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Pope Leo has greeted Spain’s youngest priest and his parents at the Vatican. Speaking to Fr Miguel Tovar Fernández, he advised the new cleric to “never lose your joy” and also congratulated his parents on giving their son to the Church.
Fr Miguel was ordained priest on 5 July for the Diocese of Cartagena, in south-east Spain and in the Region of Murcia. At just 24 years of age, he had to receive a special dispensation from the Pope in order to be ordained as Canon 1031 stipulates that men in the Latin Rite must be at least 25 years old before receiving ordination. He is one of five young men who were ordained during July for the diocese.
Fr Miguel is from Torrealta, a district of the town of Molina de Segura, which he describes as the “cradle of priestly vocations.”
Baptised along with his twin brother by Fr. Jesús Arias, the nephew of Blessed Fortunato Arias, a Spanish Civil War martyr, he was raised in a devoutly Catholic family. Reflecting on his vocation in an article published on his diocese’s website, he described the priestly vocation as a process that begins before birth but said he first clearly perceived it when he was 13 years old.
He recalls his formative years as normal, enjoying high school with a “tremendous passion for soccer.” However, he put off his vocation by trying to “find happiness in other things.” Ultimately, he could not, as “when the Lord calls, He truly calls and persists until He succeeds.”
His seminary formation included pastoral responsibilities at the local Minor Seminary, as well as in various parishes within the diocese. Prior to his ordination, he said, “Being able to join the Lord and the Church forever at the age of 24 is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and thanks to it, I am the happiest person in the world.”
Spain has seen a notable increase in entries to seminary over the last year. In 2024, 177 candidates for the priesthood entered seminary; in 2025, this figure rose to 239, marking a 35 per cent increase. The total number of men in formation in diocesan and Redemptoris Mater seminaries (Neocatechumenal Way) now stands at 1,036.
