PONTIAC — Almost all new priests ordained for the Archdiocese of Detroit are products of Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, and the seminary receives substantial funding from money contributed to the annual Catholic Services Appeal.
Seminarians realize the faithful of the archdiocese are making their priestly formation possible, and are grateful for that support, say two priests ordained in 1999 who spoke about their seminary experience.
"After all of the Catholic education I had received, I knew it does take money, and I wasn't paying for it. I knew that it came from the people of the archdiocese – the very people I was going to serve – and it was greatly appreciated," says Fr. Timothy Laboe, administrator of St. Joseph, St. Michael and St. Vincent de Paul parishes in Pontiac.
His classmate, Fr. Jeffrey Day, pastor of St. Sebastian Parish in Dearborn Heights, recalls having the same understanding. "It was very clear, in that we didn't receive a bill for tuition. I was certainly aware that the CSA was funding my education," he says.
And even before they were ordained, Fr. Day says seminarians were mindful of those who were supporting their education. "We were always praying for our benefactors," he says.
The CSA, which officially kicks off its 2004 pledge campaign next weekend, May 1-2, funds most of the ministries of the Archdiocese of Detroit, including providing a significant percentage of the budget of Sacred Heart Major Seminary.
"I always tell people, 'If you're happy with the priests you're getting, just remember that the CSA supports the seminary, and give generously. If you're not happy, then give even more, so they can do a better job of training them,'" Fr. Day says with a laugh.
But priests say the seminary does an excellent job of preparing new priests for service in the archdiocese. "I enjoyed the people. I enjoyed the studies. I enjoyed the prayer life. I formed lasting friendships, and found it a very positive experience," says Fr. Laboe, who will leave the Pontiac parishes in July to become pastor of St. Valentine Parish in Redford Township.
He has high praise for the seminary's faculty: "They were good teachers, and I always appreciated their willingness to help outside of class. I was very impressed with their dedication. I always got the sense at Sacred Heart that all the people who worked there were interested in me as a person and genuinely wanted what was best for me."
Having already earned his bachelor's degree from Notre Dame University and a law degree from the Catholic University of America, Fr. Laboe says he already knew what it meant to be a student in a rigorous academic program when he entered the seminary. What he found to be knew were the other aspects of priestly formation – Morning Prayer every day at 8 a.m., Mass at 11:45 a.m., and Evening Prayer every day at 5:30 p.m., plus a Holy Hour every Thursday.
"There was this whole community life you expected to be a part of, and there were meetings with your faculty mentor, your spiritual director and rector's conferences. As a priest you are expected to pray the Divine Office daily, and so that's what we do at the seminary, so you structure that into your life," Fr. Laboe adds.
Fr. Day says the seminary life builds a sense of cohesiveness among seminarians that carries over after ordination: "The were eight of us ordained for the archdiocese in my class, and we continue to get together on a monthly basis for dinner, and continue to have a sense of camaraderie and fraternity."
Fr. Laboe says it is impossible to assign percentages to how much of the seminary experience in education and how much formation, because formation permeates every aspect of seminary life. But not all of the formation is done inside the seminary building on Chicago Boulevard at Linwood in Detroit – there are also formative experiences arranged by the seminary that take place elsewhere.
The six weeks he was able to spend in Israel and Egypt "broadens your perspective and enriches you in terms of your Catholic faith – and I bring that to every parish I go to," he says.
Fr. Laboe joined other seminarians for trips to Mexico to learn Spanish and to the Archdiocese of Detroit's sponsored parish in Recife, Brazil, where he began to learn Portuguese. "It was the seminary that sent me to Brazil, and because of that there's now a ministry to Brazilians in the archdiocese," he says, referring to the Portuguese-language Mass he celebrates that draws Brazilians from all over eastern Michigan and southwestern Ontario.
In Pontiac, he added Spanish-language Masses at St. Michael Church. What started with about 200 people now draws about 800 each Sunday, without cutting much into attendance at the Spanish Masses at St. Vincent de Paul Church, Fr. Laboe continues.
And those who contributed to his seminary education through the CSA also helped prepare future priests in another way. "I don't know whether people, when they give to the seminary, realize they could also be helping to create future faculty members as well," says Fr. Laboe, who now teaches a class at Sacred Heart.
