With 32 seminarians, archdiocese has most potential future priests since 1997
Archbishop Charles C. Thompson blesses nine new archdiocesan seminarians during an Aug. 15 Mass at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis. He is assisted by transitional Deacon Samuel Rosko, left, and altar server Joe Gehret. (Photo by Sean Gallagher)
By Sean Gallagher
TIPTON COUNTY—As a new year of priestly formation starts at two seminaries in the archdiocese, the Church in central and southern Indiana has 32 seminarians, the most it’s had since 1997.
Fourteen are enrolled at Bishop Simon Bruté College Seminary in Indianapolis, 17 are at Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology in St. Meinrad, and one is enrolled at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary and School of Theology in Cincinnati. Nine are new seminarians this year, with six at Bishop Bruté and three at Saint Meinrad.
The total of 32 seminarians is an increase of 10 from just three years ago.
“It’s very encouraging for the future to see the number of men who are actively discerning, but also the quality of the men,” said Father Eric Augenstein, archdiocesan director of seminarians. “These are men who take their faith, ministry and service seriously. They have strong faith and are from strong families. They come from good parish communities. It gives us good promise for the future.”
He made these comments at the St. Joseph Retreat and Conference Center in Tipton County in the Lafayette, Ind., Diocese. Nearly all of the seminarians met there on Aug. 13-16 for the annual seminarian convocation.
It’s an opportunity for the seminarians to spend time with each other before they go to their seminaries and involves prayer, presentations on the faith and time together to build up fellowship.
On Aug. 15, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the seminarians traveled to Indianapolis to spend time with Archbishop Charles C. Thompson, including worshipping at a Mass he celebrated at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral during which he blessed the nine new seminarians.
In comments made to The Criterion, Archbishop Thompson gave credit to Catholics across central and southern Indiana for the growth in the number of seminarians.
“All of our priests give good witness and encourage vocations,” he said. “And the people in our parishes are praying for vocations and encouraging them. It’s all that prayer and encouragement that’s coming to fruition. It’s creating a culture of vocations in the archdiocese.”
‘I’m glad to have a lot of brothers’
Archbishop Charles C. Thompson and archdiocesan director of seminarians Father Eric Augenstein pose on Aug. 15 on the front steps of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis with 31 of the archdiocese’s 32 seminarians. (Submitted photo by Holly Dexter)
This was the eighth convocation for seminarian Liam Hosty, a member of St. Barnabas Parish in Indianapolis.
Early on in his formation at Bishop Bruté, there were only 15 archdiocesan seminarians. He called having
32 now “super encouraging.”
“They’re a joy to be around,” Hosty said. “They’re lighthearted. But these guys are also pretty serious about their vocation, what God is calling them to in their lives. I’m glad to have a lot of brothers here.”
At this year’s convocation, William Rees was in the place where Hosty was eight years ago. Days before the convocation started, he moved into Bishop Bruté as a new seminarian. That took place just days after Rees returned from World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal.
Like Hosty, Rees valued the fraternity among the potential future priests of the archdiocese, noting he was impressed by “seeing and feeling the brotherhood among everyone, knowing that we’re all in this together and trying to discern the same thing even though we have completely different lives.”
A member of St. Nicholas Parish in Ripley County, Rees is a recent graduate of the Oldenburg Academy of the Immaculate Conception in Oldenburg. He is also the first academy student to become a seminarian since its first co-educational graduating class in 2004.
“I’ve been looking at [the priesthood] since I was in second grade,” said Rees. “So, I’m extremely excited for where the future will lead me.”
Jack Adams is another new archdiocesan seminarian. A member of St. Malachy Parish in Brownsburg, he recently graduated from Marian University in Indianapolis.
He said the convocation was “a real opportunity to recognize that I have 31 brothers now. I can grow in love and charity for them.”
Transitional Deacon Samuel Rosko reflected during the convocation that fraternity among the seminarians is first based in prayer.
“The most important thing we can do in these days is to grow in our relationship with Christ in prayer and in our love of the Lord,” he said.
Praying together at Mass, in the Liturgy of the Hours and in a daily holy hour during the convocation, Deacon Rosko said, strengthens the spiritual bonds of the seminarians when they go their separate ways for a year of seminary formation.
“Having moments of prayer together, when we’re all kneeling before our Lord in the Eucharist just before the start of the semester, will unite us in the mystical body of Christ even though we’ll be separated at different seminaries,” he said.
‘God is pouring out his graces on our archdiocese’
What has led to the greatest number of seminarians for the archdiocese in a quarter of a century?
Priests involved in promoting vocations and priestly formation and archdiocesan seminarians spoke with
The Criterion about several potential reasons.
Father Augenstein has been involved in vocations ministry in the archdiocese for 10 years. He was vocations director and oversaw the archdiocese’s seminarians from 2013-19. Since 2019, he has ministered as director of seminarians and as pastor of Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ Parish in Indianapolis.
When he served as vocations director full time, he was the only priest assigned to that ministry, which limited his ability to meet one-on-one with men discerning the priesthood.
“I was only able to be at one place at one time,” he noted.
In late 2019, Archbishop Thompson created a team of priests to promote priestly vocations. It is led by Father Michael Keucher, archdiocesan director of vocations, and a group of priests who serve as assistant directors of vocations across central and southern Indiana.
Father Keucher sees a distinct advantage in having priests serving in parishes who also dedicate themselves to assisting men discerning a possible priestly call.
“Almost every time I have a meal with someone who is expressing interest [in the priesthood], I’m telling him what’s going on in my parishes and priesthood,” said Father Keucher, who also serves as pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Shelbyville and St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Shelby County. “They love those stories. It’s exciting for them to talk with a priest who is not just out trying to recruit them, but who’s also living a pastor’s life. I’m a witness to them in addition to encouraging them in their vocation.”
As he has come to know the growing number of his brother seminarians through his years in priestly formation, Deacon Rosko has seen the positive influence of pastors.
“It’s a really beautiful thing and an example of how God is pouring out his graces on our archdiocese,” said Deacon Rosko, one of four archdiocesan seminarians for Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Parish in Indianapolis.
“It’s due to the grace of God and the example of priests in our archdiocese who are really fostering the spiritual lives of their people, helping them follow the Lord’s call wherever it may be, but into the seminary especially.”
Deacon Rosko is looking forward to being ordained an archdiocesan priest next June with two other transitional deacons, Deacon Anthony Armbruster and Deacon Bobby Vogel.
Although many factors may play into the significant growth in archdiocesan seminarians, Father Keucher said its ultimately rooted in prayer.
One of the first initiatives he launched as vocations director was to invite people who pray in perpetual adoration chapels in the archdiocese to offer holy hours for priestly vocations. His hope was that there would always be someone praying for priestly vocations around the clock.
“I think we’re seeing the fruit of a lot of prayer and fasting for vocations in our parishes,” Father Keucher said. “Any vocation is a work of God. You can analyze it to a certain extent, but you can’t get to the final reason. It’s all God’s grace at the end of the day.”
(For more information on the 32 archdiocesan seminarians and on a vocation to the priesthood in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, visit HearGodsCall.com.) †
