Friar Franck Lino-Sokpolie, OFM Conv. to be ordained to the priesthood

The Conventual Franciscan deacon Franck Lino-Sokpolie will be ordained to the priesthood in Georgia on Saturday, July 19, the culmination of a 12-year journey that began while he was still a student in college.

The ordination Mass will be celebrated by a fellow Conventual, Archbishop Gregory Hartmayer, at Holy Cross Church in Atlanta, just 90 minutes from where he formerly served at St. Anne-Pacelli School in Columbus.

For the past year, Sokpolie worked to complete his studies at the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, where he graduated with a Master of Divinity degree in May.

Born in Lomé, Togo, Sokpolie moved to Europe as a young child and came to the United States in 2006, settling with his family in Richmond, Virginia. While studying for a degree in French and Francophone Studies at the Catholic University of America in Washington, Sokpolie felt a call to the priesthood and joined the Conventual Franciscans, entering the order at the age of 18.

He has noted that he was inspired by St. Francis of Assisi had the support of family members, coming from a line of priests and religious in Africa, including two uncles and an aunt.

“When I told my grandmother that I wanted to be a priest and was going to go on to this adventure to figure out if that’s where God is calling me, she said to me, ‘Lino, put out into the deep waters,’” Sokpolie said to the National Black Catholic Seminarians Association in April during a virtual event for the National Day of Prayer for Black Vocations.

“Even to this day, those words serve as a reminder that it is in the deep, sometimes stormy waters of faith that we encounter God’s grace.”

Sokpolie professed first vows in 2016 and while still a student at CUA, served as youth and young adult minister at the Shrine of St. Anthony in Ellicott City, Maryland. He completed undergraduate coursework at CUA in 2020 and, following an apostolic year in Georgia, professed final vows in 2021.

During his formation, Sokpolie has additionally served in the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office for Justice and Peace, the Legion of Mary in the Archdiocese of Washington, and the Office of Ecology for the French Embassy in Washington, among other ministries.

Ahead of his graduation from the Oblate School, Sokpolie was ordained to a transitional deacon by Auxiliary Bishop Gary Janak in April 2024 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower in San Antonio, the penultimate step in his journey to the priesthood.

“I never thought my life was going to lead me to where it has. As I continue on this vocation journey, I think one of the most impactful things is how much closer it has led me to God and the people of God,” he said in an interview following his diaconate ordination.

“It has been a great journey and I look forward to continuing my service as a Franciscan friar.”

Saturday’s priesthood ordination Mass in Atlanta will begin at 11am ET and will be livestreamed on YouTube. Sokpolie will celebrate his first Mass of thanksgiving the following day at Holy Cross at 1pm.

Nate Tinner-Williams is co-founder and editor of Black Catholic Messenger.

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