My 12 Years of Seminary Formation

IT was about two months after I graduated from high school that I entered the Dominican seminary on June 6, 1981. I was 17 years old then. The first stage of my seminary formation was called Aspirancy. Our batch was composed of 18 first year seminarians who were admitted at the Dominican House of Studies in Sto. Domingo Convent, beside Sto. Domingo Church, where the seminary is located. 8 out of the 18 were either professionals or were in the college level. They skipped the Aspirancy stage and proceeded to the Postulancy.

We stayed at Sto. Domingo seminary for about a month and then we were told that the 1st year and 2nd year Aspirants and the Postulants will be transferred to Calamba, Laguna. For a few months we stayed at a big house which used to be a rest house of the Spanish Dominican Fathers in Barrio Real, Calamba, Laguna. We were enrolled as college students at Colegio de San Juan de Letran in Calamba, Laguna. During the school year, we eventually transferred to the school campus, utilizing several classrooms in the college department as our dormitories, dining hall, community hall and library. I finished my Pre-Novitiate as a Postulant in Calamba, Laguna on my 3rd year of seminary formation. It was there that I took up two years of Bachelor of Arts general curriculum subjects.

On my 4th year in the seminary, after the Postulancy, I entered the Novitiate at Sto. Domingo Convent in Quezon City. The Novitiate is one whole year of intensified spiritual formation. We started to wear the Dominican Habit upon our entrance to the Novitiate. We were not allowed to go home or accept visits from our families. Television, Radio and Newspaper were prohibited in the Novitiate. It was in the Novitiate that we studied the History, Rule and Constitution of the Dominican Order. Towards the end of our Novitiate year, we would go to the slum areas near Sto. Domingo Church on Saturday afternoons and would join the residents for the Block Rosary.

At the end of the Novitiate year, I made my first Religious Profession for a period of 3 years. This made me officially a member of the Dominican Order, adding the letters OP at the end of my name. As a temporary professed seminarian, I pursued my Philosophy Degree at the Dominican House of Studies. This stage of seminary formation is called Studentate and the seminarians are called Student Brothers. After two years, I graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts Major in Philosophy.

The next stage of my seminary formation was the Theological Studies at the Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas. After my first year in Theology, I made my Solemn or Perpetual Religious Profession. At this stage, I made the promise to live the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience for life. After three years of theological studies at the UST Ecclesiastical Faculties, I obtained the Ecclesiastical degree of STB or Bachelor in Sacred Theology. During our time, we were given the option to pursue a Licentiate Degree in Theology which is equivalent to a master’s degree or pursue any other master’s degree other than Theology. I opted to pursue a master’s degree in Philippine Studies, minor in Broadcast Communication at the University of the Philippines.

On my tenth year in my seminary formation, I was ordained to the Order of Deacon. As a deacon, I am able to administer the Sacrament of Baptism, assist at Eucharistic Celebrations and administer blessings. It was also during my Diaconate that I was sent for exposure to our mission areas. After two years as a deacon, I was finally ordained as a priest on March 25, 1993 at the age of 29.