Seminary formation isn’t just about learning theology and how to celebrate the sacraments.
Those things are important, no doubt, and seminarians spend years studying, learning, and praying in the classroom and in the chapel as they discern God’s will for their lives.
But for seminarians studying for the priesthood at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, pastoral formation extends far beyond the walls on Chicago Boulevard, out into the communities they’ll one day—God willing—serve as priests.
Each year, graduate seminarians at Sacred Heart take part in a Field Education Project designed to bring them closer to the people of God and form them according to the heart of Jesus Christ.
Father Brian Meldrum, assistant professor of theology and director of liturgy at the seminary, directs the Field Education Project for Sacred Heart’s graduate seminarians.
“One of the goals of priestly formation is to help the men to love with a pastor's heart, with the heart of a shepherd,” Father Meldrum said. “Even though we form men in four dimensions—spiritual, human, intellectual, and pastoral—in some ways, pastoral formation is the culmination of those other aspects of seminary, so that as priests of Jesus Christ, they’ll love with a shepherd’s heart.”
Father Meldrum said seminarians in each class participate in different pastoral experiences out in the community, each designed to help form them for a particular aspect of ministry.
“For instance, guys in their first year of graduate studies do both hospital and nursing home ministry, with a bit of hospice rotation, to help prepare them for the time they’ll spend either at the side of sick parishioners or with family members of loved ones who are sick or dying,” Father Meldrum said.
In January, first-year graduate seminarians served once a week at Marywood Nursing Care Center in Livonia, a ministry of the Felician Sisters, visiting, listening and praying with residents and family members, Fr. Meldrum said.
“I definitely see their hearts are expanded a little bit,” Fr. Meldrum said of the seminarians’ experiences during the visits. “Their capacity to listen and minister to people in all different situations gets stretched and challenged, and I mean that in a positive way.”
Second-year graduate seminarians spend time ministering and serving on college campuses, Father Meldrum said, particularly with Detroit Catholic Campus Ministry at Wayne State University and the University of Michigan-Dearborn, working alongside FOCUS missionaries and with St. Paul Street Evangelization.
“The idea is to get the seminarians interacting with young people and college students, starting with those ‘shallow entry points’ Archbishop (Allen H.) Vigneron describes in Unleash the Gospel,” Father Meldrum said. “In the first semester, they start by going to social events with the college students—such as community nights or other social functions—and they might have Mass or supper afterward.”
By the second semester, seminarians begin participating in outreach and direct street evangelization, talking with college students and others about the faith.
“The idea is that once they get to know a little bit of the student community, they’ll be more comfortable out there on campus, engaging with new campus ministry members, answering questions and fostering relationships,” Father Meldrum said.
In their third year of graduate studies, pastoral formation is a bit more “ad hoc,” Father Meldrum said, particularly focusing on leadership development. The seminarians participate in ACTS XXIX’s “The Rescue Project,” running small groups at the seminary before going out into parishes.
“In the second semester, they go out and run ‘The Rescue Project’ themselves in parishes, helping to connect them with the parish community and engage parishioners in small table discussions, which includes a video component and a meal,” Father Meldrum said.
During their fourth year—the transitional diaconate year—field education consists of formal parish assignments, during which the seminarians learn to serve as ordained ministers, preaching on weekends, serving at Mass, and assisting with parish functions such as OCIA, religious education, and sacramental preparation.
No matter where the seminarians are serving, the experience of being close to the people of God—listening to their cares and concerns, comforting them in times of trouble, and ministering with a pastor’s heart—is something that simply can’t be learned in a classroom, Father Meldrum said.
“At Sacred Heart, we’ve always been very fortunate to partner with these local parishes and institutions,” Father Meldrum said. “When the men are making the visits, they’re exposed to these real-world scenarios of meeting both the faithful and people without faith out there in the world.”
Seminarians are encouraged to journal, reflect, and pray about their experiences, and Father Meldrum meets with them both in group settings and one-on-one to unpack and share the graces they’ve encountered.
“Like every aspect of faith formation, it’s meant to be all-encompassing,” Father Meldrum said. “As priests, we really want to minister to the whole person, and we do that by forming these guys as complete persons as well.”