Top U.S. Catholic seminary sees spike in enrollment

God bless them!

On one hand, that is great that there are so many seminarians. On the downside, what will the quality of the formation be like after being so long without operating at capacity?

Some Random thoughts in response to Brian:

It's not like the NAC doubled in numbers or anything this year. We're talking a 20% increase. It all depends on the quality of personnel running the place. In this case, as is the case at most seminaries, some faculty are more adept at forming priests and others less so.

One major challenge nationwide is finding enough good priest formators for seminaries. The lay staff are indeed wonderful, but you will always need priests to form priests. We all are aware that the priest numbers in virtually all American dioceses drop each year with retirements and deaths. It will bottom out eventually, but the worst is yet to come. In looking over their presbyterates, a number of bishops find it all too tempting to panic and "circle the wagons" and no longer release any priests for A) further studies, B) assisting in seminary formation, or C) military chaplains and high school chaplains. All three of those areas have suffered. These three areas are vital for the long range health of the Church. Having your best priests with advanced degrees means more options for the Holy Father in appointing future bishops (Canan Law gives preference in that regard). Having your best priests in the seminary means future priests will emulate them. Having your best priests as chaplains means having contact with thousands of unmarried young men eager to make a positive difference in the world. Hmmm... But the yield in all three of these cases is long-term, and so is often neglected. "We can't afford it..." many dioceses say. Like the person who says "I can't afford to invest my money..." and always wonders why his financial situation keeps getting worse.

Another challenge is having 200 guys at ANY seminary. There is always the risk, to use seminary lingo, that men with "formation issues" can "fly under the radar" more easily. But too small a seminary, by contrast, can easily become a "fishbowl" where your every movement is analyzed and the men become paranoid. But neither of those problems is inevitable - especially not with a prudent formation faculty. If the faculty themselves are inspirational role models (as they are in some places) it has a contagious effect on the men.

The very heartening thing is that Pastores Dabo Vobis has proven to be the most wildly effective papal document that John Paul II wrote. While others are more inspiring and breathtaking, they were largely ignored, whereas this document had an immediate impact on every single seminary. While some seminaries have implemented it better than others, absolutely no one ignored it.

During my many years in the seminary (1994-2003) I had the joy of seeing continued improvements in the quality of formation. There are now many seminary faculty who really do know what they're doing. Let's pray that trend continues, and pray for our poor bishops who have so many difficult decisions to make.

Father, I can fully understand that. Don't get me wrong, I think it is a good problem to have. I was just giving my initial reaction. And perhaps my view is a bit colored by the fact that I am at a "fishbowl" seminary (14 men) myself and have gotten so used to it I sometimes don't quite understand how the bigger places do what they do, since I think I make the assumption that the methodology is the same.

http://clericalreform.blogspot.com/