“Hope” was this year’s theme for the 2025 Archbishop’s Gala for Sacred Heart Major Seminary.
Attendees might suggest “joy” was another theme.
Seminarians from the Archdiocese of Detroit and other dioceses, priests, professors, and hundreds of friends and supporters of Sacred Heart were all smiles as they celebrated the good work of the seminary at Huntington Place in Detroit on Thursday, May 12.
The program for the evening focused on the theme Living the Virtue of Hope. Ann Thomas-Battersby, program director for 760 AM-WJR and Seminary Board of Trustees member, and Dave LewAllen, retired WXYZ-TV evening news anchor, served as emcees.
“Hope is seen here at the seminary when a man says ‘yes’ to the call from God; hope is known here when our excellent professors give their hearts to forming future priests and lay leaders; and hope lives here when each of you gives sacrificially not just because you believe in the seminary’s mission, but because you believe in what God is doing through it,” Thomas and LewAllen told the crowd before dinner.
While being interviewed at his table, Deacon Karl Finkbeiner, a seminarian for the Archdiocese of Detroit, quoted Romans 5:3-5: “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.”
In jest, Deacon Finkbeiner teased his professors who were present: “You can tell our formators have a deep commitment to biblical wisdom, and that they really want to instill this virtue of hope in us, because they submit us to a lot of suffering, which produces hope.”
Archbishop-emeritus Allen H. Vigneron spoke briefly with Thomas and LewAllen about the ways the virtue of hope lives at Sacred Heart. Archbishop Vigneron sees hope for the Church in the seminarians.
“They are the source of hope for all of us for the future, especially for the future of the Church, which means the future of the world,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “The world is starving for hope. The young people today are hungering for hope, hungering for Jesus. We are engaged in this missionary work preparing missionaries to bring the hope of Jesus to the world.”
The Michigan State Council of the Knights of Columbus presented two checks, one of which represented donations of $3 per member per year from the 400 Knights of Columbus councils around the state.
Seminary Rector Fr. Stephen Burr noted that in May, Sacred Heart celebrated its 100th commencement with 84 graduates from the 17 degree and certificate programs offered at the seminary. Fr. Burr explained his reason for hope as rector and president of the seminary.
“I’ve often called the seminary the ‘hope factory’ because of the men you see here tonight who know Jesus, who love Jesus, and want to love you as Him. This hope factory is a busy place with many programs and initiatives, but it’s that hope in Jesus Christ that carries us,” Fr. Burr said.
On stage, Thomas and LewAllen interviewed Detroit Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger, who was asked to name his favorite “Detroit moments” since arriving in Michigan in March. His response: Buddy’s pizza, Mackinac Island, “odd left turns,” and a warm welcome from Archbishop-emeritus Vigneron, priests and the people of the Archdiocese of Detroit.
Addressing the theme of hope, Archbishop Weisenburger reflected on his experience entering seminary in the late 1970s versus today’s seminarians.
“Today I find that when a man decides to go to the seminary, he’s looking the culture in the eye. There’s no positive cultural affirmation of what that man is doing … I would even say it’s a much more biblical paradigm than what I did. It reminds me of the first three centuries of the Church,” Archbishop Weisenburger said. “And so, when I see a young man who is having to swim against the tide to respond to a possible vocation to the priesthood, that gives me a sense of joy that I think is intimately related to hope.”
The program ended with a song by the Sacred Heart Seminary Choir, comprised of 10 seminarians. Guests were invited to stay for dancing and socializing.
Deacon Dan Whalen, ordained a transitional deacon for the Archdiocese of Detroit in April, attended the gala for the seventh time.
“I’m happy to be here because I’m very proud to be a seminarian at Sacred Heart. Just as this is the Jubilee Year of Hope, the gala is important because it brings that excitement for the next academic year,” Deacon Whalen said. “And it’s good for us seminarians to be here to interact with the lay faithful who support the seminary and express our gratitude.”
Nathan Schoenle, another Detroit seminarian, recently completed his first year at Sacred Heart. Schoenle played football as a student at the University of Michigan and then spent four years in business before discerning God’s call to the priesthood.
“I was praying about God’s plan for my life, and the fruit of that prayer was realizing that there was nothing in life that ever brought me greater joy than the love of Jesus, of knowing him in prayer and knowing him particularly in the Eucharist,” Schoenle said. “Jesus has changed my life, and he’s changing other people’s lives, and Sacred Heart is doing a wonderful job of forming us to go out and share what we have — which is the hope of Jesus Christ — with the world.”
The Archbishop’s Gala is the largest annual fundraiser for Sacred Heart. This fall, the seminary will host the conference “Nicaea at 1700: The First Council and the ‘Way Together’” in the renovated auditorium, a project made possible by benefactors.