By Kelly Nicholaides
Running is mostly a solitary exercise for Kearny Catholic priest Manuel Duenas. He begins at sunrise, heads south on Passaic Avenue, connects to Belgrove and Midland Avenues, turns left on Schuyler, and treks through North Arlington and Lyndhurst all the way to Route 3, turning left to take the scenic Riverside Avenue route back to the seminary.
The Vice Rector of Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Kearny logs about 40 miles of weekly runs for months to prepare for marathons. The alone time pays off. Pacing through 26.2 miles in five boroughs, with 55,226 runners in the 2025 New York City Marathon, Father Manuel finished at 2 hours, 58 minutes, and 53 seconds. The average finish time is about 4 hours and 30 minutes – two hours above average. He also participated in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Boston marathons.
“When I’m training, I think about things to do, emails, reports, phone calls to make, so 75% the time I’m concentrating on the post-run, 25% on running. When I’m running with others [during a race], my full concentration is on the actual running…when to slow down, speed up, the course,” Father Manuel says. “I try to find someone with a similar pace and keep up. These are similarities in how to grow as a Christian. We can’t do it all ourselves. It’s better to interact with others who can support you.”
Taking a break from grading seminarians’ papers, the 48-year-old man of the cloth revealed why he entered the priesthood and how running became a natural progression from adolescence through adulthood, aligning with his journey in faith.
“Faith becomes real, transpires in the way you live and relate to others,” Father Manuel reflects. “We want to do good, and God gives us grace. We put in the work. On running, though, it is different. You have to put in the work. No pain, no gain. At the end of the day, the road puts each one in his place. No sacrifice, no reward. God works differently.”
Growing up in Burgos, Spain, Father Manuel is the second of six siblings who grew up practicing his faith in the Neocatechumenal Way, focused on finding God’s purpose for one’s life. He attended Catholic schools and embraced running.
“I found it relaxing, a way to keep in shape, stay active, and be health conscious,” he notes.
Losing his father in a traffic accident was a turning point in evaluating his life purpose. Although he dated, he never fell in love. He contemplated his path. Marriage, a house, and children were eclipsed by being drawn to faith and missionary work.
“The only place of comfort was in the church, in my community, speaking with other people. I was 18, and mom was widowed at 43. The church consoled me, created a gratefulness and awareness in tragedy’s face,” he recalls.
Father Manuel dropped his pursuit of a degree in civil engineering during his last academic year. “It was a process, not a moment,” he says of his decision to enter Kearny seminary in 1998.
Ordained in 2007 for the Archdiocese of Newark, Father Manuel served six years as Parochial Vicar at St. John the Evangelist in Bergenfield.
He raised 25-cents a mile from his runs for a $5,000 goal to bring 50 young adults to World Youth Day in Brazil in 2013.
Archbishop Myers appointed him to the faculty of the Kearny seminary. Father Manuel earned an M.Div. and an M.A. with a concentration on Church History at ICSST, and a J.C.L. at the Pontifical University of Salamanca, Spain. He serves as an Adjunct Professor of Pastoral Theology in the Seton Hall School of Theology.
Running is a journey, faith is the destination for Father Manuel.