St. Mary's Seminary and University

Coordinates: 39°21′37″N 76°38′24″W / 39.3604°N 76.6400°W / 39.3604; -76.6400
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
St. Mary's Seminary and University
The seal of St. Mary's College and University
Former name
St. Mary's Seminary and College
MottoApostolica civilisque (Latin)
Motto in English
Apostolic and public
TypeRoman Catholic seminary
EstablishedOctober 1791
(232 years ago)
 (1791-10)
Religious affiliation
Roman Catholic Church
(Sulpician Fathers)
Vice-presidentRev. Gladstone Stevens PSS. (Vice Rector)
President-RectorRev. Phillip J. Brown PSS.
Students158 (Fall 2018)
Location
Baltimore
,
Maryland
,
United States

39°21′37″N 76°38′24″W / 39.3604°N 76.6400°W / 39.3604; -76.6400
Campus40 acres (16 ha)
AffiliationsMSA, ATS, MICUA
Websitewww.stmarys.edu

St. Mary's Seminary and University is a

Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States after the Revolution and has been run since its founding by the Society of the Priests of Saint Sulpice
.

History

St. Mary's Seminary and University

In consequence of the threatening aspect of affairs in France, Rev. J. A. Emery, Superior-General of the

Bishop John Carroll of Baltimore, Maryland, and after some delay Rev. Francis C. Nagot, S.S., was named first director of the projected seminary. With him were associated Michael Levadoux as treasurer, MM. Tessier, Gamier, and Montdésir, together with several seminarians.[1]

The Sulpicians, fleeing the French Revolution, sailed from Saint Malo on 8 April 1791. Also on board was François-René de Chateaubriand. They arrived in Baltimore on 10 July. They purchased the One Mile Tavern on the edge of the city, dedicated the house to the Blessed Virgin, and in October opened classes with five students whom they had brought from France. This was the beginning of St. Mary's, the first American seminary.[2]

With the help of Bishop John Carroll and others, the Sulpicians were able to purchase additional property adjoining the One Mile Tavern and build St. Mary's College and Seminary on North Paca Street at the developed northwest edge of the newly incorporated city.

Sulpicians
religious order and graduated hundreds of young men and formed an important educational role in the growing city during the first half of the 19th century.

St. Mary's was established as a theological seminary in 1822 by Pope Pius VII, when it was authorized as the first ecclesiastical faculty in the United States with the right to grant degrees in the name of the Holy See.[3] The seminary continued to be operated by the Sulpicians. In addition, it maintains an ecclesiastical faculty today.

The under-graduate secular St. Mary's College closed in 1852 and Archbishop Kenrick asked the Jesuits to oversee the formation of a school. Construction of Loyola High School began on Charles Street in early 1852, and on September 15, 1852, the school enrolled its first students. That same year saw the opening of Loyola College in two small rented townhouses on Holliday Street, between East Lexington and East Fayette Streets.

The influence of the St. Mary's Seminary increased in the late 19th century under the leadership of Alphonse Magnien, who served as superior of the school from 1878 to 1902.

St. Mary's Seminary and now University moved to a large 40-acre, park-like campus at the southwest intersection of Roland and Belvedere (later Northern Parkway) Avenues in the

Pope John Paul II.[3][4]

St. Mary's Seminary. America's first seminary, established in 1791.
St. Mary's Seminary. America's first seminary, established in 1791.

In 1968, reflecting a more ecumenical and outgoing spirit from the

Eastern Orthodox) in the City and central Maryland region, plus having additional space and resources due to a decline in the number of priests
in formation by the late 1960s, an "Ecumenical Institute of Theology" was established in 1968 with a separate board of trustees of lay and clergy members from the Catholic and other partnering faiths and a separate dean/director and began offering courses, programs, events with library resources and religious training on a graduate-level to the laity and clergy of the area, which has since greatly raised the academic levels and religious discourse in the following four decades.

In 1974, the institution's name was changed to "St. Mary's Seminary and University" to reflect its expanded departments and graduate degree programs.[4]

During his famous visit to the "Premier See" of Baltimore in 1995, the first by any

archdiocese
and its city.

Father Robert F. Leavitt retired as long-time president/rector in spring 2007, having served at that position for 27 years—the longest tenure of any president/rector in the school's history. The Seminary's alumni have gone on to reach bishop's positions and form leading teaching roles in various theological seminaries of the Church in many cities and towns of the United States.

Architecture

St. Mary's Seminary Chapel

St. Mary's Seminary Chapel

Bishop Carroll decided to construct his cathedral in stone, the bricks were purchased by his cousin, Charles Carroll of Carrollton, and donated to the Sulpicians
.

Elizabeth Ann Seton, founder of the Sisters of Charity, pronounced vows of chastity and obedience to John Carroll for one year in the lower chapel on Paca Street on March 25, 1809.[6] The chapel's basement was used for services for members of the Afro-Haitian Catholic community who had left Santo Domingo because of the Haitian Revolution. The old Godefroy Chapel is now St. Mary's Spiritual Center and Historic Site.

Mother Seton House

Mother Seton House

Bishop Carroll, he invited Seton to Baltimore, where her sons were enrolled in the college. She arrived on June 16, 1808, and spent one year as a school mistress, before relocating to Emmitsburg.[6]

St.

French Second Empire
style of architecture were erected on the same site facing east on North Paca Street in 1878 and surrounded the original Chapel that is remaining on Paca facing west, into the 21st century.

Institutes and facilities

The Knott Library (endowed by industrialist, contractor/builder, and philanthropist Henry J. Knott) at St. Mary's Seminary and University houses the collected papers of Fr. Raymond E. Brown S.S. (S.T.B., 1951), an eminent Johannine scholar and St. Mary's graduate.[7]

St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute, founded in 1968, offers graduate degrees and certificates; it supports a diverse adult learning environment of different ethnicities and denominations. Dr. Brent Laytham, formerly of North Park University, is the E.I.'s dean, succeeding Dr. Michael J. Gorman.[8] Gorman remains on the faculty as the inaugural Raymond E. Brown Professor of Biblical Studies and Theology.

In May 2012, N. T. Wright was the keynote speaker for the graduating class at the E.I. and was himself awarded an honorary degree.

Notable alumni

Noted ecumenical American religious leader, Cardinal James Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, entered St. Mary's Seminary in 1857
Blessed Michael McGivney
Blessed Michael McGivney - founder of the Knights of Columbus. Attended St. Mary's Seminary from 1873-1877

See also

References

  1. ^ Jones, Arthur. "Michael Levadoux." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 15 January 2019Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ Fenlon, John Francis. "Sulpicians in the United States." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 16 January 2019Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ a b c "America's First Seminary". St. Mary's Seminary and University. Retrieved 6 July 2010.
  4. ^ a b "St. Mary's Seminary & University". BrainTrack. Archived from the original on 10 May 2011. Retrieved 6 July 2010.
  5. ^ "Tour of St. Mary’s Seminary and University", AIA Baltimore
  6. ^ a b "Elizabeth Ann Seton", Archdiocese of Baltimore
  7. ^ "Welcome to the Knott Library". St. Mary's Seminary and University. Retrieved 6 July 2010.
  8. ^ "The Ecumenical Institute of Theology: An Invitation". St. Mary's University and Seminary. Retrieved 6 July 2010.
  9. Baltimore Sun
    , August 3, 1984.
  10. ^ Account with St. Mary’s College, [7 June 1810], National Archives

External links