Teaching parish illuminates life as a future priest

A year ago, I made the shift to a new seminary. Having completed my studies in philosophy at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., I began my studies in theology at St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. With any relocation, there’s inevitably a time of transition where one gets used to the new environment. This was true for me, as I knew few people at St. Paul Seminary and had never lived in the Twin Cities before. But after spending the past two years on the East Coast, I looked forward and have enjoyed being back home in the Midwest.

One change that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed about my new seminary is that I now have a teaching parish. This is a parish not too far from the seminary at which I will be for all four years of my theological studies. Each month I go to the parish for one weekend and one weekday evening. The parish serves as a source of hands-on learning and mentorship as I progress towards my eventual ordination to the priesthood. Each semester at the parish I focus on a different aspect of priestly ministry while under the mentorship of my teaching parish pastor.

Early in my time at my teaching parish, I received multiple comments from the parishioners that I was “learning from the best” when it came to my teaching parish pastor. Additionally, I began to feel a budding healthy love for the people of God there that I had not felt before. Combining this with the fact that my teaching parish was named after my namesake saint, St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Hudson, Wis., I knew that the Lord was watching out for me in this time of transition and had good, formative things in store for me at this parish.

While at my teaching parish, I’ve had the privilege of singing with one of the choirs for some Sunday Masses, go with my pastor on multiple communion calls, serve Sunday Masses and funeral Masses, distribute Holy Communion, meet many of the parishioners, attend their annual gala fundraiser, and do some homeless ministry as well. While these activities are not unique to my life as a seminarian, doing them with the idea that I will soon be doing them as an ordained priest of Jesus Christ allows them to take on a new perspective. That mentality of future ordained ministry allows my experiences at my teaching parish to be most fruitful for my future ministry as an effective instrument of the Lord in saving souls. I will undoubtedly pull from these experiences in my future ministry when I am faced with similar circumstances, which will allow me to be adequately prepared to face them as a priest.

All in all, I am very happy to have a teaching parish and be at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church during my four years of theological studies. I have enjoyed building long-term relationships with the parishioners there as I slowly get to know them. As I enter my second year of theology this fall, I’m looking forward to the many experiences the Lord has in store for me not only at St. Patrick’s but also at St. Paul Seminary.