Reflections on 2002 Conference
Hear what seminarians are saying about our first annual
conference!
Seminarian Life Link has changed my life. It is crucial that
all seminarians join in the fight to end the evil of abortion
in our country. We are not going to be in training forever.
Soon, very soon, we will be on the front of the battle lines.
We cannot wait until we are ordained to start protecting our
brothers and sisters from the harm of abortion. It needs to
start now! The conference this summer was absolutely life
changing. The things that we learned during those five days
I will never forget. One of the greatest things I discovered
at the conference is that there is plenty of support in fighting
this battle against evil. Human Life must be protected from
Conception until Natural Death.
Joshua Zeller
Pontifical College Josephinum, Columbus, Ohio
I have always been active in Pro-Life work, this was
so mainly because of the influence of my parents. This
was also so because I could clearly see that abortion
is wrong. Before this retreat however I did not
understand or even really grasp the full reality of
abortion. This time away helped me to immerse myself
into the real pain that it brings to the lives of so
many in our world. But it did not leave me there. It
drew me into the redemptive work of Christ and His
Church in relieving that pain and bringing and end to
the evil of abortion. It helped me to realize how
essential this work is for all of us. This work is my
work united with Christ Whom I serve!
John Paul Kuzma
St. Mark's Minor Seminary, Erie, PA
I didn’t expect the Seminarian Life Link retreat to
be such an eye-opener for me, but that is what it was. It
was an affirming, yet challenging, experience for myself.
It was affirming in the sense that I found both support in
discernment for the priesthood as well as a strengthening
of my commitment to the sanctity of life. But it was challenging
in that it opened new avenues of thought and action that I
could use in defending life. With the insights I gained from
the Seminarian Life Link retreat, I was better equipped to
fight the good fight in defending the poorest of the poor,
the unborn. At the same time, however, my new insights have
challenged me to become a more effective witness to truth
in the face of a culture of death. On the basis of my experience,
I affirm all that Seminarian Life Link is doing to build a
society that is founded upon loving relationships between
God and all of His children.
Bill Barron
St. Mark's Minor Seminary, Erie, PA
Thank you Seminarian Life Link and Priests for Life for having
this conference for seminarians, such as myself. I was profoundly
moved by all of the presentations at the conference. For me,
the most informing and spiritually moving part of the conference
was Fr. Pavone's tremendous insights on how the Gospel of
Life IS the Gospel of Christ. Abortion and all of the other
life issues are NOT a side issue to what we believe as Christians.
The gospel of death that we see proclaimed in our communities
is a direct rejection of Christ's love for all of humanity.
If we are to proclaim Christ's Gospel fully, we will, by necessity,
proclaim the Gospel of Life. We, as future priests, God willing,
must proclaim to the world Christ's love for all human life
and the exalted dignity of every human person. Thus, we must
proclaim the inherent evil in abortion and the inherent evil
in all things that reject Christ's love for his children.
Peter Mactutis
Mount Angel Seminary, Seattle, WA
I lovingly referred to the August retreat as "pro-life
bootcamp" because of the intense schedule, the combination
of conferences and "field" training, and the fact
that many of the men there were in the early stages of their
pro-life activism. I'm not sure all of the seminarians realized
it at the time, but the information we received in those five
days would have taken years to accumulate any other way. What
an experience in pro-life experience! I really enjoyed talking
to the younger seminarians and was charged by their enthusiasm.
It was a privilege to receive the special graces bestowed
on us by God that week and it was a fitting end to an exciting
summer that started with the HLI conference in Philadelphia,
but more importantly, the retreat set the tone for this seminary
year at Holy Apostles. Looking forward to next years conference
already.
Steve Imbarrato
Holy Apostles Seminary, Cromwell, CT |
