Stefanko appointed pastor of 3 churches

PORTLAND — Monsignor Paul F. Stefanko has been appointed pastor of St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish in Scarborough, St. Bartholomew Parish in Cape Elizabeth, and St. John and Holy Cross Parish in South Portland, effective July 1.

Monsignor Stefanko is currently the pastor of St. Joseph Parish (St. Joseph Church, Bridgton; St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, Fryeburg) and St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish (St. Catherine of Sienna Church, Norway; Our Lady of Ransom Church, Mechanic Falls; St. Mary Church, Oxford).

Monsignor Stefanko continues to serve as judicial vicar and director of the Diocesan Tribunal for the Diocese of Portland, which is the court of the bishop that adjudicates ecclesiastical judicial cases, including marriage annulment cases.

A native of Norwalk, Connecticut, Monsignor Stefanko attended St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, Connecticut. He also studied philosophy at St. Mary’s Seminary & University in Baltimore, Maryland; theology at The Catholic University of America and Theological College in Washington, D.C.; and Canon Law at The Catholic University of America. He was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Edward C. O’Leary at St. Ladislaus Church in South Norwalk on May 15, 1976.

Monsignor Stefanko’s association with the Diocesan Tribunal began in 1977 when he served as a regional auditor. He was assigned full time to the Tribunal staff in 1983. In 1989, he was appointed adjutant judicial vicar and Tribunal director, and, in 1992, he was named judicial vicar.

Monsignor Stefanko has also concurrently served in parishes as associate pastor of St. Martin of Tours Church in Millinocket (1976-1979); pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Yarmouth and St. Jude Church in Freeport (2000-2005); rector of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland (2005-2009); administrator of St. Peter Parish in Portland (2007-2009); and parochial vicar of St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish in Scarborough, St. John and Holy Cross Parish in South Portland, and St. Bartholomew Parish in Cape Elizabeth (2009-2015).

Since 2015, he has served as pastor of St. Joseph Parish and St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish (churches comprising parishes listed above). Monsignor Stefanko is also the former director of the Christian Life Center in Frenchville (1979-1983). In 2000, he was named a prelate of honor, i.e. a monsignor.