Steps ALong the Way
Considering Priesthood:
“How YOU Become A Seminarian... Steps Along The Way.”
It takes a real man to be a priest. Discerning whether God is calling you to this challenging vocation will require of you prayer, courage, effort, careful reflection and humility. As a man inquiring about the diocesan priesthood in the Diocese of Des Moines, you are obviously involving yourself in an important decision-making process. As the Director of Vocations, I am here to help you in any way that I can, by providing information, counseling, discernment guidance, retreat opportunities, etc.
Through the Director of Vocations, the bishop must get to know you well enough to confirm any decision made to enter the seminary. In other words, a decision is made by the Office of Vocations and the seminary as to whether entering the seminary is indeed the best thing for you at this time in your life. The process involves meetings with the Director of Vocations, visiting seminary schools to meet seminarians and seminary faculty, an in-depth application process detailed below, and meeting with the bishop. These steps are performed to help assess your suitability and maturity for this sacred and challenging vocation. All of this must be done in the context of prayer, as all of us involved in this decision must attend to the Lord’s unique call to you. The following details the process:
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS:
In addition to preliminary conversations, there will be several in-depth interviews, both by the Director of Vocations and later by an interview team.
APPLICATION AND ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES:
When you are ready to apply as a seminarian candidate, the procedure has several steps.
a) Recommendations: Will will need you to provide three references, in addition to your pastor, of people who would be able to provide a recommendation for you. This list could include people with whom you have worked, friends, at least one priest (other than your pastor), professors or teachers (especially guidance counselors) if you have been in school recently, and other acquaintances.
b) Psychological Testing: This testing is intended to confirm what I already know about you and to give you additional insights into yourself. The tests are administered by psychologists who work in close collaboration with our office and have been familiarity with what we are looking for from these tests.
c) Application: Along with the application forms themselves, we will need two copies of the following
All these materials are to be returned to the Office of Vocations.
d) Background Check: Handled by the Diocese. Release form must be filled out by the candidate
e) Meeting with Bishop and Formal Acceptance: At the conclusion of the formal application procedure, you will meet with Bishop Pates and following a decision will be made regarding your acceptance as a seminarian of the Diocese of Des Moines.
f) Seminary Application and Acceptance: Once accepted as a seminarian of the Diocese of Des Moines, you will then begin a separate process for acceptance to a particular seminary. The seminary you enter may depend upon any or all of the following: your level of education, academic ability, and your personality and preference. Ultimately, this decision must have the approval of Bishop Pates.
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