A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday, Nov. 12 at 11:45 a.m. at St. Vincent Martyr Church in Madison, N.J., for Father Ronald T. Sordillo, a retired priest of the Paterson Diocese, N.J., who died on the morning of Nov. 6 at Morristown Medical Center. He was 80.
Father Sordillo served the diocese as a priest for more than 50 years.
A native of Boston, Mass., Father Sordillo earned a bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College in St. Mary, Ky., and a master’s degree in theology from St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, Md. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1974 by Bishop Lawrence B. Casey.
In the Paterson Diocese, Father Sordillo served St. Nicholas Parish in Passaic, N.J.; St. Virgil Parish in Morris Plains, N.J.; St. Peter the Apostle Parish in Parsippany, N.J.; St. Joseph Parish in West Milford, N.J., as pastor; and St. Vincent Martyr Parish in Madison. He also served as an educator at Morris Catholic High School in Denville, N.J., and the former Bailey Ellard High School in Madison.
After retiring in 2009, Father Sordillo moved to Nazareth Village, a residence for retired priests, in Chester, N.J.
In his retirement, Father Sordillo remained active, serving as chaplain at Merry Heart in the Succasunna neighborhood of Roxbury Township, N.J., and to the Religious Teachers Filippini (Villa Walsh) in Morristown, N.J. He also assisted at St. Luke Parish in the Long Valley neighborhood of Washington Township, N.J.; St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in the Flanders neighborhood of Flanders, N.J., and St. Brigid Parish in Peapack, N.J., in the Metuchen Diocese.
Father Sordillo was predeceased by his parents, Anthony and Phyllis (nee Mele) Sordillo, and his brother, Richard. He is survived by several cousins in the Boston area.
Visitation for Father Sordillo will be held on Thursday, Nov. 12, beginning at 10:45 a.m., at St. Vincent Martyr Church in Madison, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial there at 11:45 a.m. Priests are invited to concelebrate the funeral Mass and are asked to bring diocesan vestments. Interment will follow at St. Vincent Cemetery.
Condolences may be sent to the Clergy Personnel Office, 205 Madison Ave., Madison, N.J. 07940.
Please keep Father Sordillo; his predeceased parents, Anthony and Phyllis; his predeceased brother, Richard; his niece, Dorothy Hayes; his nephew, John Sordillo; all of his family and friends; and all the priests of the Paterson Diocese in your prayers, especially at the Eucharist
