Spokane seminarians reflect on Fall Semester
Over the winter break, seminarians from the Diocese of Spokane were asked to reflect on some highlights from the last semester and share a moment of encounter with Jesus during that time.
Andrew Kelley | Configuration III | St. Patrick Seminary, Menlo Park, CA
Andrew spent the past summer and fall serving the Catholic community in Walla Walla as part of his seminary formation program.
The highlight of the last semester has been the bonds I've made with the families of Walla Walla, who have given me such a warm and heart-stirring welcome into their community and homes. I feel confirmed and motivated in my desire to be a minister to families.
I have encountered the Lord in my work at the Catholic high school in Walla Walla. On many occasions, I have felt the Lord strengthen me for the work of teaching, giving me the gift of his Holy Spirit to be a joyful witness to the Gospel in front of these kids. I also felt supported and reassured in my identity as a beloved son of God on days when lessons fell short of my own expectations.
Ezra Scott | Cor Christi Propaedeutic Year | Bishop White Seminary, Spokane, WA
I got to serve at a Rorate candlelight mass at the Cathedral with Fr. Gaines, which was really epic. Fr. Gaines sang the mass, and everyone was holding candles. The choir sang some beautiful pieces, and it was really just a very peaceful, reverent, and reflective mass.
I had an encounter with Christ during Adoration one evening. I saw myself resting with Him as the Lamb of God and felt a deep sense of peace and comfort just resting with the Lord.
Colby Richards | Configuration I | St. Patrick Seminary, Menlo Park, CA
One highlight this semester has been coordinating and teaching for the OCIA program at my field education assignment. It's been a real gift to walk with all of the catechumens/candidates and to be a part of their conversion stories. It has also stretched my teaching abilities and pushed me to communicate the Faith more effectively.
I had the chance to go on retreat at the Camaldolese hermitage in Big Sur over the midsemester break this year. Spending a couple of days in silence, prayer, and beautiful scenery was the perfect reminder to slow down and listen for God's voice in the midst of the daily hustle and bustle of seminary life. It was a much-needed opportunity to do nothing except listen for God's voice and became a springboard for reinvigorating my practice of lectio divina.
Mitchell Carey | Discipleship II | St. Francis de Sales Seminary, Milwaukie, WI
Our class made the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in our rooms. We were able to have Holy Mass right before and a Eucharistic procession to each one of our rooms, where we made an act of giving our lives and living quarters to Jesus. We each received a personal blessing from Jesus in the monstrance along the way. After we did this, we had brunch with the priest. I’ve enjoyed getting to know the priests at the seminary. I look up to them a lot! I get a real sense of family and brotherhood from moments like this. Thank You, Jesus!
We had a Marian procession through the woods on the seminary grounds in Milwaukee this semester. It was midday, so you could see incense rising through the trees, and rays of sunlight broke through. I got to lead a decade of the Holy Rosary. Other seminarians and priests surrounded me. There was peace and security and a sense of protection like I was with family and I could just be myself. I imagined this is what it must be like to be with Jesus, Mary and Joseph as they made their way to Jerusalem for the Passover, and the Lord gave me a lasting joy from this encounter with Him.
