Graduate Pilgrimage: 2016
4 Days. 30 Men. 1 Priest. We recently returned to Conception Seminary College from the Rector’s Pilgrimage and thus, its time for a little blog update.
The Rector’s Pilgrimage is a chance for soon to be graduates of CSC to spend time with each other and Fr. Brendan, our Rector, to visit a couple of theology schools that many dioceses send seminarians for graduate study. This year Fr. Brendan took the seminarians to St. Meinrad School of Theology in Indiana, which is run by St. Meinrad Archabbey, the home monastery of Fr. Brendan and Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis.
The Conception Alumni greeted us well into the night after an 8-hour drive led us to Meinrad in the later hours of the evening. It was incredibly encouraging to see the men who had spent some time with us at Conception now a step closer to the priesthood. One of the greatest parts of Meinrad besides the men was the campus itself. St. Meinrad was one of the first Benedictine establishments in the United States and has beautiful architecture. The school itself is so large that it was very easy to get lost! Some students whose diocese send to St. Meinrad were able to sit in on classes to get a feel of the academics. The rest of us were free to explore and visit with other men. It was around 4 pm on Thursday when our short but beautiful visit led us to our next destination.
The next leg of the trip was a visit to Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. We arrived in St. Louis shortly before 10 pm to also be welcomed by Conception Alumni that now attend Kenrick. The school itself was vastly different as there was not multiple buildings, but one. It was much smaller than St. Meinrad, but recent renovations make it a truly beautiful place. All students were welcome to join in prayer and sit in on classes, but fun was also a part of the trip. Friday night was spent exploring the historic city of St. Louis.
A highlight of the trip was a visit to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. It is truly space to worship, and I was mesmerized by the sights within.
All in all, the Rector’s Pilgrimage was a great experience! As soon to be graduates of Conception Seminary College, it was wonderful to have the chance to renew and strengthen the bonds between my brother seminarians as we look towards the next steps of seminary formation.
