 |
John Marquez has been on
the St. James staff since May of 2010. He served as Cathedral sacristan
for twelve years before becoming Director of RCIA and Adult Confirmation
in July of 2022. Born and raised in San Francisco, baptized
Catholic as an infant, he left the Church after graduating from St.
Ignatius College Preparatory and considered himself agnostic for several
years. He studied at San Francisco State University, dabbling in music,
psychology, and marine biology, before getting a bachelor's degree in
acting. During that time he developed an interest in eastern religions,
especially Zen Buddhism. A book on Zen by Trappist author Thomas Merton
piqued his interest, and Merton’s other writings on contemplative
prayer, mysticism, and monastic life played a big part in bringing John
back to the Catholic Church. He then spent eight years (1995-2003) as a
Trappist monk in northern California, where he served as community
librarian and taught introductory classes in Scripture to novices. In
2005 he moved to the northwest to enroll at Seattle University's School
of Theology and Ministry, and received a Master of Arts in Transforming
Spirituality from there in 2008. Aside from being inspired by
the mystical tradition of the Church – particularly The Cloud of
Unknowing – and the Sayings of the Desert Fathers, John is endlessly
fascinated with astronomy, playing the guitar, and cats.
|