DETROIT — In a continuing sign of growth for the future of lay ministry in the Church, Sacred Heart Major Seminary announced its 2018 graduating class was the largest in 30 years, with 98 individuals earning 114 certificates, diplomas or degrees.

In an article in the seminary’s magazine, Mosaic, Sacred Heart reported that its 2018 commencement exercises, held April 28, saw more graduates than any previous year since the institution was refounded as a major seminary under Cardinal Edmund C. Szoka in 1988.

The 2018 class included lay students, clergy and religious, with lay ministry students comprising 57.1 percent — 56 out of 98 — of the class.

David Twellman, D.Minn., assistant dean of studies and registrar at Sacred Heart, told Mosaic the growth in the seminary’s enrollment can be attributed to more people becoming “hungry for the faith.”

“The core thing is that here they learn what it means to love God and to know God’s truth, and can then go out and apply that,” Twellman said.

Twellman told The Michigan Catholic the seminary projects continued strong enrollment for 2018-19, with hopes of more than 500 students.

During his homily at the 2018 baccalaureate Mass, celebrated in Sacred Heart’s chapel, Archbishop Vigneron told the graduates their mission was the same as the great evangelizers who came before them.

“My own experience is that there is no better way to possess what I seek to know and understand than to share it. And I’m sure you have that great satisfaction today,” Archbishop Vigneron told the graduates.

Lay ministry classes offered online

Those with busy lives who are interested in pursuing lay ecclesial ministry certification through the Archdiocese of Detroit can now do so online, thanks to a new initiative offered by Sacred Heart Major Seminary.

Ryan Cahill, director of admissions and enrollment management for the seminary, announced the program in a letter to parishes June 5.

“In response to the needs being expressed by lay leaders across the archdiocese and prompted by Archbishop Vigneron’s pastoral letter, Unleash the Gospel, the academic component for Lay Ecclesial Ministerial Certification is now available online,” Cahill wrote. “Lay leaders will now have access to the same high caliber professors and courses offered at the seminary, with the convenience and flexibility of online courses to fit their studies into their busy lives.”

Parish leaders working in Christian service, youth ministry, liturgical music, religious education or RCIA are invited to take certification courses. In addition, the seminary has partnered with the Archdiocese of Detroit’s Office of Evangelization and Catechesis to offer scholarship packages for students seeking lay ministry certification.

For information, visit www.shms.edu/cert.