Our Mission

St. Patrick’s Seminary & University is a Catholic educational community that forms priests of Jesus Christ who is teacher, priest, and shepherd.

Our Vision

St. Patrick’s Seminary & University seeks to serve the Roman Catholic Church in the ministerial context of the Pacific Region of the United States by forming priests whose lives are configured to the sacrifice of Jesus, rooted in His Word and Sacrament, and dedicated to serve the people of God with the pastoral charity of Christ.

Our Core Values

Our Core Values flow from the four dimensions of priestly formation and our Mission Statement, which presents Jesus Christ as Priest, Teacher, and Shepherd. Thus, of the seven values, the first is overarching, integrating all the values, and then of the remaining six, two correspond to each of these three Christological dimensions. These values are being integrated throughout the institution, not only linking our Mission Statement with the Program Learning Outcomes but also more broadly with the spiritual and human formation dimensions.

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TEACHING, WATCHING OVER, AND GUIDING THE PEOPLE OF GOD

Spiritual Fatherhood is characterized by “apostolic maturity and spiritual fruitfulness”. (John Paul II, Letter to Priests, 1988, 4) It is seen especially in the prayerful self-sacrifice necessary for offering worthily the Mass and begetting new life through preaching the Word and celebrating the Sacraments. The priest constantly devotes himself in loving service to the people of God in imitation of Jesus Christ, watching over them, guiding them in the truths of the faith, and teaching them holy virtue, especially by his own example.

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LIVING IN FAITHFULNESS TO SCRIPTURE, TRADITION, AND THE MAGISTERIUM

Fidelity is a living relation of affection incorporating the whole person. It entails faithfulness “to the Word of God, committed to writing in the Scriptures, handed on in Tradition, and authentically interpreted in the Magisterium”. (Ratio Fundamentalis, 140) It binds the priest to his holy vocation, to the filial relationship he has with his bishop, and the personal encounter with the Lord, which defines his priesthood.

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CONFORMING TO THE PERSON OF CHRIST

Holiness is a conformity to the person of Christ. It springs from a “deep interior life”, disciplined “plan of prayer”, and unshakable “Eucharistic spirituality”. (Directory for the Ministry and Life of Priests, 44, 50) It consists in the recognition that the priest is called to a life of perfection in the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity, as well as the moral virtues. It is manifest in a love of God and a love of one’s neighbor. Confirmed by divine grace, “he must cooperate with Christ, the only and eternal Priest; he must follow Him and imitate Him.” (Menti Nostrae, 12)

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PURSUING TRUTH THROUGH A DEEP IMMERSION IN THE TRADITION

Wisdom is a gift of the Holy Spirit that enables one to embrace the pursuit of Truth. It enables one to see that all truths are rooted in the one Divine Truth. Both speculative and practical, truth is nourished and pursued through a deep immersion in the Catholic philosophical and theological tradition, and seminarians should “acquire a living sense of the Tradition from the works of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, whom the Church holds in high esteem.” (Ratio Fundamentalis, 140)

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WITNESSING TO THE GOSPEL FOR THE SALVATION OF ALL

Evangelization witnesses the Gospel by translating the person and life of Jesus Christ in an intellectual and affective manner for the salvation of all. As Pope Paul VI writes, at its heart, is comprised of "kerygma, preaching or catechesis” that contains "as the foundation, center, and at the same time summit of its dynamism, a clear proclamation that in Jesus Christ the Son of God made man, who died and rose from the dead, salvation is offered to all men, as a gift of God's grace and mercy.” (Evangelii Nutiandi, 22, 27)

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EMBRACING HARDSHIP AND WELCOMING THE CROSS OF CHRIST

Resilience is the exercise of the virtue of fortitude. It allows the priest to endure and withstand the trials and hardships of priestly ministry with calm, embracing and recovering from adversity and suffering. Always exhibiting a strong work ethic, resilience allows the priest to welcome these periods of confusion, pain and stress, seeing in them opportunities to unite himself to the redemptive suffering of Christ, which redounds to a more fruitful ministry. St. John of the Cross wrote that though “the path is plain and smooth for people of good will, those who walk it will not travel far, and will do so only with difficulty if they do not have good feet, courage, and tenacity of spirit.” (The Sayings of Light and Love, no. 3)

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SEEKING OUT THE LOST AND SUFFERING

Compassion allows the priest to recognize the suffering of others and prompts him to make Christ present to them in prayerful accompaniment. Following the mercy of Jesus, the priest patiently and joyfully seeks out those who are lost and vulnerable and works to alleviate their suffering when possible or to suffer with them in solidarity. Pope Francis writes that compassion moves the priest to "go out to others, seek those who have fallen away, and welcome the outcast, out of a desire to show mercy, the fruit of his own experience of the power of the Father’s infinite mercy." (Wake Up the World, 24)

Mission, Vision, and Core Values