June 10: “As the Church rejoices and experiences the fullness of the power of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we too rejoice as the Lord has given us 20 new candidates who have joined us” said Fr Ronald Serrao, Rector, welcoming the fresh batch of seminarians to the Seminary. He advised the candidates to allow themselves to be formed by the formators so that the Lord would make them His instruments to spread his Kingdom.
Though St Joseph’s Seminary, Jeppu, reopens every year on June 1, the new batch for First Year Philosophy arrives on the Second Sunday of June. Accordingly this year, on 10th June, 20 candidates belonging to a dozen diocese of South India entered the Seminary.
Fr Boniface Pinto, spiritual director of the First Year Philosophy, conducted a prayer service at 3. 00 p.m., where he made the candidates and their relatives who accompanied them reflect the goodness of the Lord in calling these young men to his service and invited all to pray to the Spirit of Lord who came on the apostles on the day of Pentecost to transform the new comers into his apostles.
St Joseph’s Interdiocesan Seminary, a reputed, well known seminary in India, presently has 190 resident students and another 28 day scholars belonging to over 30 dioceses and 6 religious congregations. It admits men who have a graduation or its equivalent aspiring to be priests. A candidate to priesthood is required to have 3 years of Philosophy leading to B.Ph degree followed by a year or two of regency (Pastoral Experience), and then 4 years of Theology leading to B.TH degree. The Seminary has 19 resident staff and 25 visiting staff.
