Quigley Preparatory Seminary - La Petit Seminaire Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

Page 35 text:

It would be a grave error fraught wrth many dangers both to hvmself and to others should the prnest carrued away by false zeal neglect hrs own sanctlfucatuon and become overlmmersed In the external worlcs of the priestly mnnvstry Pope Plus XII The personal sanctnflcatlon of the priest therefore ns of prrme Importance rn order that he may retain that unctnon of the Holy Splflf whuch gives such a marvelous force and efficacy to the external apostolate A prlest does not attaun holiness overnrght ln has seminary days must the seed of sanctity be cultivated The Sacraments of penance and Holy Eucharist are the prlme means of attaining sanctity Sanctnty ns the struvrng for the perfectuon of Chrnst Chrnst IS the Ideal of the semlnarran Through Communion Christ Hrmself as present In the heart of the semlnarlan ln weelcly Confesslon the semrnarran roots out the habnts of sun In order that he may become more like Chrust In perfec tlon and that the flower of virtue and holiness may bloom ln this matter St Bernard tells us Examine your lrfe dauly as a curuous explorer of your own nntegrnty Wengh carefully how much you are advancing or how much you are receding Strrve to lcnow yourself Put all your transgresslons before your eyes place yourself before yourself as before another and thus weep over yourself

Page 34 text:

The umor and Senior Retreats at Quigley mght rightfully be called the hub of the seminary lrfe All the actrvrtres studies and other worlcmgs of the semmarlan depend a great deal upon hrs yearly retreat The retreat rs a means of sanctufrcatron and Pope Plus an has encycllcal on the Catholic Priesthood urges everyone especrally semrnarrans to malce use of this means to the best of their ability The purpose of a retreat rs to deepen one s convvctrons To explarn these words let us talce this example Every semmaraan rs convinced that hrs must be a life ol obedience to hrs parents and superiors He may be obedient slmply because nf he rs not he will be punrshed How ever when he attends the retreat exercises at our semmary he wrll medrtate on the Idea of obedaence Talcmg as hrs model the boy Chrrst he wrll meditate on Hrs life wrth Mary and oseph Now he will realize that he IS strlvlng to become another Chrrst that he must be obedient because Chrrst was obedient The order of the day for the retreats begrns with a community Mass whrch all the students attend After Mass a series of tallcs or con ferences talces place In the chapel Here rt rs where the students receive enlightening advice and countless Ideas Quret rs a necessary factor an a retreat srnce our Lord wrll not spealc to a drsturbed soul HHH

Page 36 text:

A ' Every morning we may find the fervent seminarran attending Holy Mass either in his own parish church or at the Quigley St ames Chapel By attending the Holy Sacrifice as often as possible the aspiring seminarian can cultivate the necessary love and reverence for this great power the power of saying Nlass ol changing ordinary bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ the greatest power of the priest The ineffable greatness of the human priest says Pope Pius XI stands forth in all its splendor lor he has power over the very body of fhrist and malces it present upon the altar ln the name of Christ Himself he offers a victim infinitely pleasing to the Divine Majesty Wondrous things are these justly exclaims St ohn Chrysostom so wonderful they surpass wonder Every priest must have sanctity then learning and through daily Mass Quigley shows the proper direction for an effective union between the two It is truly fitting for the seminarian to learn early to live in the holy and prayerful surroundings of the altar and he must cultivate a pious love of the Mass for these two are his ultimate goal as a priest. It is this morning act done by the entire student body which makes Quig ey an institution much diFterent from the ordinary high school. Daily Mass pro- vides the help necessary to carry the Quigley student through the day s lessons and through his homeworlc at night. l brings him nearer to Christ Who is his ideal in the world, but not of the world. Since the worlc of the priest is a continua- tion ol the Worlc ol Christ, it is fitting that he who is to become a priest be in close union with Christ through the greatest ol prayers, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.