After seven years of formation,
Fr. Anthony Van Berkum, OP, had no ‘aha’ moment, but became more assured as he studied and prayed

WASHINGTON ­— Fr. Anthony Van Berkum, OP, never really had a “snap conversion moment.”

There was no bolt of lightning, no immediate rush of insight in his discernment to become a priest.

It was more deliberate, methodical. It involved years of prayer, study, reflection and community — a discernment process befitting any Dominican, also known as the Order of Preachers.

His discernment started at Stanford University, where the Grosse Pointe Farms native attended after graduating from Warren De La Salle High School in 2010. There, he came across the Dominicans Friars of the Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus, who administer Stanford’s campus ministry.

“I think there was a desire to be a priest before being a Dominican, but not by a large portion,” Fr. Van Berkum said in an interview with Detroit Catholic after being ordained a priest in Washington, D.C., on May 23. “A key part for me was going to daily Mass. The summer before college, I worked at a Catholic summer camp in Chicago that had daily Mass. Then when I got to Stanford, we had Mass on campus, prayed the rosary, and daily Mass led to my interest in the priesthood.”

After graduating with a bachelor’s in physics in 2013, Fr. Van Berkum joined the order as a novice in Cincinnati before heading to Washington and the Dominican House of Studies to begin a seven-year journey in formation.

“There weren’t any dramatic moments, but it was gradual as I got to know the friars,” said Fr. Van Berkum, whose family attends St. Paul on the Lake Parish in Grosse Pointe Farms. “I kept praying, asking the Lord to show me where He wanted me to go. Eventually, I felt this desire that seemed to come from the Lord, to live the Dominican life.”

Fr. Van Berkum’s discernment consisted of routine: daily Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours, studying and living in community with his brother Dominicans — including his biological brother, Bro. Luke Van Berkum, the second Dominican born to Mark and Michaele Van Berkum. In total, Fr. Anthony is the oldest of seven.

Whenever he was having struggles or doubts about life as a Dominican, it was the very nature of Dominican life that brought him clarity, Fr. Van Berkum said.

“The challenges I came across were challenges that were answered in the Dominican life; the answer wasn’t to leave,” Fr. Van Berkum said. “The more I discerned, the more I study, the more I saw God still using this instrument (the Dominican Order) to preach the Gospel.”

Praying with his brothers the Liturgy of the Hours and being together while praying in silence and listening and discerning homilies — the primary mode of preaching for the Dominicans — made Fr. Van Berkum fall in love with being a priest over and over again.

“At its root, the liturgy is a place for an encounter with God,” Fr. Van Berkum said. “That is where God meets us on earth, using earthly things. That’s what we are made for, so of course that’s attractive.”

Fr. Van Berkum is ordained, but his studies aren’t over; a Dominican’s studies are never really over. After spending time this summer back home with his parents, Fr. Van Berkum will be assisting at St. Vincent-St. Catherine of Siena Parish and the neighboring Dominican Priory in New York City.

Fr. Van Berkum also plans to do hospital ministry this summer and is currently finishing an application and health screening to enter hospitals amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the fall, he will begin studying for a canon law degree at the Catholic University of America in Washington.

After a seven-year journey, Fr. Van Berkum said he’s still not done discerning what God wants from him.

“I’m always working on my vows. In a sense, we are trusting God in this work. In this world, we can never be sure this where we need to be, so we trust in God,” Fr. Van Berkum said. 

“There’s something about a vow of obedience for me where you put it all before the Lord through the order, obeying what my superiors tell me,” Fr. Van Berkum added. “It makes things a lot simpler, focusing all my energies on serving the people I’m in front of now.”