CHARLOTTE — The Diocese of Charlotte is blessed with 45 men currently enrolled in study and formation for the priesthood: 24 men at St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly, 20 enrolled at major seminaries, and one taking a pastoral year.
Christopher Angermeyer, a parishioner of St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte, is among those studying at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati.
To help the faithful of the diocese come to know him and how his call to discern the priesthood has unfolded, the Catholic News Herald recently asked Angermeyer about his discernment process:
CNH: When did you first hear the call to a vocation to the priesthood?
Angermeyer: I truly began discerning the priesthood in high school. I was in Eucharistic Adoration and felt that I should discern the will of Our Lord. I began to think about what Our Lord desired. I began to discern a possible vocation to the priesthood.
CNH: Who did you first talk to about your vocation?
Angermeyer: I talked with Monsignor Patrick Winslow, who was at that time the pastor at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, about a possible vocation to the priesthood and asked for guidance on how to discern.
CNH: What type of feedback or advice did you get from him?
Angermeyer: He told me the importance of prayer and how prayer will guide me toward knowing God’s will.
CNH: How did you go about discerning where you felt called to explore your possible vocation?
Angermeyer: I talked to the priests in my parish and watched what they would do during Mass. Most importantly, I prayed in front of Our Blessed Lord and asked Him that I follow His will.
CNH: How and when did you reach out to the Vocations Office at the diocese?
Angermeyer: I reached out to Father Christopher Gober asking for an application in early 2017.
CNH: When did you enter seminary for the Diocese of Charlotte?
Angermeyer: I was accepted to the seminary in 2017.
CNH: Tell us about the types of things you have been doing as part of your discernment process.
Angermeyer: The most significant thing I have been doing is praying to Our Lord and asking Him to lead me where He desires. My daily Holy Hour is important for me to grow in love with Our Lord. I also have grown in loving Our Lady because she is vital to a vocation to the priesthood.
CNH: What advice do you have for a man discerning a call to the priesthood?
Angermeyer: Pray to Our Lady for guidance on entering the seminary. Our Lady will not direct you in the wrong. Pray to her daily.
CNH: Looking back on your discernment journey to this point, what do you think has helped you the most to discern God’s will for your vocation to the priesthood?
Angermeyer: The time spent in front of Our Lord. Getting the time to know Our Lord is critical to the life of a seminarian because, God willing, I will be giving the Blessed Sacrament to parishioners (someday). I will be representing the Light of Christ. I want to do that very well. The only way to do it well is praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter
Your DSA contributions at work
Your DSA contributions at workSeminarian education is funded in part by the annual Diocesan Support Appeal. Learn more about the DSA and how to donate online at www.charlottediocese.org/dsa.
Seminarians (from left) Christopher Brock, Peter Rusciolelli and Chinonso Nnebe-Agumadu are pictured with Bishop Peter Jugis after Mass July 17 at St. Patrick Cathedral, where they were instituted as acolytes. (SueAnn Howell | Catholic News Herald)CHARLOTTE — Bishop Peter Jugis conferred the ministry of acolyte on three seminarians – Christopher Brock, Chinonso Nnebe-Agumadu and Peter Rusciolelli – during Mass July 17 at St. Patrick Cathedral.
In his homily, Bishop Jugis told them, “As men discerning the vocation to the priesthood, your institution to the ministry of acolyte is essential to the discernment of that vocation. By serving at the Eucharistic sacrifice as an officially instituted minister of the Church, you are participating in the Lord’s own sacrifice.”
He explained that they are being formed and prepared for that day of their priestly ordination, “when, on your knees and holding the paten containing the bread and the chalice containing the wine mixed with water for the celebration of the Mass, you are told: ‘Understand what you do, imitate what you celebrate, and conform your life to the mystery of the Lord’s cross.’”
Bishop Jugis noted that they now have a special role in the Church’s ministry. “It is your responsibility to assist priests and deacons in carrying out their ministry and, as extraordinary ministers, to give Holy Communion to the faithful at the liturgy and to the sick,” he said.
“Because you are specially called to this ministry, you should strive to live more fully by the Lord’s sacrifice and to be molded more perfectly in His likeness. You should seek to understand the deep spiritual meaning of what you do so that you may offer yourselves to God as spiritual sacrifices acceptable to Him through Jesus Christ,” Bishop Jugis said.
“In performing your ministry, bear in mind that as you share the one Bread with your brothers and sisters, so you form one Body with them and show a sincere love for Christ’s Mystical Body, God’s holy people, and especially for the weak and the sick,” he emphasized.
Bishop Jugis concluded his homily by telling the men, “Be obedient to the commandment which the Lord gave to His Apostles at the Last Supper: ‘Love one another as I also have loved you.’”
Brock, Nnebe-Agumadu and Rusciolelli have two more years of theological studies and spiritual formation remaining at The Athenaeum, Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio, before being considered for ordination to the priesthood.
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter
