I want to go to the seminary, but don't want to be a priest

[CHCatholic]

I’ve always danced with the idea of being a priest…I can see myself as a bishop or a Cardinal…mainly due to my hatred of Liberalism in Canada…but I’ve never felt a true calling to the priesthood. I’ve always felt a strong vocation towards the married life…but I still want to go to the seminary next year. I think the solitude and the schedule and the strictly Catholic environment would do me a lot of good…but would this be wrong? Don’t dioceses only want candidates who are serioulsy considering the priesthood?

 

[puzzleannie]

in some dioceses since seminary enrollments are down, they accept lay persons who are studying theology or philosophy, or they send seminarians to Catholic universities for pre-theologate. Obviously living arrangements would be different for seminarians and lay persons. In fact, at the ones I know that do this the lay people commute and do not live on campus. sounds like you are ready for spiritual direction to help you discern your choices. Beginning with a vague hatred for various elements within the church is not a good sign for a religous vocation, nor is it a good sign of spiritual health.

 

[CHCatholic]

I dont hate anything of my religion I hate my country, well not hate, bit too strong of a word, I’m severly dissapointed in it, which is kind of why I would like to be a high-ranking clergy, so I can have a voice that will be heard, to try and help this country.

 

[m134e5]

I’ve always danced with the idea of being a priest…I can see myself as a bishop or a Cardinal…mainly due to my hatred of Liberalism in Canada…but I’ve never felt a true calling to the priesthood.

Hatred of Liberalism is no reason to be ordained. You will not last a year in the seminary if that is your only reason for wanting to be ordained. Also, I suspect the people who really want to become bishops are less likely to be chosen. A bishop consecrates the Eucharist no more or less effectively than a priest- he IS a priest- he is also a bishop, and can therefore ordain other priests and has authority over a diocese.

I’ve always felt a strong vocation towards the married life…but I still want to go to the seminary next year. I think the solitude and the schedule and the strictly Catholic environment would do me a lot of good…but would this be wrong? Don’t dioceses only want candidates who are serioulsy considering the priesthood?

I thought I wanted to go to the seminary for that reason (the solitude, and schedule, and strictly Catholic environment), but it wasn’t meant to be. The seminary is a formation house for men who are considering the priesthood. Part of their formation is that everyone around them has that in common. A spiritual director could probably help you at this point in your life.

 

[stbruno]

Have you ever considered the diaconate? or lay ministry formation. There are many avenues that you can pursue to grow closer to serving the Lord. Consider getting yourself a spiritual director. You can contact your local dioceses for a list of spiritual directors. Not all priests are spiritual directors and not all spiritual directors are priests…however, they will help you grow closer in your walk with Christ.

God bless you! With all things…Pray!

 

[DiscerningDave]

You know you can go to a seminary and get a degree in theology and not have to be considering the priesthood. A lot of seminaries have lay people getting degrees along side of seminarians.

 

[CatholicMC]

I can see myself as a bishop or a Cardinal…mainly due to my hatred of Liberalism in Canada

lol, generally if one wants to be a bishop or Cardinal it won’t happen…from what I’ve been told anyways.

I complement your zeal though. As has been mentioned however, hatred of liberalism is a questionable reason to enter seminary imo.

I encourage you to use your talents in ways that reach the most people most effectively. Its good to have someone with your values in Canada.

 

[stogs]

Looking at the bishops in the US, your odds of being a bishop or cardinal would greatly increase if you embraced a liberal perspective on issues…

 

[chicago]

As the joke goes, there are plenty of men in seminary who think that they were born monsignori and trying to become bishops more than priests.

Alas, if you’re not a good priest, you probably won’t be a good bishop, either.

As far as the solicitude and schedule, it ain’t necessarily so. Seminary can be a very vigorous, active life, and fraternizing with a bunch of other men isn’t always the most pleasant thing, either.

Perhaps an Ignatian or Benedictine retreat is what you really need.

 

[ASimpleSinner]

I can see myself as a bishop or a Cardinal…mainly due to my hatred of Liberalism in Canada…but I’ve never felt a true calling to the priesthood.

We all experience a prideful fantasy from time to time “If only I were in charge!”, It is natural and common. I know I have daydreamed about it before myself - would that I were pope for a day! Thankfully, the Holy Spirit knows much better!

I’ve always felt a strong vocation towards the married life…but I still want to go to the seminary next year.

Well there are two questions to be asked here:

(1) are you considering presenting yourself as a candidate for priestly formation to simply to avail yourself of the environment of a priestly formation program?

(2) (Or) Are you considering attending seminary to gain a seminary education?

If it is the former, I would discourage that. If you are looking just to attend a seminary for your love of theology and learning outside of a priestly training program, by all means, look into it!

I think the solitude and the schedule and the strictly Catholic environment would do me a lot of good…but would this be wrong?

It could be very wrong.

I spent a year in seminary when I was discearning - something I don’t regret and was a good learning experience!

It certainly disabused me of the notion that a seminary or monsatic community is a place of spiritual refuge and peaceful harmony 24/7!

At times the food was awful,(actually, it was ALWAYS awful), keeping the constant company of the same men in prayer, classrooms, the refectory, in doing chores. recreation, parish visits… It could get grueling.

We were all very different men with different tastes, backgrounds, ages, nationalities. Some converts, some reverts, some cradle Catholic, some very ethnic, some born abroad, some who had never been out of their own time zone in the US. At different times (especially during Lent when the food was the worst and the chapel time was the longest!) charity could get VERY strained.

I formed some great frienship during these years and stay in touch with many that have and many that have not become priests. And MANY men (far more than were ever ordained) have benifited from years of discernment and study in seminaries…

Elder monks will tell you that even in monasteries of great holiness where silence is observed and much time is spent in prayer there are challenges of charity as bad or worse then in the secular world.

So my answer to you is, don’t see a priestly formation program as a spiritual sabatical. Don’t see seminary studies as

Don’t dioceses only want candidates who are serioulsy considering the priesthood?

They only want candidates discerning a priestly vocation studying for the priesthood. BUT…

If your intent was simply to study theology, you would not go through a diocese, but rather apply directly to a seminary as a lay student looking to study theology.I know many lay men and women with no aspirations of orrdination or religous life who attend the Josephenum here in OH. Some are not even Catholic. But they do so out of a love for learning theology.

Look into it! Maybe God is calling you to scholarship. You don’t have to be a priest or in formation to learn and teach and seve Christ. Karl Keating (who did not attend seminary) comes to mind as an excellent example of the joys and benifits of learning and writing about theology.

 

[ahumbleservant]

Hi puzzleannie,

Would you please expound upon your statement:

Beginning with a vague hatred for various elements within the church is not a good sign for a religous vocation, nor is it a good sign of spiritual health.

I know that hatred for anything other than sin is never a good motivator to do anything, especially in the spiritual life. In fact, one’s focus should always be on God, His Will, and our love of Him.

However, do you think it is unwise or improper to take into account the “liberal” abuses plaguing our Church and use that to, as Christ put it to St. Francis, “fix [His] Church.”

I know that I am disturbed by the abuses in the Church. Further, I know there is a fine line between having a zeal for orthodoxy and having so much pride as to think I could do it better if I was in his shoes.

What are your thoughts?

 

[Spirithound]

I’ve always danced with the idea of being a priest…I can see myself as a bishop or a Cardinal…mainly due to my hatred of Liberalism in Canada…but I’ve never felt a true calling to the priesthood.

IMHO, as a priest you would have much more influence. Try not to look at having national influence; you don’t become Prime Minister overnight. (And charity begins at home). As a priest, you could give excellent conservative, Catholic homilies every week, every day and 2 or 3 times on Sunday/Saturday if you have the energy and zeal .
I don’t really see the standard activities of the bishop as laying the theological smackdown on his diocese, but he could do that every now and then…

 

[ASimpleSinner]

IMHO, as a priest you would have much more influence. Try not to look at having national influence; you don’t become Prime Minister overnight. (And charity begins at home). As a priest, you could give excellent conservative, Catholic homilies every week, every day and 2 or 3 times on Sunday/Saturday if you have the energy and zeal .
I don’t really see the standard activities of the bishop as laying the theological smackdown on his diocese, but he could do that every now and then…

Very funny you should mention that!

I was reading not long ago, an author who was comparing and contrasting the ecclesiology of the episcopal-governed communities (Anglicans, some Lutherans, Methodists, COGIC, etc.) versus the “congregationally governed”.

It was the author’s conclusion that Episcopalians, for example, might appear on paper to be a “top down organization” with the authority of bishops in place to rule, but in fact congregations individually held much more sway. Meaning the bishops were NOT that strong…

Congregationally goverened communions, on the other hand, gave much lip service to the autonomy of each congregation, but the reality of being beholden to national conferences (the SBC for example) was very much evident. Meaning the congregations were NOT that autonomous…

It occured to me that the same is true, to a degree, in the reality of Catholic culture. Some parishes act as oases of orthodoxy in some diocese where very problematic leadership and teaching runs rampant. Some diocese on the other hand, have generally very orthodox shephards loyal to Rome who take great care in teaching and implimenting the faith in an orthodox fashion… well it does not turn things around overnight.

I used to daydream that if I were made bishop of a certain diocese or ten, I would really get in the mix, and lay the smack down. But we have to remember, the bishops coming to the hardest-hit diocese all too frequently inherit a vocations drought.

The idea that they could “fire” 25% or more of their clergy or give them “ultimatums” would likely mean still more difficulties in providing the sacraments to the faithful. I am not saying we should tolerate anyone teaching anything, so long as they are their Sunday mornings to put a stole on… but

Well we might like to think Bishop Smith could come in, whip things into shape, fire the old guys and invite in orthodox orders and revamp the seminary recruitment process, even the “better orders” don’t have dozens of men to spare, and the training of a seminarian takes at least 4 years… (provided he is already a college grad, not counting a year or two as a deacon.)

In the Catholic world, we definately have a “top down” hierachy with the Pope at the top. But make no mistake about it, orthodoxy is grass-roots - it begins with individuals, who form families that foster priestly and religous vocations and also become active in lay groups that support the good priests, religous, and bishops.

Are we doing are part? Praying our rosaries? sharing our faith? involved in lay movements?

Orthodoxy begins at home.

 

[johnnydigit]

We all experience a prideful fantasy from time to time “If only I were in charge!”, It is natural and common. I know I have daydreamed about it before myself - would that I were pope for a day! Thankfully, the Holy Spirit knows much better!

Well there are two questions to be asked here:

(1) are you considering presenting yourself as a candidate for priestly formation to simply to avail yourself of the environment of a priestly formation program?

(2) (Or) Are you considering attending seminary to gain a seminary education?

If it is the former, I would discourage that. If you are looking just to attend a seminary for your love of theology and learning outside of a priestly training program, by all means, look into it!

It could be very wrong.

I spent a year in seminary when I was discearning - something I don’t regret and was a good learning experience!

It certainly disabused me of the notion that a seminary or monsatic community is a place of spiritual refuge and peaceful harmony 24/7!

At times the food was awful,(actually, it was ALWAYS awful), keeping the constant company of the same men in prayer, classrooms, the refectory, in doing chores. recreation, parish visits… It could get grueling.

We were all very different men with different tastes, backgrounds, ages, nationalities. Some converts, some reverts, some cradle Catholic, some very ethnic, some born abroad, some who had never been out of their own time zone in the US. At different times (especially during Lent when the food was the worst and the chapel time was the longest!) charity could get VERY strained.

I formed some great frienship during these years and stay in touch with many that have and many that have not become priests. And MANY men (far more than were ever ordained) have benifited from years of discernment and study in seminaries…

Elder monks will tell you that even in monasteries of great holiness where silence is observed and much time is spent in prayer there are challenges of charity as bad or worse then in the secular world.

So my answer to you is, don’t see a priestly formation program as a spiritual sabatical. Don’t see seminary studies as

They only want candidates discerning a priestly vocation studying for the priesthood. BUT…

If your intent was simply to study theology, you would not go through a diocese, but rather apply directly to a seminary as a lay student looking to study theology.I know many lay men and women with no aspirations of orrdination or religous life who attend the Josephenum here in OH. Some are not even Catholic. But they do so out of a love for learning theology.

Look into it! Maybe God is calling you to scholarship. You don’t have to be a priest or in formation to learn and teach and seve Christ. Karl Keating (who did not attend seminary) comes to mind as an excellent example of the joys and benifits of learning and writing about theology.

listen to him. get a spiritual director. talk to different vocation directors as well.

 

[Titus]

The phrase ‘There is no shortage of vocations to the papacy’’ often springs to mind with some seminarians. Not that that applies to the OP- I think he should look at lay enrollment…

 

[Atlanta_Jen]

You know you can go to a seminary and get a degree in theology and not have to be considering the priesthood. A lot of seminaries have lay people getting degrees along side of seminarians.

My brother did this. He earned a Master’s degree in Theology at a seminary.

 

[Convert_in_99]

If seminaries only took canidates who were very serious about being priests, they’d sure loose a lot of future priests!

Many young men looking into the seminary (and young women for convents) are really not very sure. Granted there are those who are so sold on the idea the pope couldn’t change their minds. But, many young men go with a “maybe” in mind. It is often those “maybes” that turn into the best priests in town.

Give it a try. Remember there is no commitmend required. Just go, try, decide, then either continue as a seminarian or finish as a lay theology student.