Seminary of Archdiocese of Boston doubles enrollment

[didymus]

catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=14650

Seminary of Archdiocese of Boston doubles enrollment

Boston, Dec 18, 2008 / 06:04 am (CNA).- Eighty-seven seminarians are now enrolled at the Archdiocese of Boston’s St. John’s Seminary, more than doubling the number of seminarians who were studying there just two years ago.
Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley resisted calls to close the troubled archdiocese’s seminary, making its preservation a priority of his tenure, Michael Paulson writes in the Boston Globe. The cardinal has encouraged bishops from New England and elsewhere to send their seminarians to Boston to prepare for the priesthood.

“When I arrived, the enrollment was way down, and there was a lot of pressure on me from some of the pastors to close the seminary,” Cardinal O’Malley said to the Boston Globe. “I told the priests, we have to give it one good try to see whether we can save the seminary, because once we close it, we’ll never get it back, and for New England, with the large Catholic population that we have here, the presence of our own seminary is very important.”

Though many of the seminarians will return to serve their home dioceses, church officials said that the increased enrollment will encourage prospective priests.

Thought I’d pass along some good news for a change

 

[Galnextdoor]

That’s great news. I think that the youth who discovered the true meaning of the Faith through JPII are bearing fruit. Although the increase in seminarians in Boston is due to young men from other dioceses, I have noticed a gradual increase in the number of seminarians in many dioceses. Twenty years ago our dioceses had three seminarians, now it has eighteen. Not all will become priests, but even if five have an actual vocation, that’s a blessing.

I have heard of a family of priests in our dioceses. The oldest priest in the family is eighty-three. There is a priest who is his nephew who is in his fifties. In addition to him, this elderly priest has three great-nephews who are studying in Rome to be priests. Isn’t that amazing?

 

[m134e5]

That’s great news. I think that the youth who discovered the true meaning of the Faith through JPII are bearing fruit.

Although I think this is a significant factor, I still want to be careful about crediting JPII with whatever good happens in the Church today. Although I greatly appreciate him, I am not so captivated by him that I think any good done by those around him was really just because of him. I admire him for what he was- a great man, a great head of state, and a great pope- nothing more, nothing less. I admire his successor- Pope Benedict XVI- for what he is. I admire the cardinals in the vatican during the present and previous pontificates for what they were, nothing more- nothing less.

Although the increase in seminarians in Boston is due to young men from other dioceses, I have noticed a gradual increase in the number of seminarians in many dioceses. Twenty years ago our dioceses had three seminarians, now it has eighteen. Not all will become priests, but even if five have an actual vocation, that’s a blessing.

I am sure a good number of the seminarians are from the Boston archdiocese as well- I wouldn’t dismiss it.

I have heard of a family of priests in our dioceses. The oldest priest in the family is eighty-three. There is a priest who is his nephew who is in his fifties. In addition to him, this elderly priest has three great-nephews who are studying in Rome to be priests. Isn’t that amazing?

Yes it is. It once was pretty common for families to be like that. Families would be large, so it was normal for a Catholic to have at least one aunt or uncle who was a priest or a religious brother or sister- and to have cousins, and maybe even brothers and sisters as well.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

This is the result of the dioceses throughout New England, consolidating their seminaries into St John’s in the Archdiocese of Boston.

In other words, although the enrollment for St. John’s is up, overall enrollment for the priesthood in New England, is down.

Jim

 

[Other_Eric]

We must be careful not to praise quantity at the expense of quality.

 

[RobertLGarrett]

We must be careful not to praise quantity at the expense of quality.

Is the quality poor?