In Good Hands

My experience with the seminarians of the Mount

01/18/2022

Mk 2:23-28 As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath, his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain. At this the Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?” He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry? How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat, and shared it with his companions?” Then he said to them, “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

Well, you will be relieved to know that the old cassock still fits. Surely that is what you were wondering all last week. But seriously, thank you for all your prayers for the seminarians and for me. Our Blessed Lord and our Lady heard you, and they had mercy on me and the words I shared. Several men told me after the retreat they appreciated it, and the seminary spiritual director, Msgr. Cummings, said it was a great way to prepare for the new semester, which starts this week.

Please say a special prayer for the men in their “third year of theology.” Why? Well, at the end of this semester they will be ordained as “transitional deacons,” the penultimate step to priesthood. So, this retreat was especially important to them as it was their required “canonical retreat” leading up to ordination. By the way, I learned this later, that the retreat was actually live-streamed on the seminary Youtube channel. You can search for Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, on Youtube, if you want to hear the meditations, and see for yourself how the cassock still fits.

Since you can hear the meditations online, I won’t say anything about that. Instead, let me say a few things about being back at my old seminary "alma mater." Incidentally, the Latin words “alma mater” literally mean “soul mother,” as if this place is like a spiritual mother to me. Of course, a flood of feelings – more like a tsunami – hit me as I drove back on campus. I could not repress a board smile as I gazed on the grounds where we played flag football, and the seminarians roundly beat the college students. I was pleased to hear they carry on the same tradition and still beat the college kids.

The old seminary building was constructed in 1808 and it is still housing and forming men for the priesthood. By the way, that was 100 years before Immaculate Conception Church was built in 1901, for a little historical context. I feel blessed to have been one of the hundreds of thousands who learned to wear their cassock there.

The Mount is sometimes called “the cradle of bishops” because 58 bishops have been born and bred at the Mount, two of whom were there during my years. And my eyes stretched heavenward up the sides of the eponymous mountain from which the seminary gets her name, St. Mary’s Mountain. Farther up the mountain is a beautiful grotto and shrine to our Blessed Mother, where I often went to pray as a seminarian. So, the nostalgia was as thick as the London fog as I stepped foot at the Mount after 26 years.

One of the really cool components of the retreat was the silence. It was a “silent retreat,” meaning the men were not allowed to talk. They were likewise forbidden to use their cell phones. They had to enter and leave the chapel in silence; they could only nod their heads in greeting in the hallways; they sat at separate tables at lunch and dinner and ate in silence. I was the only one who could talk, and it was my voice (with hopefully the words inspired by the Holy Spirit) that echoed through their quiet minds and still hearts.

The one time they could open their mouths and speak was at chapel, during Morning and Evening Prayer and at Mass. And how they sang: full-throated and whole-heartedly. All that had gone unsaid all day and night – the hopes and dreams, the fears and tears, the doubts and excitement – all poured out of their mouths at the Mass.

The words of the Liturgy – “And with your spirit,” “We lift up them up to the Lord,” “It is right and just,” and so forth – expressed all the unexpressed longings of their lives. And that is what the liturgy should do for us. Indeed, the words of the Mass utter the longings not only of the men and women on earth, but also of the angels in heaven. Earth and heaven worship as one. And the seminarians’ silence during the retreat helped them to hear that eternal harmony.

Finally, let me admit that it was every bit a “retreat” for me as it was for the seminarians. By that I mean that they inspired me by their lives, their dedication, their joy, their desire to serve the Lord and his people, and their singing. There are 158 inspiring young men at the Mount and it is the largest seminary in the United States. They gave me great peace and confidence that God continues to call men, like he called the first apostles and like he called me, to be fishers of men. I am proud to report, and you will be happy to know, the Church is in good hands.

Praised be Jesus Christ!