The Pastoral Formation Program is coordinated with and integrated into the spiritual and academic spheres of the Seminary. The program aims to provide seminarians with an opportunity for personal involvement in and practical exercise of the pastoral ministry. Seminarians learn the art of exercising the apostolate not only in theory but in practice. This dimension of learning through active engagement in the ministry is seen as an integral part of the total formation of the future priest, drawing from the academic and spiritual aspects and, in turn, feeding back into and enriching them. Active pastoral involvement, when properly designed and supervised, is educational in nature.
Field work is a laboratory for learning through practice.
Such learning is coordinated by the Director of Pastoral Formation. The student will serve for two consecutive years in the same parish. Parishes will be carefully chosen for the fullest pastoral development of each seminarian and stress will be placed upon thorough student evaluation. Language studies take place during their third and fourth years. For those entering Hispanic or Italian ministries, immersion courses will be provided.