Three men declare candidacy for Holy Orders and are bestowed with the Roman collar for the Archdiocese of Detroit
DETROIT ─ Jonathan Forrest has traded in his bow ties for a Roman collar.
The seminarian for the Archdiocese of Detroit, who is in his first year of the Configuration stage of priestly formation, was one of three, along with seminarians Jake Rapanotti and Brendan Tabone, who declared their formal candidacy for Holy Orders to Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger during the Candidacy Mass on Aug. 6 at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Detroit.
Forrest, a St. Joseph in Lake Orion parishioner, said the liturgy marks a point in his formation where he declares he’s “all in” in his discernment of whether God is calling him to be a priest.
“The significance behind today is the Candidacy Mass is for those going into their first year of Configuration – or Theology as it once was called – and is a declaration of acceptance into really discerning deeper into the priesthood,” Forrest told Detroit Catholic.
The candidates have completed their pre-theology studies and can now be seen in Roman collars while performing liturgical functions or walking the halls of Sacred Heart Major Seminary. It is a noticeable difference for seminarians like Forrest, as he and his brother seminarians configure their hearts closer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ.
“It’s a new development for me,” Forrest said. “I used to wear bow ties; so, if you ever see the older vocation posters at all in the parish, I’m the only one with the bow tie. But now I’m going into deeper discernment, just maturing and being a man of intellect. Building that personal relationship with Christ and allowing myself to surrender to Him and have Him guide me through this process.”
The Candidacy Mass means the Church officially recognizes these three men as candidates for Holy Orders, explains Fr. Craig Giera, director of priestly vocations for the Archdiocese of Detroit.
“It’s a big step into the next phase of their lives,” Fr. Giera said. “They’re also going on to study Theology now, and they’re very excited that while at the seminary and doing religious things, they’re allowed to wear the collar. It’s a big transformation not only spiritually, but also visually, and how they carry themselves and everything that comes with it.”
The three men now enter the Configuration stage of their seminary formation, which involves four years of studying Theology. In that time period, the seminarians will go through the Rite of Lector and the Rite of Acolyte.
The Candidacy Mass invites the men to go into a deeper level of discernment, Fr. Giera said.
“As the Configuration goes, the man should really be quite sure in his vocational journey as it is being configured more to Christ the high priest, to be able to go out and serve and to minister to others,” Fr. Giera said. “This is one of the rites that says, ‘OK, we recognize you that you’re going forward, and that you should be moved on to Holy Order in a couple of years.”
During his homily, Archbishop Weisenburger urged the three candidates to follow where Jesus leads in their vocation.
Archbishop Weisenburger reflected on the Gospel passage from St. Luke for the Feast of the Transfiguration, recalling how earlier in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus told His disciples He would suffer and die in Jerusalem, much to the Apostles' dismay.
“A disciple follows where the Master leads,” Archbishop Weisenburger said. “After Jesus tells the Apostles about His death and resurrection, He strengthens them by taking these three blessed Apostles up to the mountain, and it’s incredible; they don’t want to leave.
“But Jesus is speaking with Moses and Elijah, and speaking about His Exodus, His death and resurrection, and they (the Apostles) want to stay in His glory,” Archbishop Weisenburger continued. “And God says, ‘Guys, this is my Son, listen to Him.’”
Archbishop Weisenburger said Christian discipleship is centered on following the words of Christ and going where Christ is leading. For the men declaring their candidacy for Holy Orders, it means anticipating the joys that are to come in their vocations, while also preparing for the challenges Christ is calling on them to undertake.
“There is going to be suffering, there are going to be challenges, but there is going to be glory as well,” Archbishop Weisenburger said. “But you have to follow, you have to be faithful. For the men today declaring their candidacy, there are going to be moments of glory, but you have to listen to the Master and go where He leads. Let us always follow where the Master leads and listen to what He says.”
