 "Photo: Courtesy of Katie Sullivan")
On Feb. 20th, Matt Reiman, A Class of 2009 graduate, walked into Our Lady of Wisdom Chapel on campus, as he had many times during his four years here. This time, he was wearing vestments and helped Father LaMorte conduct the service. Reiman is currently studying at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, and will be on campus several times each semester to participate in worship, Catholic Students Association activities, and to serve as mentor for students. Reiman, however, is not the only Marist student pursuing the priesthood.
After senior Matt Janczyk puts aside his graduation gown, it won't be long before he dons a habit as a novitiate in the Dominican Order.
Janczyk, a biomedical sciences major, had planned on going to medical school after college, but instead will study to be a friar in the Dominican Order.
Janczyk and Reiman cite the support of Father LaMorte as well as their own process of insight into a feeling of being called as big factors in their decision to seek out the consecrated life.
Reiman felt as though he had been called to join the seminary.
"There has been a feeling since I came back to practicing the faith, that it is something I am destined to do," Reiman said. "A big part of my decision was having great priests in my parish, Father LaMorte, and Father Luke Sweeney here at the seminary-people who are happy with the vocation they chose and supportive of others."
Father LaMorte remembers meeting Reiman when he was a sophomore, getting to know him better during his junior year, and living next door to him senior year.
"We began to talk about [seminary] at the beginning of his senior year. Whenever he had questions or thoughts he wanted to bounce off me, I responded to those from the vantage point of my experience," LaMorte said.
Janczyk also talked with LaMorte as he began to consider a life of religious service.
"I didn't grow up in an overly devout family. When I came to Marist, the idea of the priesthood came into my life briefly," Janczyk said. "Over a few months, it became a common thought and a question I needed to address."
While talking with LaMorte about this dynamic question, Jancyzk expressed concerns about the life of a diocesan priest
.
"I had the idea that it was lonely," Janczyk said. "Coming from a close family, having close friends, this was something I was initially worried about. That is definitely what pushed me to explore other options."
LaMorte recommended that Jancyzk look into the various religious orders as an alternative.
Through his research, Janczyk was interested by the "charisma of the Dominican Order" and their structure of communal living and prayer.
Going into an Order requires a different trajectory than the one Reiman will experience as he studies to be a diocesan priest.
Janczyk was named an aspirant, in recognition of his application, last April, and was accepted on Jan. 12th.
On July 5, he will begin Postulancy, a month-long residency and crash course in Dominican life at Providence College.
In August, he will don the Dominican habit and begin his novitiate year at St. Gertrude's in Cincinnati. After this orientation and discernment process, he will take a vow of obedience, in anticipation of later taking his solemn vows of obedience, chastity, and poverty. Then, he will move to the House of Studies in Washington, D.C. to begin the one to two years of philosophy and four years of theology that comprise seminary study.
Nearing the end of his first year at St. Joseph's, Reiman reflected on what he describes as "a pretty wild couple of months."
LaMorte also noted that while the basic seminary curriculum of Latin, philosophy and theology remains unchanged, policy on teaching methods is fluid and adapts to the times. "One of the side effects of this rigorous curriculum was that then, most of our textbooks were in Latin or for Scripture, in Greek,"LaMorte said.
During LaMorte's seminary study from 1960 to 1966, the Second Vatican Council began and many of the faculty were advisers to participating officials.
The teachers would discuss proposed changes with their students, energizing debate on key issues, but ultimately taught approaches and practices that had been around since the Council of Trent in the 16th century until the Second Vatican Council concluded.
LaMorte remembers the introduction of a psychology elective into the curriculum, as well as an increased awareness of administrative tasks.
The current seminarians at St. Joseph's also work towards fluency in Spanish to better serve the changing linguistic demographics of the Archdiocese of New York, which covers 10 counties, from Poughkeepsie to Staten Island.
Every weekday begins with morning prayers at 6 a.m., daily mass, and a holy hour of Eucharistic adoration and prayer. The rest of the day proceeds as expected: class, homework, and free time.
On Saturday morning, seminarians serve at their apostolic assignments.
"I go to a soup kitchen in the Bronx," said Reiman. "It's something I look forward to all week. You can immediately help a lot of people in desperate need. It's good to see so many others volunteering as well."
Social justice is a large part of the priesthood's role in the community, as it is for manyl Christians.
"Within the order, what I think is so provocative is the structure; it is based on the pillars of community life, prayer, study, and preaching," Janczyk said. "Friars are not always in the pulpit, they may be teaching or working with the poor."
Janczyk has had foreign mission experience. He traveled to Merida, Mexico with Marist Campus Ministry's Global Outreach during Spring Break 2009, where the students worked in an impoverished community.
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