Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, St. Patrick’s Seminary & University is a Catholic educational community dedicated to forming our future priests in the image of Jesus Christ, teacher, priest, and shepherd. The seminary’s goal is to serve the Roman Catholic Church in the religious context of the Pacific Rim regions and the western United States. Our graduates are ready to live their lives to the sacrifice of Jesus, rooted in His Word and Sacrament, and dedicated to serving the people of God with the pastoral charity of Christ.
For more than 120 years, St. Patrick’s Seminary has successfully prepared men to become Roman Catholic priests. Its expansive park-like grounds, historic chapel, modern classrooms, and extensive library provide an ideal environment for prayer, meditation, and study. Its proximity to major urban centers offers a rich field of educational opportunities. The integrated process of human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation at St. Patrick’s Seminary revolves around our core values of Spiritual Fatherhood, Fidelity, Holiness, Wisdom, Evangelization, Resiliency, and Compassion.
Tuition covers only some of the costs of the formation programs at St. Patrick’s. Our educational and infrastructure improvement programs are possible because of the generous support from benefactors. Through this support, our seminarians can become our future pastoral leaders ready to counsel parishioners, proclaim the Gospel, and defend our Catholic faith.
This year the Archdiocese of Agańa, (Guam) was able to help Fr. William Mamangun complete his studies at St. Patrick’s Seminary with the generous support of parishioners’ donations. The Catholic community rallied to provide Fr. Mamangun’s education tuition assistance. This past December, on the feast of our Lady of Guadalupe, Fr. Mamangun was ordained to the priesthood; he is a blessing to our St. Patrick’s community.
The first floor of the B-Wing at St. Patrick’s Seminary is one of the busiest spots on campus. A majority of the classrooms are on this beautiful corridor lined with past graduates’ photographs by year of graduation. On a quiet afternoon, it is a blessing to stroll down the hall and recall the memories of alumni that have graced the seminary grounds. All that activity lead to wear and tear on the carpets. The B-Wing was no exception. Years of use had taken their toll on the carpeting, and the need to replace it was now. With the generous contributions from several benefactors, St. Patrick’s was able to remove the carpeting and refinish the beautiful, original hardwood floors. The project took place during the recent Easter break.
A critical component to priestly formation is how well priests interact with others. Friendly interactions between seminarians at events, such as sporting activities, are essential for their social growth. Early this spring, St. Patrick’s held its 2021 St. Patrick’s Tennis Tournament on our recently re-surfaced courts, courtesy of donations from our Annual Gala attendees. Our basketball court and soccer field were also updated using those same funds. Deacon Paul Park of the Diocese of Suwon (Korea), the tournament’s organizer, stated, “I was glad all the participants enjoyed the tournament. I was also happy to see other seminarians who did not play come out and cheer for their fellow seminarians. I hope we can have more events like this tournament so that we can build friendships and relationships with each other.”
To prepare priests capable of meeting the Church’s needs takes time, effort, and resources. As these simple examples show, without the partnership and support of the wider Catholic community, St. Patrick’s would not be able to fulfill our mission. Please visit our website at www.stpsu.edu.