Fr. Xavier Lavagetto O.P.

Fr. Xavier is a Dominican priest wearing the high fashion of the 13th century! His family roots are from Liguria, a region of Italy, whence he inherited a love for good wine, good food, great conversations, and cooking. This is his  7th year at Stanford after 14 years in San Francisco as pastor of St. Dominic’s. There he raised 13 million to repair a stunningly beautiful Gothic Church, develop a program to build up people, and even managed to cook an annual Medieval Meal. His formative roots are the De La Salle Christian Brothers. He was educated by them and became one of them for 25 years. At St. Mary’s College, he studied in the school of science, the department of theology, and the Integral Liberal Arts Program (a Great Books Program). Many years were spent in counseling and teaching chemistry, religion, and even a Great Books class to high school students in inner-city Los Angeles. He has served in a host of administrative roles, including being Religion Department Chair, working at the Christian Brothers Retreat House for Youth, and directing the Newman Catholic Center at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Infected by a desire for priestly service, the Vatican transferred his vows to the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), and he received his graduate degree from the Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology and collected even more philosophy and scripture classes. My passions are scripture, teaching, preaching, and counseling, and my pastimes are studying, cooking, and scuba diving.