Guatemala Commission Nov. ‘24 Update

Activities interwoven with studies at the Minor Seminary in Guatemala  

St. Joseph Minor Seminary

Recently, Fr. Carlos Oswaldo Zet, rector of Seminario Menor Señor San José (St. Joseph Minor Seminary) sent a summary of the year’s activities at the seminary.  The minor seminary is one of the recipients of donations to the Guatemala mission from the Guatemala Commission and Our Lady of Fatima Church.He reported that there are thirty-four students currently studying at the minor seminary. They came from communities throughout the large diocese of Sololá-Chimaltenango for their 10th and 11th high school grades for intense studying as well as a multitude of activities within the seminary and in the surrounding community. 

One of the many activities is the anticipated annual celebration of the feast of St. Joseph. Here is a description in the words of Fr. Carlos: 

 “The 17th and 18th of March were the days of preparation for the feast of Saint Joseph, all the seminarians were excited to work and collaborate in the preparations for this celebration. We began the great celebration in honor of Saint Joseph with the first vespers on the 18th.  When the great day of the 19th arrived, we had a morning of serenade with Mariachis, singing in honor of our Patron. For unknown reasons, our firecrackers did not explode!  After breakfast we went to the Major Seminary, where we had a morning of sports among the three houses of formation in Sololá. Our seminary won first place after many years of trying! After lunch we prayed the second vespers then processed with the image of Saint Joseph until we reached our seminary where we had the Celebration of the Holy Mass. After Mass, we shared dinner with the other two houses of formation. To culminate our celebration, we had a cultural evening with songs accompanied by the marimba, played by minor seminarians and teachers. We concluded our celebration with the prayer of compline.” 

Other activities during the year included celebrations during Easter week and a trip to an amusement park.  On July 12th seminarians celebrated the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus with Mass, followed by a procession with the Blessed Sacrament, going through the halls of the seminary, adorned with decorative carpets made by the seminarians. 

Interwoven around exams was participation in a reenactment of the 500 years of evangelization in Guatemala with the motto “Guatemala throughout history”: 500 years of sowing the gospel”.  

Fr. Carlos concluded his summary by thanking all involved in the seminary including teachers, cooks, maintenance workers, parents, and parishes ((parishes of seminarians send contributions to the seminary), and to Bishop Monsignor Domingo Buezo Leiva.  He is also grateful for all benefactors with “Thank you all very much and may God bless you.” 

This summary was written by Donna Connell taken from a report sent by Fr. Carlos Oswaldo Zet in Sololá, Guatemala, October 18, 2024, on the feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist