The Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

seminary and school of theology in

Saint Meinrad, Indiana Saint Meinrad is a census-designated place (CDP) in Harrison Township, Spencer County, Indiana, United States. Located along the Anderson River, it is home to the St. Meinrad Archabbey. Interstate 64 runs near the CDP, and it is situated about ...

. It is affiliated with the Saint Meinrad Archabbey in St. Meinrad, Indiana. The institution was named after

Meinrad of Einsiedeln Meinrad ( la, Meinradus, Mainradus; 797 – 21 January 861 AD) was a hermit and is a Roman Catholic and Orthodox saint. He is known as the "Martyr of Hospitality". His feast day is 21 January. Life Meinrad was born into the family of the Count ...

, a ninth century hermit living in what is today Switzerland.

History

In 1857, several

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monks travelled from

Einsiedeln Abbey Einsiedeln Abbey (german: Kloster Einsiedeln) is a Benedictine Catholic monastery in the village of Einsiedeln in the canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, in recognition of Meinrad of Einsiedeln, a he ...

Einsiedeln, Switzerland Einsiedeln () is a municipality and district in the canton of Schwyz in Switzerland known for its monastery, the Benedictine Einsiedeln Abbey, established in the 10th century. History Early history There was no permanent settlement in the area p ...

, to southern Indiana to establish Saint Meinrad Seminary. At its beginning, Saint Meinrad was a high school program. By 1861, the monks had added courses in

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

, business, theology and

classical literature Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

. A fire in 1887 destroyed the seminary buildings. When Saint Meinrad reopened after the 1887 fire, it focused only on preparing seminarians for priesthood. It had two divisions: * A

minor seminary A minor seminary or high school seminary is a secondary day or boarding school created for the specific purpose of enrolling teenage boys who have expressed interest in becoming Catholic priests. They are generally Catholic institutions, and ...

with four years of high school and the first two years of college * A

major seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

with two years of college courses in philosophy and theology In 1959, Saint Meinrad reorganized into three divisions: * A traditional four year high school, which closed in 1968. * A four-year college, which closed in 1998. * A theologate, or graduate school of theology In February 2019, after an internal investigation, Saint Meinrad added two priests to the

Diocese of Evansville The Diocese of Evansville ( la, Dioecesis Evansvicensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in Southwestern Indiana. On October 21, 1944, the then- Diocese of Indianapolis was split into the Archdiocese of Indianapolis and the Diocese of Evan ...

list of clergy with credible accusations of sexual abuse: * Warren Heitz was accused of misconduct dating from the 1970s and 1999. Removed from public ministry in 2002, he spent ten years living in a supervised residence for offenders at Saint Meinrad. * Robert Woerdeman had faced one accusation of misconduct. He was

defrocked Defrocking, unfrocking, degradation, or laicization of clergy is the removal of their rights to exercise the functions of the ordained ministry. It may be grounded on criminal convictions, disciplinary problems, or disagreements over doctrine or ...

as a priest in 1975

Academics

Saint Meinrad offers the following advanced degrees: *

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and divi ...

* Master of Theological Studies * Master of Arts in Catholic Philosophical Studies * Master of Arts (Theology) * Master of Arts (Pastoral Theology) Saint Meinrad offers programs in: * Priesthood formation * Theological formation for

permanent deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

candidates * Lay degrees in theology * Continuing adult education * Youth leadership Saint Meinrad is accredited by the

Association of Theological Schools The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) is an organization of seminaries and other graduate schools of theology. ATS has its headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. History It was founded in 1918. The associ ...

. It has also been accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

or its predecessor, the

North Central Association of Colleges and Schools The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), also known as the North Central Association, was a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states engaged in educational accreditation. It w ...

, continuously since 1979.

Alumni

Ordinaries

*Archbishop

Daniel M. Buechlein Daniel Mark Buechlein, OSB (April 20, 1938 – January 25, 2018) was a Benedictine monk and an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the third bishop of the Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee from 1987 until he was appoi ...

, Bishop Emeritus,

Archdiocese of Indianapolis The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis ( la, Archidioecesis Indianapolitana) is a division of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. When it was originally erected as the Diocese of Vincennes on May 6, 1834, it encompassed all of ...

*Father Ralph S. Pfau, author

Deceased alumni cardinals

Joseph Cardinal Ritter Joseph Elmer Ritter (July 20, 1892 – June 10, 1967) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. Louis in Missouri from 1946 until his death in 1967, and was created a cardinal in 1 ...

, O'1917; Archdiocese of St. Louis

Living alumni bishops

* Paul J. Bradley, DD, O'1971; Diocese of Kalamazoo * J. Douglas Deshotel, DD, O`1978; Diocese of Dallas - Auxiliary * Robert W. Donnelly, DD, O'1957; Diocese of Toledo - Auxiliary (retired) * Gerald A. Gettelfinger, DD, O'1961; Diocese of Evansville (retired) *Joseph H. Hart, DD, O'1956; Diocese of Cheyenne (retired) * James Vann Johnston, DD, T'1990; Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph * Peter A. Libasci, DD, O'1977; Diocese of Manchester * William F. Medley, DD, O'1982; Diocese of Owensboro * Carl F. Mengeling, STD, O'1957; Diocese of Lansing (retired) * Thomas J. O'Brien, DD, O'1961; Diocese of Phoenix (resigned) * Patrick Pinder, DD, O'1979; Archdiocese of Nassau *

David L. Ricken David Laurin Ricken (born November 9, 1952) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as the bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin since 2008. Ricken previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Cheyenne in Wyoming ...

, DD, O'1980; Diocese of Green Bay *João Noé Rodrigues (Sabbaticant 1993); Diocese of Tzaneen, South Africa * James Peter Sartain, DD, O'1978; Archdiocese of Seattle * Joseph M. Siegel, STL, O'1988; Diocese of Evansville * David P. Talley T`1989; Diocese of Memphis * Anthony B. Taylor, DD, O'1980; Diocese of Little Rock *

Charles C. Thompson Charles Coleman Thompson (born April 11, 1961) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in Indiana since 2017. He previously served as the bishop of the Diocese of Evansvill ...

, DD, T'1987; Archdiocese of Indianapolis

Deceased alumni bishops

* Herman J. Alerding, O'1868; Diocese of Fort Wayne *

John G. Bennett John Godolphin Bennett (8 June 1897 – 13 December 1974) was a British academic and author. He is best known for his books on psychology and spirituality, particularly on the teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff. Bennett met Gurdjieff in Istanbul in ...

, O'1914; Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana * William D. Borders, DD, O'1940; Archdiocese of Baltimore *

Joseph Chartrand Joseph Chartrand (May 11, 1870 – December 8, 1933) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the 6th Bishop of Indianapolis, serving from 1918 until his death in 1933. Biography Joseph Chartrand was born in St. Louis, Missouri, ...

, O'1892; Diocese of Indianapolis * Francis R. Cotton, O'1920 Diocese of Owensboro * Joseph R. Crowley, O'1953; Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend (Auxiliary Emeritus) * Laurence J. FitzSimon, O'1921; Diocese of Amarillo * James R. Hoffman, O'1958; Diocese of Toledo *E. B. Ledvina, O'1893; Diocese of Corpus Christi * Thomas F. Lillis, O'1885; Diocese Kansas City, MO *

Denis O'Donaghue Denis O'Donaghue (November 30, 1848 – November 7, 1925) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Louisville from 1910 to 1924. Biography Early life O'Donaghue was born on a farm in Daviess County, Indiana, to ...

, O'1874; Diocese of Louisville (Emeritus) * Theodore Revermann, O'1901; Diocese of Superior *John C. Ward, O'1884; Diocese of Leavenworth

Others

Luke Timothy Johnson Luke Timothy Johnson (born November 20, 1943) is an American New Testament scholar and historian of early Christianity. He is the Robert W. Woodruff Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Candler School of Theology and a Senior Fello ...

, Ph.D., author and professor at the Candler School of

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

. *Fr. Thomas Scecina, US Army chaplain killed during the sinking of the Japanese prison ship ''

Arisan Maru ''Arisan Maru'' was a Type 2A freighter constructed in 1944 during World War II and was one of Imperial Japan's hell ships. The vessel, named for a mountain on Formosa, was initially used as a troop transport. The vessel was then turned over f ...

'' in 1944Chaplain Father Thomas Scecina
/ref> *Fr.

Cyprian Davis Cyprian Davis, O.S.B. (born Clarence John Davis; September 9, 1930 – May 18, 2015) was an African-American Catholic monk, priest, and historian at St. Meinrad Archabbey in Indiana. He is known for his work on the history of Black Catholicism. ...

, OSB, Black Catholic historian and the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

to join the St Meinrad monks.

References

External links

* {{authority control Catholic seminaries in the United States Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis Educational institutions established in 1857 Education in Spencer County, Indiana Catholic universities and colleges in Indiana 1857 establishments in Indiana