What's the new evangelization?

What do we mean by a "new evangelization"? It's a simple idea—and it's the key to understanding our vocation as Christians of the Great Jubilee. It means preaching Jesus Christ to a rapidly changing world with a new zeal, new tools and new spirit suited to the needs of our age. That's a huge task. We have many great priests, religious, deacons and laypersons doing God's work in northern Colorado. But we need more. And, in the decades ahead, we'll need them working even more closely together, supporting and complementing each other in the spirit which Vatican II intended.

We need the means to form them in that spirit. And now we have it.

It gives me great joy to announce today the foundation of the Our Lady of the New Advent Theological Institute, dedicated to forming a new generation of Catholic evangelizers for today's new mission territory—right here in northern Colorado. For the past two years, the Archdiocese of Denver has explored the possibility of local affiliation with the theological faculty of the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome. Those discussions have now succeeded. Our Lady of the New Advent Theological Institute will have the ability to grant pontifical degrees to its students.

This is a marvelous honor and a tremendous gift to our local Church. In its opening phase, the institute will grant STB (baccalaureate in sacred theology) degrees only—and only to our seminarians. But in coming years, as rapidly as our resources allow, the degree programs will open up to laypersons as well. Moreover, with God's help and our people's generosity, we hope to develop license and doctorate programs in the future.

All archdiocesan priestly, diaconal and lay formation programs, along with the Office for Liturgy, will soon transfer to the institute. The reason, again, is simple: To evangelize today's world, we need the best possible integration of the various vocations within the Church. Through the institute, we hope to shape new apostles rooted in the heart of the Church, who truly understand, respect and mutually support each other's vocations from the very beginning of their formation.

And that leads to my second announcement.

New seminary established

As part of the new institute, I am announcing today the foundation of a new major seminary—the St. John Vianney Theological Seminary of the Archdiocese of Denver. The seminary will function under, and within, the Our Lady of the New Advent Theological Institute. The rector of the institute, Rev. Samuel Aquila, will also serve as rector of the seminary. Over the next several years, nearly all our seminarians will begin and complete their major seminary education here within the archdiocese.

This makes sense for three reasons. First, it will anchor our future priests more deeply in our local Church, while connecting them to the universal Church through the Lateran University. Second, it's good stewardship. The institute and seminary will be housed right at the John Paul II Center, in space which is already available. In fact—while overall seminary costs will increase no matter what we do because of our growing number of seminarians—per seminarian education costs are likely to decrease by training our young men here. Finally, as you will see in coming issues of the Register, the faculty members who have assembled to serve the new institute—men and women with both local and international credentials—are outstanding. I believe they're one of the very best theological faculties in North America.

In the coming months, I'll be writing and speaking much more about our new institute and new seminary. In the meanwhile, I ask you to join me in thanking God for His generosity, and in asking Him to bless the new institute, the new seminary and the many thousands of people they will serve in the years ahead.