Ray attended St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore and was ordained in 1952. At Baltimore he earned the degree Licentiate in Secred Theology and after ordination, was sent to Rome where he earned his J.C.D. he also received a Master of Arts in Religious Education at Loyola in Chicago. He is currently a Diocesan Consulor. In 1961 he was invested as a Very Reverend Monsignor and in 1996 was invested as Protonotary Apostolic.