Mar 1, 2024 | News
“I was intensely proud in that moment to be pro-life, to be Catholic, and to be a member of the Holy Apostles community,” says Samuel, an undergraduate Holy Apostles student who is also discerning the priesthood. The pro-life identity at Holy Apostles is very strong, and this year was no different! The 10-hour bus drive commenced late Thursday evening and students and priests from the Holy Apostles campus arrived in Washington, D.C. at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception early Friday morning, on January 19. They attended the closing Mass for the National Prayer Vigil for Life and then made their way to the March for Life Rally. Pro-lifers from around the country attended the March and walked through the freezing cold as snow fell. Their presence witnessed to the defense of the unborn and the sacredness of all human life.
While Samuel grew up watching the March for Life on EWTN, this was his first time attending in person since he is originally from Oregon. He shared, “The actual March was a stunning witness to the vibrancy of the Faith in America, and the unity and determination to continue in the belief that all life is sacred, and I was privileged to carry the Holy Apostles banner for much of the march… What I saw was ‘morning again in America.’ And I saw that the Catholic Church in the US was filled with vibrancy and hope, and that we here at Holy Apostles are a part of that, and that we have the important and crucial calling to always contribute to the blossoming of the Church in America.” Thank you to our generous benefactor who made this trip possible, and may the Lord bless all of those who promote the pro-life cause!
The Connecticut March for Life will be held on Wednesday, March 20 in the capital city of Hartford. Students, faculty and staff from the Holy Apostles community will again march in peaceful and prayerful support for the pro-life cause and as a witness to the unborn. For more information and to also attend the Connecticut March for Life, please visit: https://marchforlife.org/connecticut/
Photo credit: Huan Tran
Mar 1, 2024 | News
Article by Fr. Jeffrey “Skip” Thompson, MSA
March is “Fr. Menard Month” for the Missionaries of the Holy Apostles to honor the priest who founded our MSA and the seminary that bears its name. Back in 1943-46, the first ministry of the charismatic young Franciscan priest Fr. Eusebe Menard were retreats that attracted “a few good, older men” to discern priestly vocations. To facilitate his unique mission Fr. Menard built a retreat house and seminaries with significant help from a faithful layman: Mr. Hector Durand.
Fr. Menard and Mr. Durand co-founded the “Missionaries of the Holy Apostles” in Montreal, Canada in 1951. Their apostolate expanded into the U.S. with the help of Br. Joseph Barabie, a former real estate man, who founded the site that in 1957, eventually became Holy Apostles College and Seminary in Cromwell, CT.
Br. Barabie later moved out to California to live and serve with the Camaldolese Benedictine monks, who had just founded New Camaldoli Hermitage in the magnificent Big Sur region on the central California coast as a place of retreat. One eventual retreater was Jeffrey “Skip” Thompson who went there from 2003 to 2006 and reverted to his childhood Catholic faith.
During one of Skip’s retreats in 2004, however, Br. Barabie died and Skip was invited to assist the monks move his body. He stayed for Br. Barabie’s funeral mass and noted his last words on his program, not anticipating how Barabie’s MSA identity as one of Menard’s men would guide his future vocation. In 2008 he began to discern the priesthood and flew east to meet MSA vocation director, Fr. Brad Pierce of happy memory. When he learned about Skip’s retreats to New Camoldoli. Fr. Brad recalled that Br. Barabie went out to live in that same place. He asked Skip if he met Br. Barabie and when he learned that 4 years earlier he had helped bury Fr. Menard’s old assistant he declared it “providential.” Fr. Brad concluded, “You can’t make that happen! You belong with us.” It was a moment of amazing grace!
After his ordination in 2015, the new Father Skip worked for 5 years at HACS as Dean of Seminarians along with several other Provincial jobs. What was also providential was his opportunity to return to California to pursue a Menard-like ministry of retreats in 2020. In 2022, he met with Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron. They agreed on operating a retreat house and a contract was struck with MSA Provincial Fr. Martin Rooney and the good bishop to run the new Retreat House at the Santa Clara Parish in Oxnard, CA, for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Another thing you can’t make happen! Bishop Barron’s comment to Fr. Skip was: “It’s all grace!” Indeed. Amazing.
Fr. Skip moved into the retreat house on Menard Day, March 26, 2022, and since then has partnered with laymen to support retreat offerings there and God-willing, help a few good men to discern their particular calling to the priesthood.
Reflecting on the value of retreats, Fr. Skip observes that they “involve one’s deliberate choice to make time to be with Jesus Christ in prayer and reflection. And that’s what allows grace to flow to hear his call to follow him!”
“Draw close to God and he will draw close to you.” James 4:8. Call the house at 805.330.8260 or email: retreathouse@santaclaraparish.org. Fr. Skip would love to hear from you. Get thee to a retreat house!
Feb 2, 2024 | Alumni, News
College is an opportunity to explore one’s interests and skills, discern one’s path, and create meaningful relationships along the way.
It is certainly the case for Daniel O’Connor and his wife Regina O’Connor (Wagner), who met while attending Holy Apostles College & Seminary (HACS) over 10 years ago.
Daniel completed an MA degree in Philosophical Theology in 2012 at HACS alongside a class of exceptional students, including the Very Reverend Chris Alar M.I.C. and the Very Reverend Daniel Reehil, V. F., among others, who, as seminarians, were studying for their M.Div degrees; friendships that continue today.
Regina, who hails from Hamden, CT, received her BA in Philosophy in 2013. Her interest in attending HACS as a commuter student resulted from the desire to further her studies, having obtained an Associate Degree in Occupational Therapy from a secular college in 2011. But this time, a Catholic education was essential to her.
“From the first moment I stepped onto the campus at Holy Apostles, I felt both an indescribable sense of peace and a profound gratitude to the Holy Spirit for guiding me there. In the two years I studied at HACS, I had only the most incredible experiences. I absolutely loved the small, deeply faith-based classes (taught by truly solid, Catholic professors), and getting to know some of the most incredible people I have ever had the blessing to meet,” said Regina.
“Among some of the most beautiful opportunities I had as a lay student included: singing in a campus choir with fellow classmates – lay students, seminarians, and religious sisters alike – for various Masses, attending the March for Life in Washington, D.C., and being able to regularly stop by the beautiful campus chapel (where Daniel later proposed to me) to pray in the presence of Our Lord. I will forever be grateful to God for leading me to Holy Apostles!”
After graduating from Holy Apostles, the couple was later married by the then HACS President-Rector, Fr. Mosey, at St. Mary Church in New Haven.
Currently, Daniel and Regina reside in upstate New York and now have five children ranging from ages one to nine years old, keeping them extremely busy. An adjunct Philosophy Professor at the State University of New York Community College, Daniel has also completed four years of studies toward a Ph.D. in Philosophy. And carrying on the family tradition, two of Daniel and Regina’s nieces are currently online students at HACS.
Daniel affectionately recalls his time on campus, “My experiences at Holy Apostles remain among the fondest memories of my life, as well as the ones from which I am most wholeheartedly grateful. Whether attending Mass and praying the Divine Office in the chapel, studying under the guidance of the excellent and inspiring professors, or enjoying fellowship with other students, or participating in the many extra-curricular activities that flourished (such as pro-life work and evangelization), the opportunities provided at HACS were unique and irreplaceable. I hope and pray that many thousands more students are able to experience what I did at Holy Apostles!”
Daniel has gained a strong following on his website and blogs on many topics ranging from the Divine Will and Divine Mercy apostolates to the subjects of eschatology, AI, and reflections on our times. He has been a guest on many webcasts and shows, including EWTN Living Divine Mercy, among others.
Recently, Daniel published a book called, “Only Man Bears His Image,” a comprehensive publication depicting Catholic and Biblical views on aliens, UFOs, and other Sci-Fi issues. A fascinating book!
“We are blessed to have such a beautiful family as part of our community, both as alumni and current students,” said Fr. Peter Kucer, President-Rector. “The O’Connor family exemplifies what Saint John Paul II wrote, ‘To the extent in which the Christian family accepts the Gospel and matures in faith, it becomes an evangelizing community…The family, like the Church, ought to be a place where the Gospel is transmitted and from which the Gospel radiates. In a family that is conscious of this mission, all the members evangelize and are evangelized. The parents not only communicate the Gospel to their children, but from their children, they can themselves receive the same Gospel as deeply lived by them. And such a family becomes the evangelizer of many other families, and of the neighborhood of which it forms part.” (Familiaris Consortio, 52)
Holy Apostles College and Seminary www.holyapostles.edu is a NECHE and ATS accredited college with a mission of preparing and educating seminarians, consecrated and lay students for the New Evangelization through undergraduate and graduate programs. Students have access to faithfully Catholic, truly affordable, and fully online programs as well as residential religious programs in historic Cromwell, Connecticut. As a pioneer in online learning, Holy Apostles is one of the first theological schools to offer 100% online graduate programs. Alumni and faculty of the institution include internationally recognized leaders and experts in the areas of apologetics, philosophy, and theology.
Dec 8, 2023 | News
Unlocking the Soul of Sacred Theology
“[T]he study of the sacred page is, as it were, the soul of sacred theology (Dei Verbum, §24). With these words, the Second Vatican Council underlined the importance of studying the Word of God in Sacred Scripture. The Catholic Church recognizes Sacred Scripture as the inspired Word of God, written through the unerring inspiration of the Holy Ghost. All Catholics are encouraged to devoutly and prayerfully read Scripture each day in order to deepen their understanding of and love for God.
Cultivating Leaders for Evangelization: Holy Apostles’ Mission
As part of our mission to cultivate Catholic leaders for the purpose of evangelization, Holy Apostles is launching a Master of Sacred Scripture program that will give students the opportunity to study the 73 books of Sacred Scripture. Using commentaries, homilies, and glosses from the Fathers of the Church, as well as those of contemporary biblical scholars, you will study the Scriptures in light of the Church’s living tradition. In the 6th century, a Roman monk named Cassiodorus wrote, “Beloved, let us ascend without hesitation to Holy Scripture through the excellent commentaries of the Fathers, as if on the ladder of Jacob’s ladder, by which the angels ascend and descend.” Recognizing the Church Fathers’ invaluable contribution to biblical exegesis, each course in the program is rooted in Patristic writings. You will also study the works of contemporary biblical scholars who uphold the Church’s infallible teachings and interpretations of Sacred Scripture. Studying the entire Bible in light of the Church’s traditional teachings will enrich your personal prayer life, deepen your understanding of the Bible, and equip you to explain and defend the true meaning of the Scriptures to others.
Ascending the Ladder of Wisdom
To this end, you will also learn to read and translate the Bible in its original languages. With courses in Greek or Hebrew (or both if you would like!), you will learn to understand the original meaning of the ancient texts without needing to rely on others’ translations. Not all versions of the Bible are translated faithfully; William Tyndale’s famous translation, which contributed to the future King James Version, contained “over 2,000 errors” in the New Testament alone (Catholic Answers). While the Church recommends many accurate vernacular translations, it is important for Catholics to understand the texts in their original languages, without the changes that inevitably result from translation. Oftentimes in apologetics discussions, questions involving translation discrepancies will arise. Having a firm understanding of the sacred texts in their original languages equips the Catholic apologist to better defend the Faith. “Knowledge of the sacred languages is essential not only for comprehension but for what follows after the completion of this degree…for anyone who seeks to take up Our Lord’s command to evangelize, to make disciples of all nations,” explains Dr. Andrew Blaski, program director for our Master of Sacred Scripture.
An Innovative Approach
As a student of our Master of Sacred Scripture program, you will walk in the footsteps of the great Catholic theologians of the past two millennia. By studying the teachings of the Church Fathers and reading the Bible in its original languages, you will learn to understand the true meaning of each sacred book. As St. Jerome famously said, “Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.” It is our hope that the Master of Sacred Scripture program will lead you deeper in your relationship with God through a better understanding of His eternal word.
Our Master of Sacred Scripture program officially launches in the upcoming spring semester, which begins January 8, 2024. We would love for you to join us in studying Sacred Scripture! You can view the course schedule for the program and apply on our website. Our admissions office is always happy to answer any questions you may have as they assist you through the application process. Please prayerfully consider applying to our program and studying Sacred Scripture with us!
About the author: Chantal LaFortune is a writer for Missio Dei and the editor of several books for En Route Books & Media. The Society of Classical Poets has published several of her poems. She is studying theology and English at Holy Apostles College & Seminary.
Nov 28, 2023 | Alumni, News
Caption: Very Reverend Daniel Reehil,
V.F. and President Rector Fr. Peter
Kucer at the Boston Marian Conference
Very Reverend Daniel Reehil, V.F., is the Pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Church in the Nashville area and has a fascinating story about his journey to the priesthood.
As a Wall Street banker in Manhattan in the 1990s, he was invited to take a trip to Medjugorje in 1998 after being away from the church for twenty years. During confession, the priest told him that he believed he had a vocation. This life-altering pilgrimage began a transformational conversion for him.
The experience led him to re-evaluate his life, and so after 9/11, he moved to Boston to begin his formation under the mentorship of Fr. Tom Dilorenzo. Later, Fr. Dan attended Holy Apostles College and Seminary and completed his MDiv in 2014. During that time, he also spent five years in a contemplative hermitage
Along with his busy pastoral responsibilities and his role as Treasurer of the Diocesan Bank of Nashville CCIL, Fr. Dan also leads an engaging radio broadcast at 9:00 am CT called Battle Ready on Radio Maria USA, discussing a variety of topics relevant to our times and to advancing the Gospel.
Fr. Dan is also a well-known exorcist of the Diocese of Nashville. In fact, he was featured this past October on Fox News warning of the dangers of Ouija boards.
In 2018, he received his exorcism training at Ateneo Pontificio Regina Apostolorum in Rome and completed intensive spiritual warfare training with the Intercessors of the Lamb in Omaha. He has seen unusual paranormal experiences and strange manifestations in his role of exorcist but remains undaunted.
“As I approach the 10th anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood, I am continually thankful for the solid, orthodox formation I was afforded at Holy Apostles Seminary and College. The strong work ethic and mission to serve, coupled with an excellent academic formation and a dedicated discipline of prayer and adoration have given me the tools to cultivate a rhythm of life to faithfully serve the parish and various ministries I shepherd,” said Fr. Reehil
“I have also maintained many solid friendships with the men I befriended at Holy Apostles Seminary; friendships that have grown into a brotherhood and relationships I am so grateful to have formed while in seminary.”
Fr. Reehil is in demand and travels extensively for speaking engagements worldwide. This fall, he was a guest speaker at the Boston Marian Conference in Quincy, Massachusetts. At the conference, he shared stories about the importance of following the leading of the Holy Spirit as we live out our Christian calling.
“As pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Columbia, TN, and as the Exorcist of the Diocese of Nashville, Fr. Dan Reehil is placing his many gifts at the service of the Church in a truly Christ-centered manner, “said Fr. Kucer. “Holy Apostles College & Seminary is blessed to have formed Fr. Reehil at our seminary. May Fr. Reehil and his ministry be blessed abundantly and flourish in accordance with God’s will.”
Holy Apostles College and Seminary www.holyapostles.edu is a NECHE and ATS accredited college with a mission of preparing and educating seminarians, consecrated and lay students, for the New Evangelization through undergraduate and graduate programs. Students have access to faithfully Catholic, truly affordable, and fully online programs as well as residential religious programs in historic Cromwell, Connecticut. As a pioneer in online learning, Holy Apostles is one of the first theological schools to offer 100% online graduate programs. Alumni and faculty of the institution include internationally recognized leaders and experts in apologetics, philosophy, and theology.
Nov 28, 2023 | News
On Thursday, October 12, we gathered in our chapel for the Mass to celebrate Blessed Carlo Acutis on his feast day and as a reminder of the passion, powerful mystery, and gift that receiving the Eucharist is for us all.
A plaque was placed in the chapel to honor Reverend Douglas Mosey, C.S.B. for his years of service to Holy Apostles College & Seminary followed by an outdoor Eucharistic procession.
We ended the evening with Eucharistic adoration led by Reverend Jeffrey “Skip” Thompson, M.S.A., who presided and gave reflections on “How Jesus Taught His Real Presence in the Eucharist.” Father Thompson has been featured on ETWN’s The Journey Home program.
It was a beautiful day to celebrate with our community and friends!
Click images below to view at full scale.
