Felipe Gonzalez traces his dreams of becoming a Catholic priest to a childhood Halloween costume: a priest's robe and hat. Karl Schmidt sees the priesthood as a way to help others. And Jonathan Stephanz takes his inspiration, in part, from the Catholic clergy sexual abuse scandal.
"The scandal has strengthened that calling because it makes me want to show that all priests are not bad," said Stephanz, 18, of Riverview. "It makes me want to help out."
This week, the young men will take the first step toward becoming diocesan priests as they head to St. John Vianney College Seminary in Miami for their first year of study. In all, 11 recruits from the Diocese of St. Petersburg plan to enter the school this year.
Nearly half, like Gonzalez, Schmidt and Stephanz, are freshly minted high school graduates. Their enrollment represents a small but growing national trend.
Despite years of flagging numbers of seminarians in the United States, recruits to the priesthood appear to be on the rise. And the biggest gains are among new high school graduates, with high school recruits in 2006 up 5 percent to 1,365 across the nation, Catholic researchers say.
St. John Vianney, the state's only free-standing college seminary, plans to welcome seven seminarians directly out of high school. Five of them come from the Diocese of St. Petersburg, which covers the Tampa Bay region. The others are from dioceses around the state.
Priests around the country cheer the increase, particularly in light of the clergy sexual abuse scandal that continues to reverberate throughout the church.
"I don't think it's an increase as such that would rally the numbers that we had back in the 1950s or '60s," said Monsignor Edward Burns, executive director of Vocations and Priestly Formations Secretariat for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. "But it's an increase in some of the lower numbers that we've experienced in the past. ... I've been impressed by the fact that young men continue to step forward and answer God's call unabashedly saying that they want to become a priest."
Influx at seminaries
This fall, several Catholic seminaries around the country boast of record incoming classes. At St. John Vianney, leaders expect 31 new students, a 19 percent increase from last school term. "I really think there's a new springtime happening," said the Rev. Michael Carruthers, St. John Vianney's rector and president.
Still, researchers urge caution.
"It's a promising sign, but I certainly wouldn't call it a turnaround," said Mary L. Gautier, a senior researcher at the Center for Applied Research in the Apostalate at Georgetown University. "There's a long way between seminary and ordination."
Traditional jitters
Locally, the recent high school graduates along with other new and returning seminarians - there are 26 seminarians in all from the 400,000-member Diocese of St. Petersburg -- gathered last week at Saint Leo University in Pasco County to bond and discuss the seven- to 10-year road to ordination.
Greg Visca, a Bloomingdale High School graduate from Valrico, has been trying to quiet a torrent of internal questions about his decision. At times, he wonders if he's crazy, if God is really calling him and if he can he get out of going to seminary.
"Just like a married couple when they experience cold feet, I think I might be experiencing a little bit of that," said Visca, 19. "But I'm trying to get some courage and saying this is what I've been planning on doing for the past few years."
At one point, Anthony Ustick seemed destined for a career in mechanics or carpentry. But about two years ago, he began attending vocation conferences and started feeling a strong call to the priesthood.
Like the other new seminarians, he sees his education as part of an intense discernment period.
"I'll go down there, and I'll try it," Ustick, 18, of Largo said. "If this isn't what the Lord is calling me to do, the worst that will happen is I've got a little bit more direction in my life."
Just as secular college freshman, a few of the young men have traditional jitters.
"I'm just nervous about being away from home for the first time," Schmidt, 19, of Valrico said. But "I'm excited to start my journey, and get through the seminary and become a priest."
Carefully chosen
Throughout the seminarians' convocation at Saint Leo, diocesan officials praised their new recruits. They choose carefully, they said, and ultimately turned away five applicants to get those students who show the greatest potential for ordination.
"We need good priests, and we have to keep the standards high," said the Rev. Len Plazewski, the diocese's director of vocations.
The young men have spent the last few weeks preparing for seminary, where they will have a nightly curfew and have to stay on campus during weekends. While some admit they'll miss their families, none say they regret bypassing secular college with its coed dorms, parties and fraternities.
"I'll build a fraternity with the guys that I'll be going to school with," Stephanz said. "And that fraternity will last forever."
Sherri Day can be reached at 813 226-3405 or sday@sptimes.com.
Diocese of St. Petersburg, 2007-2008
26 Total seminarians (new and returning)
11 Recruits
5 From high school
23 Statewide average age of recruits
Nationwide, 2006-2007
3,274 or a decrease of 1 percent Post-baccalaureate seminary enrollment
1,365 or a 5 percent increase College seminary enrollment
729 or a 4 percent decrease High school seminary enrollment
67 to 83 percent since 2003 Percentage of seminarians who make it to ordination
Sources: the Diocese of St. Petersburg, CARA, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, St. John Vianney College Seminary
Felipe Gonzalez
Age: 18.
Graduate of: Gaither High School.
From: Land O'Lakes.
Church: St. Paul Catholic Church, Tampa.
Parents' reaction: "When I told them that I wanted to become a priest, they were not shocked because they've always known. They hugged me and said it was a blessed path to take." Karl Schmidt
Age: 19.
Graduate of: Durant High School.
From: Valrico.
Church: Church of the Nativity, Brandon.
At Saint Leo: "It's been great getting to know the other seminarians and learning what to expect when I enter seminary." Jonathan Stephanz
Age: 18.
Graduate of: Blake High School.
From: Riverview.
Church: St. Stephen Catholic Church, Valrico.
Goal: "God willing, I'll become a priest, and I will commit my life to the church. But right now it's a time of discernment, and part of that discernment is deciding on where I'm called to in my life." Anthony Ustick
Age: 18.
Graduate of: Holy Family Academy.
From: Largo.
Church: St. Matthew Catholic Church, Largo.
The call: "I prayed, and I felt something inside me saying 'Go try this. Go do this.' " Greg Visca
Age: 19.
Graduate of: Bloomingdale High School.
From: Valrico.
Church: Church of the Nativity, Brandon.
His friends: "Every chance they'd get, they'd make fun of me for doing it. ... But one by one, they'd each come up to me in private and say 'I'm really proud of you.' "