Historical and biographical review of some of the main figures of the Province of Saint Nicholas of Tolentine of the Order of Augustinian Recollects from its foundation to the present day.
Ireneo Ojer was born in San Martín de Unx, Navarra, on 3 July 1913. He professed his vows in Monteagudo in 1929 and completed his theological studies in Ivybridge, Devon, England, where he received his subdiaconate and diaconate. His priestly ordination took place on 14 June 1936 in Pamplona.
After a year at the seminary in Lodosa, Navarra, he spent two years in Caracas and Puerto Cabello, Venezuela. Obedience then led him to various locations to establish Augustinian Recollect communities.
In 1939, the Province resolved to expand into Peru, sending Ojer and José Gómez as the first Recollects of the twentieth century in Peru, founding communities in Chalhuanca (Apurímac) and Cutervo.
Months later, Father Ojer embarked on a new mission, arriving in the United States in December 1949 and becoming the religious superior there. As the parish priest in Marfa, he served several parishes in the El Paso, Texas area, including Fort Davis and Alpine.
By mid-1941, he had moved to Mexico, where the Province sought to establish a presence. He began his ministry in Ayotla, Mexico State, and continued his mission in Mexico until his death.
His forty-five-year tenure in Mexico made Fray Ireneo a pillar of that Vicariate, known as the veteran par excellence. He faced significant challenges in his mission work in Zempoala, La Antigua, and Piedras Negras (Veracruz); after a year in Sinaloa, he returned to the capital of Veracruz, to the Chapel of La Pastora.
In 1954, he was entrusted with constructing the Seminary of Querétaro. Subsequently, he served as the parish priest of San Felipe del Progreso, in the State of México, until 1958. From then on, he resided in various houses in Mexico City, leaving a legacy as a builder and promoter of pastoral ministry.
In 1973, he was once again appointed superior of Veracruz, a city where he dedicated twenty-nine years of his ministry and where he passed away on 7 May 1986, a month before his sacerdotal anniversary.
Father Ojer was an entrepreneur who faced challenges with resilience, never losing his composure—qualities his superiors relied upon for tasks involving extraordinary risks. His successful interactions with bishops enabled him to conduct fruitful negotiations.
Fray Ireneo was admired and loved by the faithful, and he was always service-oriented with his confreres, especially encouraging the young ones just beginning their journey.
