Part 7 – Our Greatest Power: Made in God’s Image

“I learned [Wisdom] without guile and I impart without grudging; I do not hide her wealth, for it is an unfailing treasure for men; those who get it obtain friendship with God, commended for the gifts that come from instruction.” —Wis 7:13-14

In keeping with the building analogy, intellectual formation acts as the structural support that connects the human foundation with the walls of the spiritual life. When the walls are built higher, the support needed to keep them from collapsing will increase. This is the role of intellectual formation in the seminary. The correct way to approach theological studies is with the mentality of faith seeking understanding. This is not learning for the sake of passing required classes or to become the know-it-all priest at the parish. These classes are to help deepen the seminarian’s spiritual life and to pass on these teachings to his future parishioners.

Humans are interesting in view of the rest of Creation. We are a hybrid of two distinct realities: physical and spiritual. We are beings that have a physical body but also have a spiritual soul. This spiritual soul is the source of our intellect and will. St. Augustine, in his treatise on the Trinity, states that it is our spiritual soul and its powers that make us “made in God’s Image”. Just as God is Wisdom and Love, so do we have the ability to grow in wisdom and love. Our intellect, which is much weaker than that of God and the angels, is our highest power. The intellect, which begins with nothing, desires to be filled with spiritual goods: Truth, Goodness, Beauty, and Unity. This intellectual desire is the power source of the will. The will strives to gain what the intellect recognizes as good, and by gaining it, man receives happiness. Ultimately, these spiritual powers desire to be filled by God, who encompasses these goods to the fullest extent. This is our true purpose: to come to know God and see Him as He is. We can only truly love God when we get to know Him, and this is the purpose of intellectual formation.

I am not saying that everyone needs to become a theologian to get into Heaven. Gaining knowledge only for the sake of knowing more than others is simply another form of greed and pride. However, I am emphasizing the importance of learning for a better spiritual life. God gave us the gift of reason to learn about Him and the world He created for us. What kind of children would we be if we did not want to learn more about our Father in Heaven and what He does to care for us? What kind of disciples would we be if we only receive God’s teachings at Sunday Mass? How can we spread the Gospel of Christ to others when we do not know full story of our salvation? God has given us a valuable talent and the means to use it, but it is easy to bury it under the cares and distractions of the world.

The primary reason seminary formation can take anywhere from seven to ten years is because of the number of topics covered for priestly training. Seminary classes include: History of Philosophy, Metaphysics, Anthropology (the study of man), Epistemology (the study of knowledge), Ethics, Political and Social Philosophy, Latin, Greek, Trinitarian theology, Christology, Sacred Scripture, Church History, Moral Theology, Sexual Ethics, Liturgical Theology, classes on each of the Sacraments, Homiletics, Bioethics, Eschatology (the study of the Final Judgement, Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory), Pneumatology (the study of the Holy Spirit), and various other topics. All these are considered necessary for a priest to be a good teacher and guide for his parish. As he studies and prays with these topics, the seminarian must remember that these classes are not for his own good only but for the good formation of his people. For those who currently support him as he studies and for those he will teach and guide in the future, every seminarian has a duty to study and pray seriously every day.