By Stacy L. Graham-Hunt
Record-Journal
May 19, 2008
http://www.myrecordjournal.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=19703363&BRD=2755&PAG=461&dept_id=592709&rfi=6
CHESHIRE - Ryan Richardson had a normal childhood and adolescence. He had a girlfriend and a social life, but he wasn't happy.
Then a representative from the Legionaries of Christ Novitiate and Center for Humanities of Cheshire visited Loyola University in New Orleans to speak with students about life in a house of formation, also known as a seminary. Richardson, 27, wasn't immediately sold on the idea of becoming a priest, but he was intrigued by how happy the representative was. He wanted to get that same kind of happiness in his life.
The New Orleans native decided to try life as a legionary - the cassocks, or long black robes, celibacy, and lots of studying and praying.
At first, his mother struggled to understand his decision, Richardson said. Growing up, Richardson and his family only attended church on Christmas and Easter. His mother thought becoming a priest was a radical idea, and didn't like the idea of him traveling all the way to Connecticut. But now the whole family is more comfortable with his decision, Richardson said.
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| Johnathon Henninger |
The Legion of Christ, established in 1941, is a Catholic religious order, like the Jesuits or the Franciscans, which all have roles in the Catholic Church, said John Gatzak, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Hartford.
The legionaries' focus is working with families and creating Christian culture within them, Richardson said.
He is one of 160 seminarians at the Legionaries of Christ Novitiate who hope to become priests one day. This small community, established on Oak Avenue in Cheshire in 1982, is part of a worldwide group of 2,000 with 750 priests throughout 20 different countries.
"There is a real spirit of family," Richardson said.
The legionaries are also missionaries who travel to different countries to assist local churches in servicing their congregations.
"We like to think of ourselves as spiritual coaches," said Simon Devereux, a 29-year-old legionary who said he knew he wanted to become a priest when he was 7 years old. He came from a religious family in New Zealand and his older brothers are priests.
"I could just feel it in my heart," he said.
Seminarians take academic and religious classes for three years. While in the seminary, their days consist of prayer, church services, and classes in subjects such as foreign languages, history, math and preaching. They have some leisure time, but also must help maintain the building, do some gardening and laundry. They take field trips during the week that correspond with their academic curriculum, Devereux said.
The school recently received accreditation and can confer associate degrees for completing the academic portion, Richardson said. After candidates for the priesthood finish their time at the seminary, they must complete a three-year internship, and could be placed anywhere in the world, he said.
When they have completed their years of training, they are ordained as priests in Rome. The entire process can take 12 to 15 years, said Allan Wirfel, one of the seminarians.
The 29-year-old Pennsylvania native first started thinking about the priesthood when he was a sophomore in high school. The calling to the church would come and go over the years.
He had girlfriends in college, and when he told his friends he was going to train to become a priest, some were incredulous, he said. Wirfel's parents felt the normal thing would have been for him to get married and have children like his brothers did, he said.
As priests in training, they have to be celibate, a sacrifice Devereux said is difficult to describe. Sometimes, people go through the seminary and are unable or unwilling to make the necessary sacrifices to become a priest, he added. If a candidate for the priesthood is not truly called by God to serve, it's best for them and the church if they leave, Wirfel said.
Devereux believes the failure to identify men unsuited for the seminary may have contributed to the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. Although pedophiles make up only a small percentage of Catholic priests, Devereux said one is too many.
Nine people accused the founder of the Legion of Christ, Marcial Maciel, of sexual abuse in the 1970s. Although one of those took back his statement, more allegations have surfaced since Maciel's death in January.
When Richardson was researching the Legion of Christ on several Web sites before attending the seminary, he learned of the allegations and said he was concerned.
"They were some serious allegations," Richardson said.
He spoke with a priest he knew at home about what he learned. The priest told Richardson he had worked with Maciel for three years, but never got the sense that he would do something like that, so Richardson felt more at ease about joining the seminary.
"We have a deep appreciation for him because he's our founder," Richardson said.
In other parts of the country, the Legionaries of Christ have drawn criticism for their methods of recruitment and their approach to ministry.
In 2004, the archbishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis banned the legionaries' involvement in the archdiocese out of concerns that the religious order was trying to create a parallel church. The legion "separates persons from the local parish and archdiocese and creates competing structures," according to a letter by Archbishop Harry J. Flynn.
The Cheshire seminarians dismissed the criticism.
"You can't have good fruit fall from bad trees," Richardson said.
In the three years that he's studied at the seminary, Richardson said he's been happy and that, unlike some of the claims, he is not prevented from having contact with the outside world, although he did say seminarians have limited access to the Internet to prevent problems with pornographic Web sites.
Devereux was happy to hear Pope Benedict XVI address the sexual abuse scandal in the church during his Mass at Yankee Stadium April 20, a speech Devereux and other seminarians from Cheshire attended.
"He needed to say it," Devereux said.
The pope was apologetic and encouraging in his speech, looking toward a more positive future for the Catholic Church, Devereux said.
When Richardson wears his collar in public he said he feels like others are examining his actions, but he sees it as an opportunity to restore the image of the church if people see him acting positively. He called his vocation a blessing.
"It strikes me how mysterious it is," he said.
The young seminarians feel blessed to have the opportunity to help make the world a better place for others to live in.
"The greatest treasure we have on Earth is people," Devereux said.
Contact: sgrahamhunt@record-journal.com (203) 317-2230.
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