A Home-Based Seminary

INTRODUCTION

Lacking the necessary infrastructure and manpower, how does one encourage the youth who seek to become missionaries fulfill their wish? A Comboni missionary describes how he came up with what he calls a home-based seminary as a first step in discerning if one truly has a vocation.

WRITTEN BY

SHARE THE WORD

PUBLISHED ON

I was assigned to be the parish administrator of the Holy Cross in South Central L.A., United States, almost six years ago. I was already a missionary priest for 15 years and had worked in Egypt, Sudan and South Africa for over 12 years. I could say that I spent my best years in the mission of my dreams, Africa! However, I was never in charge of a parish and so I did not have the experience of the priests that I met at Holy Cross, Fr. Xavier Colleoni and Fr. Robert Kleiner, who have been serving in South Central L.A. for over 40 and 12 years respectively.

The challenge of serving “my own people”, that is the Hispanic community is that being a Comboni Missionary and working at home did not feel as if I was a “real missionary.” I always thought that my service was only temporary before I could go back to my mission in Africa. Still, I was given the chance to guide this community of migrant people and I was but grateful.

As my confreres aged and their health deteriorated, I started feeling that I could not do the job alone. Sadly, there was no one in the horizon coming to take my place. So, I started sharing this concern with some parishioners and created a vocations prayer group.

At the beginning we used to send a vocational symbol of a chalice, a prayer for vocations card and a rosary every Sunday. A family in each of the seven Sunday masses would carry the vocational symbol home and return it the next Saturday so that it could be assigned to a new family. But after three years of praying, nothing came out of this.  Sometimes, families would forget to bring back the vocational symbol and so no one would pray for vocations.

 

Inspiration

One day, while reviewing the parish bulletin on my computer, I was inspired to make a prayer for vocations that we could print in a card and put copies in each bench or pew of the church to recite after the prayer of the faithful. All of a sudden young people started inquiring about the missionary vocation and how one could become a missionary.

I was not prepared for such a success and asked my confrere Fr. Jorge Ochoa what to do since he was a vocation promoter in Mexico. He was already in contact with some youth at the parishes where he goes to preach every Sunday. Next, he invited the youth in my parish who wanted to start this discernment group to pray in our Comboni Mission Center of Covina.

Over 50 young people showed up! This was getting serious and we had to take it to the next level. The discussion was forwarded to the Provincial Council and then to the Annual Assembly of all the members working in the North American Province or NAP. We decided to give it a try for vocations in the US once again. However, we did not have a structure, like a seminary or a house where the candidates could go to for discernment. We did not have a person in charge of such seminary, but we had young people wanting to become seminarians and something had to be done, something like a pre-postulancy.

 

Home-Based Seminary

We came up with the idea of accepting candidates into a home-based seminary. That is, candidates could continue their university studies or work in wherever they were employed and come together once a month for a day of prayer and formation. In this way, the candidates would get to know us better and continue discerning why they wanted to be missionaries. If a good number of them persevere in this period, the province of North America would send them to a formal place of studies called Postulancy.

In this period candidates usually study philosophy in preparation for the Novitiate, a period of two years of reflection before professing temporary vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. In other words, before they become professed religious men, one step at a time.

At Holy Cross we have three home-based seminarians: Luis, Ribaldo and Angelo.

In the following pages you have Ribaldo Herrera and Luis Salazar’s own words regarding their experiences as Comboni home-based seminarians.

Share Your Thoughts

All comments are moderated

From The Same Issue

The articles and content about this issue

From The Same Issue

The articles and content about this issue

From This Topic

The articles and content about this topic

From This Topic

The articles and content about this topic

Explore Other Topics

Browse other coverage

Explore Other Topics

Browse other coverage

WM SPECIAL

Presents, discusses and draws readers to reflect on issues of outmost relevance to the world today.


FRONTIERS

Very often, mission is carried out in frontier situations around the world. Those who embrace these situations have much to share.


UNITY IN DIVERSITY

Writer Ilsa Reyes will be exploring the richness of Pope Francis’s latest encyclical Fratelli Tutti with a view of helping our readers to get a grasp of the this beautiful papal document.


FRONTLINE

Puts to the front committed and inspiring people around the world who embrace humanitarian and religious causes with altruism and passion.


IN FOCUS

Focus on a given theme of interest touching upon social, economic and religious issues.


FAITH@50

As the Philippines prepares to celebrate 500 years of the arrival of Christianity. Fr. James Kroeger leads us in this series into a discovery journey of the landmark events in the history of faith in the Philippine archipelago.


INSIGHT

Aims to nurture and inspire our hearts and minds while pondering upon timely themes.


FILIPINO FOCUS

The large archipelago of the Philippines, in its richness of peoples and cultures, offers varied and challenging situations for mission.


FOLLOW ME

Reflections and vocation stories that shape up the lives of young people.


MISSION IS FUN

As humor and goodness of heart are qualities of Christian and missionary life, the new column “Mission is fun” will be publishing some anecdotes and stories that have happened in a missionary context to lighten up the spirits and trigger a smile in our faces.


LIVING COMMUNION

To help readers of World Mission live this year dedicated to Ecumenism, Interreligious Dialogue and Indigenous Peoples, Tita Puangco, writer and lecturer, shares in this section insights on the spirituality of communion.


WINDS OF THE SPIRIT

A historic view of the Catholic movements that emerged from the grassroots as an inspiration by the Holy Spirit.


BRIDGE BUILDERS

On the Year of Ecumenism, Interreligious Dialogue and Indigenous Peoples, radio host and communicator Ilsa Reyes, in her monthly column, encourages Christians and people of good will to be one with their fellow people of other sects, religions and tribes.


INTERVIEW

Questions to a personality of the Church or secular world on matters of interest that touch upon the lives of people.


WORLD TOUCH

News from the Church, the missionary world and environment that inform and form the consciences.


CARE OF THE EARTH

A feature on environmental issues that are affecting the whole world with the view of raising awareness and prompting action.


EDITORIAL

The editor gives his personal take on a given topic related to the life of the Church, the society or the world.


YOUNG HEART

A monthly column on themes touching the lives of young people in the Year of the Youth in the Philippines by radio host and communicator I lsa Reyes.


SCROLL

A missionary living in the Chinese world shares his life-experiences made up of challenges and joyous encounters with common people.


EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE

Life stories of people who deserve to be known for who they were, what they did and what they stood for in their journey on earth.


ONE BY ONE

Stories of people whom a missionary met in his life and who were touched by Jesus in mysterious ways.


INCREASE OUR FAITH

Critical reflection from a Christian perspective on current issues.


SPECIAL MOMENTS

Comboni missionary Fr. Lorenzo Carraro makes a journey through history pinpointing landmark events that changed the course of humanity.


PROFILE

A biographical sketch of a public person, known for his/her influence in the society and in the Church, showing an exemplary commitment to the service of others.


WM REPORTS

Gives fresh, truthful, and comprehensive information on issues that are of concern to all.


LIFE'S ESSENTIALS

A column aimed at helping the readers live their Christian mission by focusing on what is essential in life and what it entails.


ASIAN FOCUS

Peoples, events, religion, culture and the society of Asia in focus.


THE SEARCHER'S PATH

The human heart always searches for greatness in God’s eyes, treading the path to the fullness of life - no matter what it takes.


INDIAN FOCUS

The subcontinent of India with its richness and variety of cultures and religions is given center stage.


AFRICAN FOCUS

The African continent in focus where Christianity is growing the fastest in the world.


JOURNEY MOMENTS

Well-known writer and public speaker, Fr. Jerry Orbos, accompanies our journey of life and faith with moments of wit and inspiration based on the biblical and human wisdom.


IGNATIUS STEPS

On the year dedicated to St. Ignatius of Loyala, Fr. Lorenzo Carraro walks us through the main themes of the Ignatian spirituality.


THE SEVEN LAST WORDS OF JESUS

Fr. John Taneburgo helps us to meditate every month on each of the Seven Last Words that Jesus uttered from the cross.


INSIDE THE HOLY BOOK

In this section, Fr. Lorenzo delves into the secrets and depths of the Sacred Scriptures opening for us the treasures of the Sacred Book so that the reader may delight in the knowledge of the Word of God.


CONVERSATIONS

Reflections about the synodal journey on a conversational and informal style to trigger reflection and sharing about the synodal path the Church has embarked upon.

Shopping Cart