Our alumni encountered a full day of activities at last week's Priests' Day at St. Patrick's Seminary. At Nativity School's gym, their blood got moving with a hard-fought morning basketball game. In the afternoon, the minds of our alumni were exercised by an extremely thought-provoking presentation by Fr. Dennis McManus, followed by an evening Mass celebrated by Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone. We had an excellent homily by Msgr. John Talesfore. Our alumni celebrated the day with a lively social and dinner, where we awarded the Patrician Award to Father Kevin Joyce for his excellent teaching and ongoing support of St. Patrick's Seminary. We also honored our 2019 Jubilarians from the Ordination Classes of 1959, 1969, 1979, and 1994.
Fr. Dennis McManus gave an engaging presentation, entitled Imitate What You Celebrate: Liturgy and Priestly Identity. Among many topics, he focused on the liturgy itself as a school of spirituality for the priest. He emphasized that theologians rightly spend time researching the effects of the sacraments in their recipients, but unfortunately don't consider the profound effect on those same sacraments on the priest. For example, Confession and Eucharist have a significant impact on the priest, too. By celebrating the Roman Rite, the spirituality and ministry of the priest can be oriented towards Christ and better define his identity in today's modern world.
Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone along with many other clergy as concelebrants. Msgr. John Talesfore delivered a beautiful homily reflecting on a difficult time in his childhood and how it helped form him into the person that he is today. The homily touched people on both an intellectual and emotive level.
The Priests' Day events ended with a social and dinner in the refectory. Fr. Dan awarded the Patrician Award to Father Kevin Joyce for his contributions to St. Patrick's Seminary. We also recognized our 2019 Jubilarians from the Ordination Classes of 1959, 1969, 1979, and 1994.
You can view a slideshow of the entire day's events below. Thanks to everyone who made the day a complete success.