14 Gulf Pine Catholic • December 19, 2025 Getting to Know the Servants in the Diocese of Biloxi who answered God’s Call to a Religious Vocation BY MONICAWALTON BILOXI -- What does a call to the priesthood look like today? It’s different for everyone, but two of our five current Seminarians share a less common pathway than most. Jacob Lott and Ricky Molsbee are both adult converts to the Catholic Faith. But other than that, and the fact that both are native Mississippians, their similarities pretty much end there. Jacob was raised in rural Covington County by a faith-filled Baptist family, and he attended school in Seminary, MS. He found his way to the Catholic Church through a love of history, curiosity about other denominations, and friendship with the one Catholic student in his high school. “I had walked the aisle and been saved in the Baptist Church through Baptism,” said Jacob. “But at 15 years, I started visiting more churches to learn more about what other faiths believed.” Since there is no Catholic Church in Seminary, Jacob’s friend took him to Mass in Hattiesburg. There was no turning back after that. “I was received into the Catholic Church at St. Fabian Parish in Hattiesburg during my first semester at USM,” he said. Ricky grew up in Long Beach and attended the Pentecostal Church with his family until the age of 17, when he became an atheist. Ricky remained an unbeliever until the age of 38. “I attended college at Southern Miss, on and off, for four years,” said Ricky. “I was very immature and did not get a degree,” he admits. He gave in to the pitfalls of a secular lifestyle, as often happens when young people move away from home. He left school and moved to Tuscaloosa to work as a Lowe’s cashier. “I lived with my sister there, but after my grandmother passed away, I returned to Long Beach to help Mom take care of my grandfather,” he said. Since he had an ‘absent Dad’, Ricky’s grandfather had taken over the role of father. “He had a career in the Air Force, and he showed me a huge example of sacrifice,” Ricky said. Ricky’s sister and mother were the first in the family to convert to Catholicism, but he remained an atheist for several more years. During that period of his life, Ricky suffered a failed marriage and a difficult divorce. “My faith journey really began in January of 2021,” said Ricky. “Then on April 16, 2022, I was baptized and confirmed at Holy Family Parish in Pass Christian. That was the best day of my life!” A study of History was Jacob’s initial plan in college. “I thought I would be a historian or history professor,” he said. “I focused on Native American history at USM. Actually, I’m still very interested in that subject and continue giving presentations in Covington County.” Curiosity was the doorway to Jacob’s conversion; prayer is what drew him in. “I always loved talking to older people,” he said. “I would go to the nursing home and hear their stories (their histories).” Those visits grew into ministering to the elderly by praying with them during the visits. “I remember when I went to see my great aunt who was suffering from Parkinson’s Disease,” recalls Jacob. “I prayed with her before she died and thought how wonderful it would have been to be able to give her the Sacraments before she met God.” That is when Jacob began discerning the priesthood. “I had discussed it several times with Father Mark Ropel at St. Thomas Parish in Hattiesburg,” he said. During his freshman year at USM, Jacob met with the Diocesan Vocational Director who instructed him to get a Spiritual Director. “Father Mark became mine,” Jacob said. “He is the one who encouraged me to apply to seminary. Since I was such a recent convert, the Vocational Director advised me to wait at least one year before applying. In 2021, Jacob applied and was accepted to Notre Dame Seminary. His parents and only sibling, a younger sister, remain very involved in the Baptist Church. His father, who serves full-time in the Army National Guard, was ordained a Baptist Deacon last year. “My family was very hesitant about my decision at first,” said Jacob. “They had never been exposed to Catholicism. After I committed, they started coming around.” His mother said she wasn’t surprised Jacob would be a priest, but it’s all new to them. “My family isn’t used to all of this yet,” he added. “But they are very supportive. I’m glad to be able to introduce them to Catholicism, and it has been very fruitful. Ricky’s only sibling, an older sister, became the first Catholic in the family. “She is a classically trained opera singer and began cantoring at Our Lady of the Gulf Parish in Bay St. Louis,” he said. “Father Dennis Carver, who recently passed away, was the pastor at the time. My sister started noticing the truth and richness of the Catholic faith. We were taught untruths. She became so full of wonder and excitement in the Church and would tell us all about it.” Their mother was apprehensive at first, but she became Catholic two years later. Ricky remained unwavering. “It all fell on deaf ears,” he admits. “I remained hard-headed in the world. After my divorce in 2018, I moved back in with Mom, my sister, and my nephew.” The turning point came when Ricky’s mother had a quadruple bypass. “I finally went to Mass with Mom,” he said. “Then, on my own, I kept going back. Gradually, it all took hold of my life.” Ricky said the hardest part was having to wait to receive the Sacraments. “I developed a real hunger and thirst for the Eucharist, and I could hardly wait.” In January 2021, Ricky quit his job at Lowe’s, became an Uber driver, and was received into the Church the next year. “Over the years, I had become a hardline, corporate person -- separate from my emotions. But the Lord was working on me bit by bit, like ET and the M&Ms. I went from a corporate ‘Yes Man’ to a ‘Yes Man for Christ,’ he said. After being received into the Church, Ricky began reading the Gospels and the lives of the Saints. As an Uber driver, he often came into contact with the homeless community. “My heart began to move for the homeless on the Coast,” he explains. “I started taking food and drink to them. I saw Christ in them, and my heart grew bigger. I wanted to do more.” Bishop Kihneman invited Ricky to serve on the Eucharistic Council, which included traveling around the Diocese to 40 parishes, talking about Adoration, Mass, and the Rosary. In 2023, only one year after becoming Catholic, Ricky was leaving a meeting at the Chancery, and he walked over to the Bishop’s office. “It was like a magnet was drawing me,” he said. “I told him that the Lord was calling me to be a priest.” The Bishop was concerned because Ricky hadn’t been Catholic very long, but invited him to start the process. “I asked the Lord to shut the door if this wasn’t right for me,” Ricky said. “It was the opposite.” Jacob is currently in the Third Configuration of Formation. He finds being away from family the most difficult part. “I have elderly grandparents and our community is very tight-knit,” he said. “Everyone has to face that at one point or another, but being obedient to it is hard. While I was in college, no one told me what to do. In seminary, every part of my life is being observed, and all the schedules for every part of my day are set for me. I am starting to see the great fruit in that, now.” SEE VOCATION INSPIRATIONS, PAGE 18 Jacob Lott ~ Hearing and Answering the Call Ricky Molsbee
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