What began as a surprise assignment blossomed into a beautiful opportunity for Father Daniel Leonard, the fourth rector of St. John Vianney Theological Seminary in Denver, to exercise spiritual fatherhood.
Early on in his new post, Father Leonard said he found himself missing his parish ministry, having left Christ the King Parish in Denver to become the seminary’s rector. But his perspective soon shifted thanks to a powerful moment in prayer.
“The thought came to me that Jesus didn’t have a parish; he had a seminary. Jesus reserved for himself the role of formation of future priests (and bishops),” Father Leonard told the Denver Catholic. “I have found consolation in this belief and am grateful for this time when I could share in this ministry that Jesus reserved for himself.”
Over the next eight years, he would work day in and day out to foster those vocations.
In his recipe of formation, Father Leonard said the “secret sauce” lies in two fruits of the Spirit: love and joy.
“I wanted as my vision two fruits of the Spirit: love and joy,” Father Leonard explained. “Love in ample sense that each seminarian should know that their bishop, family, parish, presbyterate, formators, faculty, staff and me as rector want the best for each of them. Indeed, we all want each seminarian to succeed and be the best priest for the future of the Church. The seminary should be a loving and caring community in which seminarians are formed. Also, joy. Finding joy in doing what God wants you to do.”
And the numbers show just how effective his vision has been.
In the last eight years, 69 men have been ordained to the priesthood and 65 men to the permanent diaconate — an average of more than 8 men being ordained to each sacred order per year for nearly a decade.
Those ordained alumni are happy and holy, according to the 2022 Seminary Cultural Inventory survey, administered through the Spitzer Center for Visionary Leadership and funded through a grant from the Lilly Foundation. Compared to other presbyterates surveyed nationwide, St. John Vianney’s alumni consistently scored higher on priestly spirituality and identity questions, reported slightly lower levels of anxiety and loneliness and expressed a feeling of preparedness for priestly ministry and gratitude for their formation.
The seminary’s annual surveys of the first pastors of recently ordained graduates of St. John Vianney have also consistently found a spirit of prayer, maturity, clarity, spiritual fatherhood and pastoral sensitivity among those new priests.
In addition to the spiritual renovation in the seminary community under Father Leonard’s leadership, a series of capital improvements served to build up the seminary community in service of the archdiocese’s future priests. With a new custom-made pipe organ for the Christ the King Chapel, the beautiful new Oratory of St. John Vianney, the incredible updates to the Cardinal Stafford Library and the soon-to-come Msgr. Michael Glenn Recreation Center, the seminary is better poised to care for the spiritual, intellectual and human dimensions of seminarians’ formation than ever before.
But the journey was not always smooth, Father Leonard pointed out. During his eight years at the seminary, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the world and a new Program for Priestly Formation was promulgated, requiring a shift in curriculum and formation.
“During the unprecedented times of COVID, I witnessed more than ever how our SJV community is a real family of faith that cares and supports each other. All the community showed fortitude, resilience and good spirits,” Father Leonard recalled. “As one of the few seminaries that stayed open from March to May of 2020, I was amazed by how quickly and smoothly the faculty and staff changed from being a traditional classroom teaching faculty to going to online instruction and keeping everything going in the era of ‘social distancing.’”
A few short years later, the new Program for Priestly Formation from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) went into effect. With new terminology, a new procedure and a new curriculum, the program necessitated a number of updates to the seminary’s modus operandi.
Despite the challenges, Father Leonard said he is filled with gratitude for his time at St. John Vianney. Though leaving the seminary is bittersweet, he looks forward to his sabbatical, describing it as a time of renewal: physical, mental, spiritual and intellectual.
“These past eight years have been a gift from God, and it is with humble gratitude that I praise him for all the blessings he has bestowed upon me and the SJV community,” Father Leonard said. “At the same time, I also express my filial gratitude to the Blessed Virgin Mary, under whose mantle I expressly entrusted this period.
“To Archbishop Aquila and the board of SJV: I thank you for your guidance, counsel and support over the past eight years,” he continued. “To faculty and staff: I want to express my gratitude to all faculty and staff for your dedication, hard work and commitment to the seminary’s mission. To our friends and benefactors: thank you for your generous support of our mission. Without your continued support, we would be unable to fulfill the vital mission of forming holy priests for the future of the Church!”
As the seminary prepares to welcome Father Angel Perez-Lopez as its fifth rector, Father Leonard is confident that the next period of St. John Vianney will be one characterized by “academic excellence, human formation, pastoral sensitivity and a vibrant spiritual life."
“Father Angel Perez-Lopez has the right seminary experience as a beloved professor and successful formator. His experience as Vicar for Clergy will also be of help. He has the needed seminary leadership qualities of compassion, integrity, humility and mission commitment,” Father Leonard said. “I offer him my congratulations and prayerful best wishes.”
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Father Angel Perez-Lopez will be installed as the fifth rector of St. John Vianney Theological Seminary on Wednesday, March 19 at 5:00 p.m. The faithful are welcome to tune into the special Mass and ceremony via live stream at archden.org/livestream.
