From an outside perspective it might seem Mark Jewett, Aaron Schaefer and Zachary Utt had different upbringings: Jewett and Utt attended Catholic school and Schaefer was homeschooled. Their lives converged after high school when the young men opted for seminary instead of a traditional college experience like many of their peers.
The three currently attend seminary at the Pontifical College Josephinum in north Columbus.
Jewett, 22, and Schaefer, 21, are in the discipleship stage, which includes philosophy studies and vocational discernment. Utt is in the propaedeutic stage, an introduction to seminary life primarily spent in prayer without studies other than general courses.
Utt, who graduated from Columbus St. Charles Preparatory School last spring, traced his discernment to eighth grade. He said, for the first time, he thought of being a priest.
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A video of a young priest online made Utt, a Delaware St. Mary parishioner, consider the vocation, seeing the priest as not unlike him. He began taking his faith seriously, he said.
He also trained to altar serve that year at Powell St. Joan of Arc Church. Father Eugene Joseph, who was serving in the Columbus diocese at the time, was influential in the process.
“He said the Mass with a lot of reverence—and actually learning to altar serve with reverence and caring enough about the things like right thumb over left (in hand posture) — and those sorts of things; that kind of fascinated me. He was a newly-ordained priest then, too,” Utt said, remembering, “Okay, there is something really neat.”
Love for altar serving led to increased Mass attendance, and eventually, becoming a daily communicant. Utt assisted with his high school campus ministry and mentored underclassmen.
“The Lord works through our desires, and it just slowly kind of became clear over that time—and the fact that there’s the Josephinum here, that I was able to come on retreats, feel a great sense of peace there,” he recalled.
The sensation and experiences “slowly kind of opened the door for me to be like, ‘Yeah,’ I think, even though seminary’s a place of discernment, still discerning, but at the very least, I’m called here next year because I think that I desire it, and I think that there’s a spirit of peace here.”
Now in his first year of seminary, Utt said the experience is not unlike what he expected. Attending retreats ahead of time gave him an accurate idea of seminary.
A typical day includes classes, prayer, Mass, daily Holy Hour, Liturgy of the Hours – prayed by clergy at set times daily – and time for study, sports and free time at the pub. Brotherhood and fellowship is coupled with spiritual direction and formation.
“Seminary is like a purgatorial process. It’s a purifying process,” Utt acknowledged. “If you don’t feel worthy, you’re kind of coming in ahead of the game, at least from where I was.
“God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called. If you’re feeling unworthy, then that’s probably a good sign that you have a heart disposed to seminary.”
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Jewett, a ’23 graduate of Newark Catholic, entered seminary after what began as a simple prayer routine. He started praying the rosary as a Lenten penance his freshman year.
What was a “chore” at the time, he recalled, became an anchor. He recalled his days began to point toward God, and he continued the devotion.
He also prayed for God’s direction in his life. While he didn’t receive direction to attend seminary, he recalled his heart becoming more disposed to the idea.
A solid rhythm of prayer led Jewett, a member of Newark Blessed Sacrament, to pay attention to the desires of his heart and recognize God’s voice through other people.
“I was praying for an increase in vocations and I just felt a really strong sense of peace in the Lord saying, ‘You too. You can help.’ I wanted more vocations, and the Lord said, ‘You can help that.’ At first, it was a little bit scary,” Jewett said. “Priests are really great; I’m just Mark, and it was really scary at first. It still is sometimes.”
A visit to the Josephinum his senior year produced “a strong sense of peace,” he recalled.
Jewett applied and entered the following year. He described the experience as similar to his expectations.
“It’s a great brotherhood we have of guys who are seeking holiness together, guys who are working hard,” he said. “The classes aren’t always easy, but it is a great joy to go through it together.”
Schaefer’s call to the priesthood began at an early age. He remembered the first call occurring around his First Communion.
“I can remember pretending to say Mass or just being enamored by my pastor,” he said.
Schaefer, the oldest of 10 children, attended a Quo Vadis retreat at the Josephinum the summer before high school. The multi-day event invites boys in grades 9-12 to experience seminary life.
“It was there where I first encountered seminarians and some really cool priests,” he said. “It was also … one of the first times where I could sit in front of the Blessed Sacrament in silence and just really say, ‘Lord, what do You want me to do with my life?'”
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While the answer was not entirely clear, Schaefer resolved to pray more frequently and go to Confession biweekly. He continued his resolution throughout high school, eventually incorporating the Church’s Divine Office with Morning and Evening Prayer.
Schaefer, a Columbus Ss. Augustine and Gabriel parishioner, said the call to the priesthood continued throughout high school. He focused on his relationship with God and Our Lady. He also kept in contact with the diocese’s vocations director.
By junior year, he was ready to make a leap of faith. The application process was in motion by the fall of his senior year.
“I had already made up my mind to, ‘This is what I wanted’ to do, and so, it was just part of the process of getting to where I wanted to go,” he recalled.
Schaefer entered seminary at the Josephinum in 2023 and will graduate with a bachelor of art’s in philosophy in the spring. He will then begin studies toward a master’s in theology.
The Diocese of Columbus celebrates Vocations Awareness Week Nov. 1-8. To learn more, visit Live the Incredible | Columbus Catholic Vocations.