Nine men are part of inaugural preparatory program, which allows seminarians to unplug from technology, grow in virtue
DETROIT — Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron blessed Sacred Heart Major Seminary’s new John Paul II Propaedeutic Wing on Sept. 19.
The wing is reserved for first-year seminarians going through the propaedeutic year of formation, a time when the men remove themselves from technology and the rigors of a typical academic schedule to focus on personal and spiritual formation. "Propaedeutic" means preparatory or preliminary.
Fr. Stephen Pullis, director of the propaedeutic house at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, said the wing — a repurposed residence hall — is a reserved space for the men to concentrate on their own formation as they get used to seminary life.
“The wing is set up to be a house where the men can grow in holiness, virtue and fraternity,” Fr. Pullis told Detroit Catholic. “It is very low on technology; we don’t have our phones or our laptops around all the time. There is a nice community space for reading and fraternal time. There is a nice kitchen where they share meals together, and it’s a space set apart from the rest of the seminary community for this year of intensive human and spiritual formation.”
Nine men from three dioceses are in Sacred Heart’s inaugural propaedeutic program, where they have liturgies, meals, class structure and fraternity time away from the rest of the seminary.
The propaedeutic cohort does take part in larger liturgies in the community, and there is built-in time for the men to associate with other seminarians — particularly those of their own diocese — but the John Paul II Propaedeutic Wing is a sort of “clubhouse” for the first-year seminarians.
“The main feature of this new John Paul II Propaedeutic Wing is, first of all, it is set apart,” Fr. Pullis said. “It’s a separate wing of the seminary. So the men can live their different schedules and different disciplines in a way they can really support that.”
The propaedeutic schedule is set up to provide both structure and the ability to utilize free time, Fr. Pullis said. After some classes in the morning, the men have time to dabble in the arts or literature before gathering together for evening prayer.
The wing is stocked with books, pieces of art and other forms of recreation that allow the men to unplug — literally and figuratively — and connect with God and their fellow seminarians.
“One of the most striking features of the propaedeutic year is the stepping away from technology, away from cellphones and ready access to email and computers,” Fr. Pullis said. “For a lot of men, that’s been a great blessing for them. To do that in community with each other allows them to really focus on growing in human virtue, growing in spiritual life, hearing the Lord and building that friendship together. So far, it’s been a tremendous start of a long year of growing in spiritual formation.”
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