Priests retire effective Aug. 1/Father Martin Diaz

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SALT LAKE CITY — After 21 years of service in the Diocese of Salt Lake City the Very Reverend Martin Diaz, rector of the Cathedral of the Madeleine, will retire.

Born in Phoenix, Ariz., Fr. Diaz is the third of the five children of John and Carmen Diaz. Growing up, he attended first Catholic schools, then public schools. After two years at Arizona State University, he joined the Dominican community by entering the novitiate in Oakland, Calif. in 1971.

On March 17, 1978 he was ordained as a Catholic priest for the Order of Preachers. In the following years he was assigned to Dominican parishes in Seattle, Wash.; Anchorage, Alaska; and Los Angeles and Riverside, Calif. He holds a Master of Divinity degree and Master of Arts degree in counseling psychology from Boston College.

Fr. Diaz arrived in Utah in 2004. His first assignment was as a chaplain at Saint Joseph Villa in Salt Lake City for almost a year and a half. After that he was assigned to Saint Therese of the Child Jesus Parish in Midvale, where he ministered for seven years. He was incardinated into the diocese in 2010 and was named rector of the cathedral in 2013.

The years as rector have been joyful and challenging, he said.

The cathedral offers a “robust concert season that required much time and energy,” he said, adding that he also enjoyed “the tremendous amount of evangelization that is done there.”

Among the challenges have been integrating the cathedral’s Hispanic and English communities, he said. “There were so many different approaches to this ministry.”

The cathedral’s almost-constant need for repairs also has consumed his time. For example, in the past two years a new boiler was installed and the floors and main doors were restored. Currently, the sound system and elevator both need to be replaced.

“All these things and more were a satisfaction and a challenge for me” as well as a blessing, he said.

“Every time that I talk to a visitor and they tell me how their breath gets taken away is something that I will forever treasure,” he said, recalling a time some years ago when a woman came in the cathedral and said to him, “‘This is my parish,’ and she was from Paris. Her breath was taken away; she recognized her parish in the cathedral.”

Another experience he will forever treasure is having participated in the Bishop’s Dinner, the annual appeal for the Cathedral of the Madeleine, which is attended by many members of the wider community in addition to the Catholic faithful.

It is a blessing in the diocese that so many of the parishes support the Bishop’s Dinner, which has “developed into a very significant fundraiser from a financial side” as well as being successful as a social event that also has an evangelical aspect, he said.

“Everyone looks forward to the Bishop’s Dinner and getting invited to attend by their pastor,” Fr. Diaz said. “The cathedral is not just for Catholics, it is for everyone. It is a beacon of light and hope in Utah. I have been very blessed to be part of this expression of God’s love that is much greater than I am.”

In retirement, he plans to live in Salt Lake City and be a cathedral parishioner, he said, adding that he is looking forward to being able to explore the downtown area on foot.

 He also will minister wherever he is needed in the diocese, he said. “My first gig will be in September at Our Lady of Lourdes” when the pastor goes on vacation. 

His retirement will also be an opportunity to delve deeper into one of his favorite hobbies: cooking.

“I love to bake apple pie and my famous enchiladas, but I am intrigued about really cooking,” he said. “I want to make my own tortillas and put together a pot of beans.” 

In addition, he looks forward to visiting his 12 family members in Arizona.

Fr. Diaz wants to thank everyone “for the marvelous and wonderful time” he has had ministering in Utah, “meeting a very diverse but holy people – people who are working with God in their lives, day-to-day people who are interacting, whether it is in social justice, in liturgy. … I have been blessed to know some very fantastic people that brought me closer to God. They have been really witnesses of God working in them. Time after time I have just been blessed by how fantastic all the people that I got to meet were.”

To honor Fr. Diaz and his service to the diocese, an endowment to provide financial support for the preservation of the Cathedral of the Madeleine has been established by cathedral parishioners through the Catholic Foundation of Utah. Donations of any amount may be made to this endowment online at dioslc.org/foundation, or by check to the Catholic Foundation of Utah, 27 C Street, SLC 84103. 

A retirement celebration is scheduled for Sunday, July 27 after the 3 p.m. Mass at the cathedral. The celebration will be at The Madeleine Choir School, 205 First Ave., Salt Lake City (one block north and west of the cathedral). All are invited.