Happy Feast of St. Mark!

Celebrate the great St. Mark today!

And St. Mark, ora pro nobis!

Holy Apostles College & Seminary

In approximately 18 days or so, I will be embarking on the task of earning my masters degree in theology from Holy Apostles College in Cromwell, CT. My masters degree will officially be an M.A. in Theology with a concentration in Church history. Plus, I have 6 years from the start date to complete the distance program. Realizing my dreams of not only getting an advanced degree, but also in what I want to do, is a beautiful thing. God is good and I have been truly blessed!

Some background: My love for history made itself apparent at a young age. I loved discovering things and finding out more information about them. It started with me wanting to be an archeologist. I loved dinosaurs (still do). I then moved on to a love of American history. I knew that we needed to know where we came from as a society to better understand ourselves and our state and move into the future. Finally, with my deeper investigation into my Catholic faith, I realized I had a new found love and desire to learn more about Church history. My grandfather had quite the effect on me as well. His love of history and his true desire to be a teacher (which he never did, sadly - formally at least) left a mark and urged me to truly find what I want to do with my life and then do it!

Let me tell you about how I got to this point. It started about a year and a half ago when I was preparing to take the GRE. A good buddy of mine sat me down in front of a computer and had me go to the website to register. He had apparently been talking to my wife (girlfriend at the time) and she told him I was putting it off...for no good reason. I was procrastinating and he just took me by the shoulders and had me go to a website. It was nice of him to do this, I realize now. Well, I took the test and I got a pretty decent score. I sent the results off to a few schools, not really finding a program in exactly what I wanted to do.

Fast forward to last summer; I sent off an actual application. Needless to say, I did not get in. However, I did e-mail the director asking if there was anything that I could do to improve my chances the next time and moving further in my quest. They were gracious enough to send me back an e-mail. I thought it was my GRE scores, but they said I shouldn't have a problem getting into any program with those. That was relief. I continued to search for a program and I started to really look at distance ones.

I knew that the Augustine Institute had a distance program. But, I wanted a school that was accredited which at this time the A.I. still is not. So I moved on. I also wanted a legitimately Catholic school, not just one in name only. I frequent a website called www.calledtocommunion.com. I've mentioned it before on this blog. A frequent commenter was asked to write a guest post. I was always impressed with his knowledge of argument and his well reasoned thinking. As part of his bio at the beginning of the article, I noticed that he was from Ohio, yet was completing his degree in Church history in Connecticut. I did a virtual double take. He mentioned his university and sure enough it was Holy Apostles. I decided to investigate more.

I wandered around their website (www.holyapostles.edu) and was absolutely impressed. My favorite part, besides the distance piece, was that they were accredited and were one of the Newman Society top Catholic schools in America. Orthodox teaching in line with the Magisterium! Everything seemed to be perfect for what I wanted to pursue. The price was competitive and something that I could swing over the next few years. I asked my priest from college to write another letter of recommendation and a few other professors from undergrad. They're friends really. I got through the application, the letters, and the other pieces needed pretty quickly. The one thing that kept me from submitting the whole packet was the entrance essay. I went through many drafts and revisions until it was perfect. It took a few months actually. Soon I sent everything in and prayed for the best.

It was a few weeks later when the response came. My wife called earlier and told me that she had a present for me. I was not thinking that it was the correspondence. I got home and saw the mail on the counter. I immediately planned for the worst. I had been in that position before and if I didn't get in this time, I was going to assume that this was not what God wanted me to do. I was about to have a vocational crisis!

I slowly opened the packet. I grabbed the letters inside and took the top sheet, nice paper too, and flipped it over. I read the first few words and then there it was "ACCEPTED"! I was jumping all over the living room in thanksgiving and dancing like a crazy person. I remember my wife saying something along the lines of "just wait until you start doing the school work. Try and remember this moment." I called family members and told them all the good news.

Over the next few months, I was finalizing everything that I needed in order to start as soon as possible. We talked finances, classes, and other things. I figured that I would start with the class that everyone needed - PHTH600 Philosophy for Theologians taught by a Dominican priest! I love the fact that I have a priest for a teacher. It's been a while.

So that brings us up to date. I've got all the course materials needed and now I'm just waiting to start. It really became official when I got the Holy Apostles e-mail account. Pray for me as I go along! This is an exciting time!

I think grandpa would be proud.

A Tale of Two Popes: Benedict & Francis

It has been a very busy two months since the last post: Benedict retired, a conclave happened, and Jorge Mario Bergoglio was chosen as the 266th successor to St. Peter on March 13, 2013. Since then, we have learned of the many stories in his life, especially as archbishop of Buenos Aires. I think it's time for me to delve in deeper to what I think of these two men, these two popes.

There will always be a transition when one person steps in for another. We are all unique and have different strengths that we bring to the table. As Fr. Z says on his blog, "Read Francis through Benedict." That being said, I absolutely love our new Holy Father. Sure, some of what he does we are not used to, just as Benedict did things we were not used to after JPII died, but that is the beauty of the Holy Spirit. His Will be done. This man is exactly what we need in the world today and in the Church. Benedict was also the man that we needed in his own way. Each man's humility is truly inspiring. Thus we see in these last two popes such a great "hermeneutic of continuity".

I have a great love of Benedict XVI and what he did for the Church. His revision of the English translation of the Missal and his efforts to restore the office of the Papacy its proper dignity, were some of the high points. I especially loved his outreach to other Christian communities and how seriously he took his role as shepherd and as an instrument and principle of Christian unity. One of the legacies of his pontificate will be his teaching prowess and efforts. In a way more like that of a father teaching his children, he gave us an understanding of our Faith that we sorely needed after the poor catechesis and liturgical abuses of the last 40 years. Only in time will we truly be able to see what rich treasures that Benedict shared with us. I am not going to lie, I will miss him. I had a lump in my throat when I watched him get into the helicopter and fly to Castel Gondolfo. I take it as a privilege that I was able to witness it in real time and also receive his final blessing as Pope, even if it was through the T.V. screen. We are blessed to live in this time and to be Catholics. I, for one, am glad he is still here praying fervently for the Church.

During the Sede Vacante, I was hopeful that none of the papabile would get chosen. I prayed for it. "Thy Will be done" was my mantra. I just wanted someone who would carry on the good work that Benedict started. Like others, I was completely confused and had never heard of Cardinal Bergoglio. But I was so ecstatic to see him emerge as our new Holy Father. What a blessing! An American! A Jesuit! His name is Francis! Many firsts. And I have a feeling many more wonderful surprises. His approach to people is refreshing and the world is taking notice. Many lapsed Catholics, especially in Latin America, have or are returning to the Church. The fact that an Orthodox patriarch attended his installation Mass is an indicator of something truly special going on that only God knows. We are still getting used to his style and his papacy and I have no doubt in my mind that he will be a great pope. I love the guy already and he is challenging me to be more aware of the shortfalls that I have in living my faith and in my proclamation of the gospel. May God grant him a long reign! This is truly an exciting time in the history of our faith and of the world!

Viva il Papa!