Published 08-25-24

FR. DAN SHAUGHNESSY

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

A new school year has arrived! For us here in Wentzville, that means we will soon be meeting seminarians assigned to the parish for the 2024-2025 academic year. This year, we will have 3 men joining our parish community. While at Kenrick and in the parish, the men take part in a rigorous formation program, led by the 4 pillars of formation.

Those pillars are Spiritual, Human, Intellectual and Pastoral formation. A man enters the seminary to be formed into a shepherd after the mind and heart of Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd. His intellectual-cultural formation takes place principally, but not exclusively in a classroom setting. Typically, the seminarian of today receives a Master of Divinity (M. Div.) and/or a Master of Arts (M.A.). His spiritual and human formation take place through the regular spiritual exercises of the seminary, including daily Mass, Morning prayer and Evening prayer, Spiritual Direction, Days of Recollection, Retreats, frequent confession, recitation of the Rosary, holy hours, etc. The seminarian’s pastoral formation takes place in a parish setting and varies from year to year. That’s where we come in here at St. Patrick.

Specific to pastoral formation, its goal is to prepare men who will enter into the Christian community with the charity of Christ the Good Shepherd; to stand and act in the community in the name and person of Jesus Christ, Head and Shepherd of the Church. In short, they are called to witness the love of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to each and every one of us!

The seminarians assigned to St. Patrick Parish in Wentzville for the 2024-25 academic year are:

Intern John Paul Angeli. We just formally introduced John Paul this past weekend. He will be with us 24/7 until June. The goal of the internship/pastoral year is to immerse the man into the life of the parish. John Paul’s introduction letter was in the bulletin for August 17/18, 2024.

Transitional Deacon Cesar Gomez is in his Vocational Synthesis (formerly known as Theology 4 year). He is studying for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and God willing he will be ordained a priest in May 2025. The Leaven, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas shared the following: "Gomez never dreamed of becoming an American citizen, but he knew he wanted to be a priest from a young age.

He grew up with a mom, dad, older sister and two older brothers. He was raised Catholic, but his family didn’t practice the faith. Gomez was able to attend religious education, and it was there he felt the desire to become a priest. At age 13, he finally shared that aspiration with his parents, who were confused and surprised but ultimately supportive. In 2015, that dream carried him to Kansas, where he stepped foot on U.S. soil for the first time at age 20. He didn’t speak English and needed a translator to talk to Father Scott Wallisch, the archdiocesan vocation director at the time, who welcomed him with open arms.

Theology One Seminarian Erich Wiitala is a seminarian studying for the Diocese of Lafayette in Indiana. He will be working with the youth group during the upcoming academic year. Having finished his Philosophy studies, he has just started his official studies in Theology at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary. Prior to seminary, Erich received a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports Management and played Division 2 Lacrosse. Reflecting upon his call to discern the priesthood, he shared that in 2020, he really started to pray intensely coupled with a return to the Sacraments. Along that journey, he sought the counsel of priests, seeking answers to all sorts of questions that he had about Christianity. In this seeking, he was struck by Our Lord Jesus with a ton of grace which led to a deep conversion.

Again, John Paul will be with us 24/7; Deacon Cesar will be with us on the weekends; and Erich will be with us on Sundays! Please join me in welcoming these 3 seminarians to the St. Patrick Parish Community.

Yours in Christ,
Fr. Dan Shaughnessy