices, in 2019, I returned to Rome to continue my studies. It was a stage, as the name already indicates, that gradually shaped me with Jesus. How joyful it was to be able to adore Jesus present in the Most Holy Sacrament every afternoon. The study of theology was also what occupied my time during these years in Rome. Years of closing doors to other possibilities and telling Jesus: Lord, You are the only center of my life. I want to follow You, follow Your steps, follow