September 5, 2006

ST. FRANCIS – On the heels of five priestly ordinations this spring, Saint Francis Seminary welcomes 36 (a decade high) priestly formation students. For the first time this year, the larger student body will split their time between two campuses – Saint Francis Seminary and Sacred Heart School of Theology in Hales Corners.

Similarly, the certificate lay ministry program, which includes diaconate formation, will continue as usual at Saint Francis Seminary this year. Graduate lay ministry students will study at various campuses including Saint Francis, Sacred Heart, Cardinal Stritch and Marquette University.

“Our collaboration with Sacred Heart and other institutions strengthens and enhances our formation programs,” says Fr. Mike Witczak, Seminary rector. “The seminarian student body, for example, will interact with a larger and more diverse group, enriching their experience. As faculties from Saint Francis and Sacred Heart work together, it will add to their teaching experience as well.”

“The younger seminarians will benefit from the broad life experiences of our students, many of whom have spent years in church ministry in addition to their careers as doctors, business owners, attorneys, corporate managers and other occupations,” said Fr. Tom Knoebel, vice rector and director of recruitment at Sacred Heart.

About 23 lay graduate students will receive spiritual and pastoral formation at Saint Francis with their academic class work at another local university. Twenty lay certificate and 44 (of about 84) pre-admitted lay students are continuing or beginning formation at the Seminary this year while details are worked out for a revised formation model to begin in fall 2007. Twenty-three diaconate students will continue formation at Saint Francis Seminary with about 11 expected to be ordained in spring 2007.

“We’re helping students manage the transition with personal plans and resources,” says Fr. Witczak. “We want to enrich students’ experiences in a smooth and seamless way. Lay leaders are important to our church and we are doing everything we can to ensure that they continue their formation in a high-quality way.”

The consolidation comes after three years of study by two commissions appointed by Archbishop Timothy Dolan. The goal of the new formational model is to expand and strengthen local ministerial formation to serve a growing number of southeastern Wisconsin Catholics while attaining financial solvency for the Seminary.

The academic formation provided by Sacred Heart School of Theology and its faculty fulfills the directives of the bishops and the 5th edition of the Program of Priestly Formation, including offering the full range of philosophy and theology studies as part of the curriculum. Faculty, who have received their doctoral degrees from major Catholic universities in America, Rome and other parts of Europe, teach in full conformity with the Church and have taken the oath of fidelity. Many have published scholarly articles and books and been recognized presenters at conferences.

Saint Francis Seminary has provided local priestly formation for 160 years – 150 of those years at its current Lake Drive site. In the 1970s the Seminary expanded its mission to include lay and diaconate formation. The Seminary has graduated more than 4,000 students through the years.

Read more in this article from the September 7 Catholic Herald.

TRENDS BACKGROUNDER

Internet – #1 way men express interest in priesthood

Milwaukee -- Fr. Jim Lobacz, Archdiocese of Milwaukee vocations director, is especially pleased with the growing number of men discerning priesthood. According to an Archdiocesan Vocations Office survey, he says he has received 66 referrals since becoming vocations a year ago in July 2005. Most referrals -- about 50 percent -- come from the men themselves via the Internet, he says.

“The Internet has increasingly become a way for men to learn more about priesthood through on-line surveys, case studies and detailed information,” Fr. Lobacz says. “Young men can find discernment materials and work with it before they are comfortable enough to make contact with us.”

Fr. Lobacz has also found that priests are the second highest source of referrals. “Priests are enormously important providing nearly a third of the referrals,” he said.

Most men expressing interest in priesthood are under the age of 26 which is younger than it used to be, says Fr. Lobacz. “This is a change from previous years and it follows a trend we’re seeing in America’s larger cities,” he said.

Beyond a newly-redesigned web site at www.thinkpriest.org, Fr. Lobacz has employed a number of recruitment tools including youth rallies, high school visits, rosary evangelization, personal visits, growth in parish vocations teams (now 126 strong).