Rafal Kandora

There is something about the way Fr. Rafal Kandora landed in Summerfield, Florida, that tells you everything you need to know about the kind of priest he is. His "yes" to the Lord carried him from his native Poland to the streets of Manhattan, and eventually to a quiet stretch of Marion County where cattle farms sit alongside new housing developments. It is the kind of journey that only makes sense through faith, and the people around him can see it. Those who know him describe a warm, dedicated, and approachable pastor, the kind of priest who makes you feel like you belong the moment you walk through the door. Fr. Rafal is a member of the Order of Saint Paul the First Hermit, a contemplative-active order founded in the thirteenth century and known around the world for its devotion to Our Lady of Czestochowa. He was formed in that tradition in Poland before answering a call to serve abroad, first in New York and then in the growing communities of Central Florida. Beyond his role as pastor, Fr. Rafal serves as the Fourth Definitor on the Provincial Council of the Pauline Fathers in the United States, contributing to the governance of Pauline communities from the American motherhouse in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, to the parishes they serve across the country. Fr. Rafal is the kind of pastor who pays attention to what is happening around him and responds with his whole heart. When young families began moving into the Summerfield area, drawn by new communities like Middleton on the outskirts of The Villages, he did not just welcome them at Mass and hope for the best. He went looking for the right person to help build something for them, and found Edith McDaniel, a retired director of religious education who had run programs of seven hundred or more students in Boston. McDaniel came out of retirement because she believed in what Fr. Rafal was trying to do. Together they launched faith formation classes, added a Liturgy of the Word for children, and began planning Vacation Bible School, all for a parish that had never needed any of it before. In 2023, six children received the Sacrament of First Holy Communion at St. Mark, a first in the parish's history. McDaniel put it simply: "It's a very open parish. We recognize all of us are getting older and we need these children and families to keep this church going." That openness starts with Fr. Rafal. The parishioners love seeing the young families in the pews, and he is the reason they are there. When the new Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Cemetery opened in nearby Oxford, just four miles from St. Mark, Fr. Rafal was among the priests who came out to see it for himself, sharing the excitement of his parishioners about having a sacred resting place so close to home. He is a long way from Poland, but Fr. Rafal Kandora is right where he is supposed to be.