DEACON DANIEL REFLECTS ON SEMINARY YEARS

Deacon Daniel Forsythe looks back on his four years here, and ahead to his upcoming ordination.

It is difficult for me to believe my time at the Seminary is over. These four years have flown by as if they were a matter of months. On the other hand, I am amazed at how much I've grown and

changed. Perhaps others see more clearly how I have grown (and in what areas I've not grown!), but there are some areas in particular that really stand out for me.

A great deal of my time, and a very important part of the Seminary, is spent doing academic work. What makes the Seminary different from any other school however, is the formation program, which goes hand-in-hand with the academic work. The formation I’ve received has been just as valuable as the education. There were areas where I lacked self-confidence when I first began. I remember being being frightened at the prospect of public speaking or of going

to hospitals and visiting the sick. But slowly I found myself doing things I never thought I would be able to do: visiting the sick in the hospital, cantoring, teaching Eastern Christian Formation classes, and preaching. My instructors and fellow students at the Seminary helped me to identify my fears and insecurities while encouraging me to strengthen and develop my own gifts and talents.

Throughout my time at the Seminary, I've been challenged to grow in my relationship with the Lord and with others; a challenge that makes the theology we study in the classroom real. One of the highlights of my seminary experience has been the opportunity to enter into a full liturgical life. Vespers, Matins and the Divine Liturgy punctuate our week and create a rhythm by which life here flows. I will definitely miss celebrating all of these services in our community but look forward to sharing in these lovely prayers with others in a parish.

While I am excited about my upcoming ordination, it is a little overwhelming. I feel the Seminary has prepared me well. I've been given an excellent theological and liturgical education, yet I am nervous. I keep telling myself I don't know everything and I’ve still got a lot to learn! Thankfully, my time at the Seminary and my summer assignments have put me in touch with wonderful and experienced pastors to whom I know I can turn for help and advice when I come up against difficult challenges.

I'm going to miss my time with the Seminary community. We are a small school, actually more of a large family than an institution. And, as with any family, we sometimes rub each other the wrong way, but overall I have been immeasurably blessed by the whole community, and am forever grateful to everyone at the Seminary. The faculty provide an easy-going and supportive atmosphere in which to live and learn. I have the greatest respect for my fellow seminarians. You will be hard pressed to find a group of men more dedicated and excited about serving Jesus Christ.

Deacon Daniel graduated from the Seminary in May magna cum laude and will be ordained to the priesthood of Jesus Christ on June 7, 2009 at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Munhall, Pa.