Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology sits in the rolling hills of southern Indiana, and most mornings a group of young men from the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend gather with their classmates to chant morning prayer before they head off to class. For Michael Hickey, a seminarian from S t. John the Baptist Parish in Fort Wayne, the rhythm has become central to his formation. “A typical day at Saint Meinrad, for me, begins with two things: coffee and prayer,” he said. “Put them together and you get ‘coffice’ — praying the divine office with a cup of coffee.” Photos provided by Saint Meinrad Archabbey and Seminary Mason Bailey, a seminarian for the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, prays during Mass at Saint Meinrad. After morning prayer comes class, then Mass, then lunch, afternoon classes and free time before vespers at 5 p.m. This structure, Hickey told Today’s Catholic, “gives rise to a consistent prayer schedule, which helps orient my day for work and prayer. This is the ancient Benedictine tradition of ora et labora (‘pray and work’).” Hickey said seminary life has been different than he expected. “What has surprised me the most about seminary life is how normal it is,” he said. “I had this thinking when I was a kid about how perfect and holy seminarians were, thinking that they all walked around in silence all day mumbling their prayers to oneself. In reality, we are human just like you. We have our hobbies, we like to hang out, we like to spend time with one another.” Hickey, who recently completed his third-year configuration stage, is one of five men from the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend currently studying at Saint Meinrad. His classmates from the diocese include Stanley Amuchaka and Mason Bailey, who each recently finished the first-year configuration stage, as well as Michael Florin and D’Angelo Marazita, who completed their first-year discipleship stage. Three other diocesan seminarians are studying at Bishop Simon Bruté Seminary in Indianapolis — Thomas Bundy, Johnpaul Adizuo and Joseph Hill. Seminarian Michael Hickey, right, processes out of Mass at Archabbey Church at Saint Meinrad. Saint Meinrad became the diocese’s primary seminary partner in recent years, and Father Jonathan Norton, the diocese’s director of seminarians and the pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Warsaw, said the fit has been a good one. “I have been impressed with the formation team at Saint Meinrad,” Father Norton said. “They know our men very well and work to help them develop their talents and improve upon their opportunities for growth.” Bailey, from Most Precious Blood Parish in Fort Wayne, said formation at Saint Meinrad goes well beyond the classroom. “One of the goals of priestly formation is to become a bridge, not an obstacle, between God and man,” he said. “This necessarily involves the breaking down of walls around the heart so that the Holy Spirit can work in and through the priest.” Bailey’s path to seminary began during a confession in his sophomore year of college, when he received Psalm 51 as his penance. “Simply put, the psalmist’s words became my words to God in a profound way,” he said. Through the guidance of priests, professors and friends, he applied to seminary two years later. Many of his college friends are now married with children, well into their careers. While seminary life can be challenging at times, he said, “I know that I am where God wants me to be.” Seminarian Michael Florin celebrates after graduating with his master’s degree in Catholic philosophical studies at Saint Meinrad on Saturday, May 9. Hickey traces his own calling to watching the priest at the altar during the diocesan all-school Masses as a boy. In high school, he joined his parish’s Melchizedek Project, a group for young men discerning the priesthood. “Discernment really revolved around surrounding myself with priests who were great role models, altar serving and then participating in the sacraments,” he said. Father Norton said the diocese looks for those same qualities in a prospective seminarian, summing it up with a saying: “If you will be a good father, then you will be a good Father.” He added that the young man should serve his parish and maintain a regular prayer life, and he should understand “that this is not based on how talented or gifted he may be but rather a genuine calling from God.” The urgency of that call is on full display this spring. On June 6, five men will be ordained to the priesthood at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne: Deacon Patrick Ernst, Deacon Greenan Sullivan, Deacon Noah Isch, Deacon Samuel Martinez, and Deacon Johnathon Hickey — Michael’s twin brother. Their formation — and that of the eight others currently in seminary — is not without cost. Seminary formation spans six or more years, and the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend meets much of that expense through the annual Pentecost Collection, taken up in parishes each spring. Father Norton is direct about what that support means. “These men make a sacrifice by entering seminary,” he said. “We should make a sacrifice to cover the cost of their formation.” Bailey put it another way, saying that he would want those considering gifts to the Pentecost Collection “to know the stories of those who are discerning the priesthood in our diocese right now,” he said. “I thought I was going to teach economics at a Catholic high school somewhere. Michael Hickey thought he was going to have a career in law enforcement, protecting and serving his community. D’Angelo Marazita, after studying engineering at the University of Michigan, thought he was going to be an astronaut, embarking on a bold adventure and solving puzzles that nobody else could. Placing our lives in God’s hands, He transformed our thoughts and desires. Now, we are going to teach the Faith at our parishes, in our schools, OCIA or Sunday school programs. Now, we are going to serve our parishioners through administering the sacraments, and we are going to protect them from spiritual harm. Now, we are going to engage in one of the greatest adventures possible, giving our entire lives to Christ and the Church in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend. Who wouldn’t want to support that?” Support Our Seminarians To donate to the annual Pentecost Collection, which helps support the education of our diocesan seminarians, visit diocesefwsb.org/give.   The post Formed for the Faith: Seminarians Find a Home at Saint Meinrad appeared first on Today's Catholic. ...read more read less