Seminarian Profile: Joshua Cole
St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Bedford
Favorites...
- Book: The Return of the King
- Movie: National Treasure
- Sports Team: Indiana Pacers
- Band: The Band of the Fighting Irish
- Quote: "If God is for us, who can be against us?" -- Rom. 8:31b.
- Saint: Edith Stein
I am from Bedford, Indiana, and am the second of nine children. I was homeschooled for high school, and besides its other benefits, I acquired a thirst for learning. Since then, I have wandered the halls of academia, at the University of Dallas and the University of Notre Dame, studying classics and mathematics. (If you are wondering, I have also seen that no matter how thrilling it is, football is not the purpose of life.)
In some of my free time (like, when I am not playing ultimate frisbee or hanging out with my friends), I have also wandered voluminous libraries, looking for insight into life. Fortunately, I have found some, along with large chunks of good philosophy, especially that of Dietrich von Hildebrand. A nice side benefit is that between books and learning from life, I know a lot more about love and, very relatedly, about what exactly a vocation is. But I don't have it all figured out, not by a longshot.
Having had the idea of seminary on the backburner of the stove of my consciousness for many years, I figured now is time to move it to the frontburner. I start at St. Meinrad's this fall. A diocesan priest is pretty cool: he serves God's people according to their needs in a particular place at a particular time. Diocesan priests are the marines of the priesthood -- it turns out that the "special" missions are just the ones that seem like ordinary life.
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