Introducing Fr. Lucio Boccacci, LC

I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. When I was just six, my family immigrated to the United States. I am the oldest of three boys. I grew up in Miami, FL, lived in France one year, and finished high school in Tulsa, OK. 

I enjoyed playing soccer and ice hockey for my high school. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 2004. 

I got involved in university youth ministry. During college, I also discerned God’s calling to the priesthood. I visited a summer program for a congregation called the Legion of Christ in 2003. After finishing my last year of studies, I entered the Legion of Christ seminary in Cheshire on September 2004. From 2004 to 2007 I completed two years of novitiate and a year of liberal arts studies. Then I completed my philosophy degree in 2009. 

On October 2009, I went to Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX, as a youth director. I worked to establish a network of youth clubs, retreats and summer camps known as “DFW Conquest”. I also attended a two-week intensive course on youth mentoring at the University of Francisco Vitoria in Madrid. I finished a fourth year assisting the Legion of Christ youth ministry in Chicago as the local director of the RC Missionaries, a national program for high school graduates to dedicate a year to ministry within Regnum Christi and the Church. 

I went to Rome in 2013 to study theology for three years. I obtained my degree in Theology in 2016 from the Regina Apostolorum Pontifical University. During these studies, I placed a lot of emphasis on my Scripture studies. 

I was ordained a deacon on May 14, 2016. I was ordained a priest on December 10, 2016.  I am currently serving as the director of the ECYD boys and director of Camp River Ridge, a Catholic campsite in Indiana.  

The young Jesus mentioned in Luke’s "Finding of the Boy Jesus" narrative (Luke 2:41-52) really caught my attention. I felt called to research this theme, so I based my bachelor’s thesis on it. Since theology, I have been writing a series of short commentaries on this passage and have published them "The Father's Adolescent Series.". Though the passage is only eleven verses long, this passage spans most of Jesus’ youth and young adult life.

Each of the five currently published books tell one aspect of this remarkable passage. These are the five books currently available:

• Magnifying Glass – a layman’s analysis of the passage itself.
• Boy Jesus – the boy Jesus’ life prior to the Passover pilgrimage.
• Passover – on the boy Jesus’ Passover pilgrimage and feast.
• Searching for Jesus – on Mary and Joseph’s 3-day search for their son.
• Teacher of Israel – on the three days the boy Jesus spent in the Temple.

The next one in the series should come out at some point later in 2021. You can obtain a paperback or Kindle copy for yourself by looking up “Lucio Boccacci” on Amazon.com.

I saw a lot of promise for youth ministry when I arrived in Cincinnati. My first goal was to develop Camp River Ridge when I saw its potential to be the one youth camp of choice for Catholic families in the Tristate area. I made it self-sustaining financially, connected with the RC Missionary program to have year-round youth staff, installed a professional registration system, established relationships with the local Church by offering them retreats, hired a part-time assistant for development, completed the restrooms and septic systems, offered more retreats and camps for boys, worked to bring a parallel track for girls on camp, created more attractions on camp, and more…

Eventually, I saw a need to accompany boys better after they attended a retreat or summer camp. With the help of many parents and some volunteers, I opened more than ten middle school and high school ECYD “teams” throughout the Ohio Valley.

The current pandemic has made youth ministry difficult, though not impossible. I adapted the retreats and camps to make them possible and safe. We continue to meet in the ECYD teams, though for several months we were meeting via Zoom Meeting. And I directed two weeks of virtual camps for kids.

I am looking forward to the next few years in the Ohio Valley! So many families and volunteers have sewn so much over the last four years! The Lord knows the fruits that will come of it in the future! I am excited to see some of those fruits myself!

Thank you to so many people that have been a part of this. May God bless you and I ask for your prayers.

Fr. Luicio Boccacci, LC
Legionary of Christ Priest