Since my arrival at Moreau Seminary on August 9, I have had a wonderful experience meeting new people, making new acquaintances and friends, forging new relationships, and learning many new things. I feel insanely blessed to have had the wonderful experiences that I have had over the past few months, and I am more than ready to dive in for Candidate Year, Part Two.
The move to Moreau Seminary was a nervous experience for me. I had never lived that far from home or been somewhere where I knew very few people. I had practically no prior connection to Notre Dame or Holy Cross, but I knew that God had guided me to this decision. I had spent lots of time praying, reflecting, and thinking about this decision. I had a job, an apartment, friends, family, and lots of other things that I was very happy with, but I knew that I was looking for something more.
That “more” has included classes, learning my way around a new city, and learning a new way of life. Yet the challenges were what I was looking forward to the most. I was never deeply involved in my church growing up beyond attending Mass regularly, but I had always felt a strong desire to investigate the priesthood and religious life. As a result, it has been a wonderful gift this year to be assigned to help with Confirmation classes on campus through Campus Ministry because by being with these students as they prepare for Confirmation I am learning more about myself and my vocation. I take all of these moments as subtle nudges from God as to the direction I am supposed to be moving in.
As a matter of fact God continues to nudge me on a daily basis. There is a lot that I have to learn, but I know that God is helping me to grow. Part of that growth is my ever-evolving prayer life. I have grown to love the Liturgy of the Hours that we pray in common twice a day. It provides a structure and a springboard for my thoughts and prayer throughout the day. On busy days it helps provide necessary quiet time that I may otherwise forget to carve out, and on slow days it helps bring focus to a mind that may be wandering.
I would emphasize the growth of prayer as the single most important thing that I have tried to work on since coming to Holy Cross. While there is room for much improvement, I feel that with God’s help I can continue to grow. The first semester of formation has been a wonderful experience, and I firmly believe that the choices I made in the past year have led me down the right path in life.
Perhaps the biggest lesson I have received from my prayer is to take everything one day at a time, be patient. Don’t try to hurry things as God will reveal His plans for us in His own good time.
Mr. Tim Weed is a postulant at Moreau Seminary on the campus of Notre Dame. He and other seminarians at Moreau write a post each month for the Spes Unica Blog, sharing on their life and formation at Moreau. Meet our other men in formation, and learn more about seminary life in Holy Cross, and specifically about the Postulant Program at Moreau Seminary, which constitutes the first year of religious and priestly formation in Holy Cross for college graduates.
