Daniel Mascarenhas, SJ, was born in rural Goa, India, to a devout Catholic family. He attended Loyola High School, a local Jesuit school, from first to 10th grade. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, he moved to the United States for graduate school in mechanical engineering at the University of Minnesota. It was there he rediscovered the vibrancy of the Catholic faith through the Paulist priests at the Newman Center. After graduation, while working as a research engineer in Santa Clara, California, he was actively involved in young adult ministry at his parish. Daniel credits the mentorship of Jesuits, Verbum Dei Missionaries and priests from the Diocese of San Jose with helping to inspire his vocation. He first heard the call to religious life while praying at a local Carmelite monastery when he randomly had the question pop in his mind: What would I be happiest doing?
As a Jesuit novice in Los Angeles, Daniel served as a chaplain at a local hospital and as a tutor at Dolores Mission elementary school. He then spent a few months at L’Arche Tahoma Hope in Tacoma, Washington, living with people with intellectual disabilities, before returning to Los Angeles to teach math at Loyola High School. After taking vows, he studied philosophy at Saint Louis University where he enjoyed thinking about morality, religion and the problem of evil. Part of his formation included teaching math and religion at Jesuit High School Sacramento, where he also moderated the business investment and ping-pong clubs. In both clubs, he encouraged students to think about God’s greater glory. His theology studies brought him to the Boston College Clough School of Theology and Ministry, where he received a Master of Divinity and served at St. Columbkille Parish as a deacon and chaplain of the young adult ministry. After ordination, Daniel will serve as associate pastor at St. Aloysius Church in Spokane, Washington.
