Matthew Graham
St. Thomas the Apostle Church, Huntsville, TX
Pre-Theology I
Holy Trinity Seminary, Dallas, TX
It was not until I was twenty seven years old that I was baptized, confirmed, and received Holy Communion in the Church. I like to think of it as God never having given up on me no matter how little I had believed in Him or how hard I tried to deny Him. I was only half way through the RCIA process when I first approached my parish priest about the possibility of a religious vocation. It was the beginning of a three year odyssey of discernment which found me contemplating marriage to a girlfriend whom I loved deeply, a vocation to the Order of St. Benedict, and diocesan priesthood. After learning to rely solely upon God’s grace and the advice of those far wiser than myself I clearly heard the call of Jesus Christ and have gladly said “yes.” Having been greatly influenced by the Benedictine tradition my relationship with God can best be described as Christocentric; grounded wholly in Sacred Scripture, the teachings of the Church Fathers, and guarded by a tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. My reason for wanting to follow what I pray is a calling from Christ to be a priest is simple: in a world in which people are desperate to find happiness and even more so to deny Jesus Christ, I wish to bring Him to them in both word and sacrament. It is an echo of my favorite verse of scripture found in one of St. Paul’s Letters, “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Gal. 6:14) I humbly beg of your prayers for myself, my brother seminarians, and all those considering a religious vocation.