St. Mary's Seminary is the first Roman Catholic seminary in the nation: rich in tradition while focused on priestly preparation for the 21st-century.
These pages provide information on the history, personnel, environment, and formation (in the Sulpician tradition) at St. Mary's.
The three pages in this section of our site touch on the very basics of the formation process.
A major part of priestly formation is intellectual formation, accomplished through the pursuit of academic degrees.
Desiring to assist in the strengthening of Hispanic ministry and recognizing the need for well-prepared priests dedicated in-part or in-full to this ministry, St. Mary’s Seminary and University has established a specialized track in Hispanic ministry.
St. Mary’s Propaedeutic Stage implements the vision of the Program for Priestly Formation (6th edition). It takes place in a revitalized and expanded structure on the historic grounds of the original St. Mary’s Seminary in downtown Baltimore. The McGivney House welcomes candidates from all dioceses and is not limited to candidates destined to enter St. Mary’s Seminary & University, but is the recommended program for those who will come to St. Mary’s.
St. Mary’s Ecumenical Institute (EI) was founded in 1968 by St. Mary’s Seminary & University, America’s oldest Roman Catholic seminary, in cooperation with ecumenical leaders. St. Mary’s is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools and by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. The Ecumenical Institute encourages people of all denominations to explore theological studies in a serious, open-minded, and supportive environment. All EI programs are available wherever you are - on campus in Baltimore, and on-line.
The Ecumenical Institute invites people of all denominations into theological study that pursues excellence and promotes ecumenical understanding and respect. All EI programs are available wherever you are - on campus in Baltimore, and on-line.
St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute has a rolling admissions policy. Students may apply at any time for admission by submitting the appropriate materials.
The Ecumenical Institute offers accredited graduate theological programs for two master’s degrees, several graduate certificates, and introductory explorations.
The post-master’s Certificate of Advanced Studies in Theology (CAS) is designed for individuals who possess a master’s degree in theology (e.g., MAT.), ministry (e.g., MACM), divinity (e.g., MDiv), or a related field and who desire to continue their theological education with a general or focused program of study.
The Doctor of Ministry program roots ministry in the mission of God, the ways God is working in your context, in your ministry, and in you.
Students have a host of resources available to support their theological education, from free parking and a great library to writing assistance and advising.
St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute offers accredited graduate theological education that is intellectually rigorous, personally enriching, and professionally empowering.
More than 750 alums of St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute are making a difference in Baltimore, in Maryland and D.C., West Virginia and Pennsylvania, and around the world.
General communication and individual contacts
It is the mission of the Center for Continuing Formation to encourage bishops, priests, deacons, and lay ecclesial ministers to engage in human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral growth and to enable processes of growth that are ongoing, complete, systemic, and personalized.
Forming Supervisors for Vocational Synthesis implements the vision of the Program for Priestly Formation (6th edition) for the final stage of preparation for the priesthood.
Conference space rentals include a large room that will seat as many as 58 and smaller rooms that will seat from 4 to 30.
St. Mary's Center for Continuing Formation offers and hosts a variety of continuing formation programs for priests in the spirit of the Bishops' new Basic Plan for the Ongoing Formation of Priests.
St. Mary’s Seminary & University’s Pinkard Scholars is the cornerstone of Youth Theological Studies at SMSU.
For more information about any of our conference facilities or space rentals, please contact our offices directly.
The Marion Burk Knott Library of St. Mary’s Seminary and University is the largest specialized theological library in the Baltimore area, with additional materials in the areas of philosophy, psychology, pastoral counseling and church history, among others. The library receives over 390 periodicals and maintains a collection of 20,000 volumes of bound periodicals. Other holdings include newspapers, microfilm, and audio-visual materials.
The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary & University opened in the spring of 2002. Located on the campus of the nation’s first Roman Catholic seminary, this program brings together the archives of the Archdiocese of Baltimore (est. 1789), St. Mary’s Seminary & University (est. 1791), and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States (U.S. Province est. 1903), making it one of the most significant repositories for records relating to the early history of the Catholic Church in the United States.
Click here for more information about hours and visitor policies.
This section was created to provide researchers with a brief description of the open collections in the archives of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, St. Mary's Seminary & University, and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States.
The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary & University has developed a genealogical policy responsive to individuals researching their Catholic roots.
We facilitate personal integration of the human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral dimensions necessary for authentic priestly witness and service in the image of Jesus Christ.
A Mass of Thanksgiving was held in honor of Father Phillip Brown, PSS, President-Rector in the St. Mary’s Seminary chapel April 30.
Father Brown will be retiring at the end of June after a decade of service to the seminary, the first Catholic seminary in the United States.
Father Brown was the main celebrant for the Mass, which included concelebrants Father Daniel Moore, PSS, provincial superior of the U.S. Society of St. Sulpice, Father Larry Terrien, PSS, former superior general, Father Hy Nguyen, PSS, vice rector of St. Mary’s Seminary and Father Paul Maillet, PSS, coordinator of Formation at St. Mary’s Seminary.
There were seven bishops and more than 40 priests in attendance as well as seminarians, faculty and administration members, donors, family and friends.
The music for the Mass was largely from Father Brown’s “Mass of Hope” that he composed during the covid-19 pandemic for Easter 2021.
In his homily, Father Moore noted the challenges of being a leader in the church today but said that Father Brown had earned the trust of bishops and seminarians worldwide.
Father Moore added, “You are a priest with a father’s heart. I express a profound gratitude on behalf of the province.”
In his remarks, Baltimore Archbishop William Lori, chairman of the board of trustees and chancellor of St. Mary’s Seminary & University, spoke to Father Brown directly, “What a gift you are to us” listing his wide-ranging experiences in administration, law, teaching, music. “As we celebrate your priesthood, we are all deeply indebted to you for your work of priestly formation.”
The celebration continued with a festive reception and presentation of gifts in Laubacher Hall.
By Joseph O’Brien
The Center for Continuing Formation is collaborating with Adoremus to offer a series of courses to be held at the venerable St. Mary’s Seminary campus in Baltimore.
Adoremus is a Wisconsin-based consortium whose goal is to honor and to foster a greater understanding of the rich liturgical traditions of the Catholic Church.
Three courses, dedicated to the newest translations of the church’s liturgical texts, will be offered between August 2026 and February 2027 in this new partnership, each focusing on a newly translated liturgical book.
The revised OCIA became the mandatory text in March 2025 while the OAS became mandatory at Easter of 2026. It is anticipated that the Second Edition of the LOTH will be available for purchase beginning in January 2027.
The series of courses are non-degree, non-credit courses for the ongoing liturgical formation of priests, religious, and laity at the seminary’s Center for Continuing Formation.
Liturgical Partners
According to Msgr. Marc Caron, he was hired in July 2025 to help resurrect the Center after the covid pandemic.
He said, “I was hired to reboot the programs at the Center. My strategy has been to try to engage existing groups who offer ongoing formation for priests and others in the church as partners with us, rather than try to reinvent everything ourselves.”
As the director of the Center, Msgr. Caron brings his own experiences as a priest of the Diocese of Portland, ME.
“I was interested in serving as director of the Center because I believe in ongoing formation for priests,” he said, noting that prior to his current position he served 11 years as chancellor and five years as vicar general and moderator of the curia in the Diocese of Portland, ME. “In those roles over those 16 years, directly or indirectly, I was involved with ongoing priestly formation in what we call the four pillars of formation: spiritual, intellectual, pastoral, and human formation.”
Msgr. Caron said that St. Mary’s and Adoremus shared mission goals and it was only a matter of bringing the two together for this new venture.
“From its beginning in 1995, Adoremus has focused on promoting the liturgical life of priests and the use of liturgical books in parishes,” Msgr. Caron said. “In a similar way, St. Mary’s mission is to prepare seminarians to be priests working in parishes and at the Center for Continuing Formation we feel we have a commitment to support the ongoing formation of priests who are working in parishes. Adoremus addresses that approach.”
According to Christopher Carstens, the partnership between St. Mary’s and Adoremus fell into place easily, especially since Msgr. Marc Caron has been an Adoremus contributor.
“One of Adoremus’s principal tasks is to provide ongoing liturgical formation for priests,” Carstens explained. “In fact, Msgr. Caron has been a significant part of our work for years. When he became director of the Center for Continuing Formation, it seemed natural to continue our collaboration.”
The Center for Continuing Formation was built by St. Mary’s in 1996 “in response to the teaching on the priesthood and priestly formation of St. John Paul II. The pastoral emphasis and spirit of St. Mary’s Seminary today is perfectly expressed in The Center for Continuing Formation.”
Great Liturgical Books
The common theme among the three courses – a focus on new translations of liturgical texts – was intentional, Msgr. Caron said.
“In some cases, a new translation is not necessarily a major change,” he said. “However, it’s an opportunity to look at each of those rites again and to help people think about best practices, how to make full use of the various choices, options, and adaptations found in those books, and to think about how their communities could pray better with those books, to think how they can better implement the goals for the worshiping community in each of those books. That’s our hope, that it’s an opportunity for those who enroll in these courses.”
The courses being offered in this new venture, Carstens said, “offer a kind of ‘Great Books program,’ where the liturgical texts are the books under study. These ritual books embody the doctrine and determine the practice of sacraments, sacramentals, and liturgical prayer of the Church.”
According to Carstens, the courses will provide spiritual, theoretical, and practical value for priests and others who enroll.
“Each course will include some historical treatment, canonical and rubrical review, and spiritual reflection,” he said. “Ultimately, though, we want to equip priests to administer and celebrate the rites intelligently, practically, and completely so that God’s people can receive the most benefit from them.”
The purpose of the sessions at the Center for Continuing Formation will be to provide a comprehensive and in-depth presentation of the ritual’s prayers and rubrics to enrich a priest’s ministry.
The course on the new OAS translation, according to Vyner, “has been structured specifically for priestly ministry. The purpose of these sessions will be to provide a comprehensive and in-depth presentation of the ritual’s prayers and rubrics to enrich a priest’s ministry to the sick and dying. We will explore what is new – both significant and minor differences – and what has remained unchanged.”
Vyner said that he will draw on the scriptures, church teachings, development of doctrine, and the post-conciliar reform of the sacrament.
“The fundamental focus will be on deepening a priest’s engagement in continuing Christ’s healing ministry,” he said. “These sessions, while incorporating lectures, will also provide opportunities for discussion and pastoral applications in the care of the sick and the dying.”
According to Father Gill, the revised English translation of the OCIA presents an opportunity for priests in the U.S. “to receive the Order more fully.”
“By this, I mean with a greater awareness of the role of the priest throughout the rites,” he said, and “that the Order is principally liturgical and as such the work of the local parish community (priest and people), and reestablishing the distinction between accompanying the unbaptized (catechumens) and the baptized (candidates).”
Through discussion, lectures, and practicums offered during the course, Father Gill said he intends to examine the “history of the rites of Christian Initiation, the proposed reforms by the Second Vatican Council, the development of the contemporary OCIA, and its expected use in parishes in the United States, especially with regard to the revised National Statutes.”
Carstens hopes his course on the new LOTH translation will provide a meaningful encounter with this ever-ancient yet ever-new prayer of the whole church.
Open Enrollment
While all the courses are designed primarily for priests, Msgr. Caron noted that the program also welcomes others involved in liturgical ministry, especially at the parish level.
He said, the courses are open to “priests, religious, deacons, or lay people who are full-time, part-time employees, or volunteers in the various areas.”
These areas include those addressed by the program’s texts, such as “pastoral care of the sick, Catholic formation and catechesis of catechumens and candidates, and Catholics who participate in or lead parish celebrations or other celebrations of the Liturgy of the Hours.”
Carstens hopes to see a positive response among Catholics around the country to this range of courses offered at the Center for Continuing Formation.
“The response of priest participants will be the most obvious gauge of success,” he said. “But a longer-range marker of success and one less measurable by standard means, will be a fuller, more authentic reception and celebration of the church’s revised rites.”
He added, “The Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, directed that pastors themselves must ‘become thoroughly imbued with the spirit and power of the liturgy’ before they can teach it to others and celebrate it as the church intends. The Center for Continuing Formation at St. Mary’s Seminary and Adoremus are working toward this goal.”
Additional information and enrollment details regarding the courses offered are available at St. Mary’s Center for Continuing Formation’s website.
Joseph O’Brien is Managing Editor of Adoremus Bulletin and holds degrees from the University of Dallas, Irving, TX.
Knights of Columbus honored St. Mary’s Seminary & University as an outstanding College Council for helping mothers in need and for their significant devotion to Father McGivney.
A Retreat for Priests with Msgr. William Fay
How Intentional Is My Configuration to Christ? A time for reflection, prayer, community, and solidarity.
Monday-Friday June 1-5, 2026 Monday, 4 p.m. – Friday, 11 a.m. edt
Register today.
St. Mary’s will confer the degree of Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa on Bishop Erik Varden of Trondheim, Norway at its graduation ceremony in May. Bishop Varden will also deliver the commencement address.
Read the entire Press Release below; or view/download the document.
ST. MARY’S SEMINARY & UNIVERSITY CONFERS HONORARY DEGREE ON NORWEGIAN BISHOP ERIK VARDEN
For immediate release: January 29, 2026
Media Contact: Sean Caine | 443-857-4372
Father Phillip Brown, PSS, President-Rector of St. Mary’s Seminary & University in Baltimore, Maryland, announces that St. Mary’s will confer the degree of Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa on Bishop Erik Varden of Trondheim, Norway at its graduation ceremony in May. The honorary degree was proposed by St. Mary’s faculty and unanimously approved by its Board of Trustees, chaired by Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore. Bishop Varden will also deliver the commencement address.
Bishop Varden is one of the foremost writers and speakers on spirituality today, having a broad international impact. “It is a privilege to confer this degree on Bishop Varden, with whom St. Mary’s is developing a special friendship,” said Father Brown. “St. Mary’s has been working in a concentrated way for several years towards the renewal of the spiritual life of priests, consistent with the longstanding mission of the Society of St. Sulpice, beginning with the spiritual life of its seminarians. It is the conviction of St. Mary’s, following that of Fr. Jean-Jacques Olier, Founder of the Society, that renewal of the Church will result from renewal of the priesthood, which will result from a renewal and deepening of the spiritual life of priests beginning in the seminary.” St. Mary’s is starting where it really counts: in the interior spiritual life of our seminarians, along with dedica building a strong program of human formation in support of the spiritual life and sound, sensitive pastoral sensibilities.”
Bishop Varden was ordained in 2011. He holds a doctorate in theology from Cambridge University and STL from the Pontifical Oriental Institute. He taught at the Pontifical Athenaeum in Rome and entered Mount St. Bernard Abbey, a Trappist monastery, in 2002 where he was elected Abbot in 2015, later being appointed bishop of the Territorial Prelature of Trondheim.
Bishop Varden is a prolific author, with works appearing in Communio, Cistercian Studies Quarterly, Nouvelle Revue Théologique, The Tablet, Church Life Journal, and First Things. He has published five books on spiritual theology and is considered an authority on the subject. His 2023 book, Chastity: Reconciliation of the Senses, was positively reviewed in Cistercian Studies Quarterly, Pastoral Review, First Things, American Benedictine Review, and Teología y Vida. A reviewer in Cistercian Studies Quarterly observed that his book would “benefit every Christian and perhaps every person, Christian or not.”
The Society of St. Sulpice, Province of the United States has announced the appointment of the next president-rector of St. Mary’s Seminary & University.
A press release (see below) was issued on Wednesday, January 14, 2026 with the news that Fr. Shawn Gould, P.S.S. has been appointed President-Rector. He will take office on July 1.
Fr. Brown, St. Mary’s current president-rector, shared the following message:
Fr. Gould is an excellent choice to be my successor. He will be a strong and effective leader of St. Mary’s in the years to come and will continue to build on the successes and initiatives that we have achieved and set in motion over the past several years. I could not be more supportive of the Provincial Council’s choice of Fr. Gould, and I am delighted at the prospect of Fr. Gould’s accession to the office of President-Rector of St. Mary’s.
Read the entire press release which includes quotes from Archbishop Lori and Fr. Dan Moore, P.S.S., Provincial of the Province of the United States, Society of St. Sulpice, along with Fr. Gould’s background and education:
View/Download the Press Release.
Francis Schüssler Fiorenza, renowned Catholic theologian and member of the St. Mary’s class of 1965, died recently at the age of 84. He was the Charles Chauncey Stillman Research Professor of Roman Catholic Theological Studies at the Harvard Divinity School. He previously taught at the Catholic University of America, the University of Notre Dame, and Villanova University.
St. Mary’s President Rector, Phillip J. Brown, P.P.S., issued a statement:
We note with sorrow, but also with appreciation, the passing of St. Mary’s alumnus Dr. Francis Fiorenza, an eminent Catholic theologian and professor at Harvard Divinity School. Frank was actually one of my professors at CUA in the 1980’s for our Introduction to Fundamental theology class. Frank was a wonderful, stimulating and sensitive professor and an outstanding theologian. He will be sorely missed. Requiescat in pace.
Learn more from the Harvard Divinity School and America magazine:
SMSU shines orange June 6-8, together with City and Inner Harbor buildings, for Baltimore City’s Gun Violence Awareness Day. Community events recognize both survivors and efforts to reduce gun violence as part of “Wear Orange” weekend nationwide.
The yearly event—with participation nationwide—is part of a grassroots effort to show support for the victims of gun violence and efforts to reduce the tragic epidemic. The orange color is a call-back to the color worn by hunters in the woods to protect themselves and others.
For more information, see the national campaign website wearorange.org.
Once again, St. Mary’s faculty, under the leadership of Rev. Dennis Billy, C.Ss.R., have contributed the scholarly articles in the Spring 2025 issue of Seminary Journal. In his introductory column, General Editor Rev. Sebastian Mahfood, OP, Ph.D acknowledged the effort:
“We express gratitude for authors and editors like Fr. Dennis Billy, C.Ss.R., who designed this issue of Seminary Journal for the purpose of advancing the conversation on the direction seminary formation is heading as the 6th edition of the PPF is implemented among the major American seminaries. Included within it are articles concerning the intellectual, human, spiritual, and pastoral formation of seminarians authored by the theology faculty of St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, MD, the first Catholic seminary established in the United States in 1791.”
The issue is available as a free PDF download from seminaryjournal.com and print copies are available through amazon.com.
The faculty and their articles for this issue are:
May 8, 2025
Statement of Rev. Phillip J. Brown, P.S.S. President Rector of St. Mary’s Seminary & University on The Election of Cardinal Robert Prevost as Pope Leo XIV
America’s first Catholic seminary, St. Mary’s Seminary & University, rejoices at the election of America’s first Holy Father of the Roman Catholic Church, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, originally from Chicago, Illinois. An Augustinian monk and priest, Pope Leo served as U.S. Provincial of the Augustinians, Prior General, and director of formation before being appointed Bishop of Chiclayo, Peru by Pope Francis. He became a member of the Congregation for Clergy in Rome, then Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops. He understands at a very deep level the importance of the education and formation of priests and religious, and Christians in general.
Pope Leo has showed care and sympathy for Venezuelan refugees in Peru, and he has reflected deeply on the reality and challenges of the human condition. His choice of the name Leo XIV signals a deep consciousness of matters of social justice and the plight of the poor and otherwise disadvantaged. He has shown a commitment to the Gospel imperative that those in need be visible and that we promote their full human dignity. He has emphasized the importance of living well-ordered Christian lives. Pope Leo’s election promises an ongoing awareness of the Church’s duty to awaken people to God’s mercy and treat all with ultimate dignity and respect. The Church and the world have entered a new era in continuity with the best of its traditions and solicitude for the poor, and its commitment to gentle pastoral approaches. All have good reason to rejoice at the election of Pope Leo and to move forward in hope and with confidence that Leo will be a Pope who unifies and consoles those within the fold of the faith and all people. His initial words as Pope were words of peace. He will undoubtedly be a peacemaker with charismatic gifts to bring peace to our hearts and minds and to relations among peoples.
Viva Pope Leo XIV: ad multos annos from the entire St. Mary’s Seminary & University community.
Rev. Phillip J. Brown, P.S.S. President Rector St. Mary’s Seminary & University