Spiritual Formation

Spiritual formation is at the heart of all priestly formation, as it is directed at “nourishing and sustaining communion with God and with our brothers and sisters, in friendship with Jesus the Good Shepherd, and with an attitude of docility to the Holy Spirit.” (RFIS [2016] 101) Only prayer, as the expression of the seminarian’s intimate relationship with God, has the power to give direction and bring to a satisfactory conclusion the variety of matters dealt within the course of initial formation. During their formation, seminarians can become distracted and even anxious about the many different obligations expected of them. They are to be helped to develop a unity of life which gives direction and a sense of proportion to the various aspects of the programme of preparation for priestly ministry. Through prayer, this unity will be found in the spiritual life, which means a following of “the example of Christ the Lord, whose meat was to do the will of him who sent him that he might perfect his work”. (RFIS [2016] 101) This unity of life, rooted in prayer, is what ensures that the seminarian’s journey of priestly formation is properly integrated and will be indispensable as a foundation for a healthy and holy future ministry as a Priest.

Spiritual formation for the future Priest, as for any Christian, involves a journey of faith in which the seminarian follows the example of Christ the Lord, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, to the glory of God the Father.

In the College, the formal aspect of Spiritual Formation centres around the spiritual accompaniment the seminarian receives from the Spiritual Director which also includes classes on spirituality. The seminarian takes part in two major retreat periods at the start of the year and during Holy week and there are three days of recollection throughout the year. The daily liturgy of the celebration of the Mass and morning and evening prayer form part of that same spiritual formation. In terms of the ‘informal’ spiritual formation, the seminarian is encouraged to become a ‘contemplative in action’, seeing every moment and encounter of the day as an opportunity to experience the ways of God.