Notre Dame Seminary
| Notre Dame Seminary | |
|---|---|
| Short name | NDS |
| Type | Theologate |
| Status | Open |
| Rite | Roman Catholic (Latin Rite) |
| Sponsoring diocese(s) | Archdiocese of New Orleans |
| Operated by | Archdiocese of New Orleans |
| City | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| State / province | Louisiana |
| Country | United States |
| Address | 2901 S Carrollton Ave, New Orleans, LA 70118 |
| Founded | 1923 |
| Website | Official site |
| Levels of formation | Propaedeutic Stage, Human Formation, Spiritual Formation, Intellectual Formation, Pastoral Formation, Liturgical Formation, Vocational Synthesis Stage |
| Degrees | Bachelor of Philosophy (Philosophy for Theological Sciences), Master of Arts (Philosophy for Theological Studies), Master of Divinity, Master of Arts (Theological Studies), Master of Arts in Pastoral Leadership |
| Interdiocesan | Yes |
Notre Dame Seminary is a Roman Catholic seminary and graduate school of theology in New Orleans, Louisiana, operating under the auspices of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Established as a free-standing seminary in 1923, it primarily forms men for the ministerial priesthood serving dioceses in the southern United States, while also offering formation programs for lay ecclesial leadership.
History
In the early 19th century, Bishop Louis Dubourg envisioned a diocesan seminary in lower Louisiana, but limited resources delayed its establishment. In 1838, Bishop Antoine Blanc founded Assumption Seminary, marking the region's first local priestly formation effort, which faced a fire in 1855 and financial difficulties after the Civil War.
The Most Rev. John William Shaw became the Eighth Archbishop of New Orleans in 1918. In 1921, he inspired eleven thousand volunteers to conduct a door-to-door fundraiser that raised $1,217,824.84, half designated for construction and half for an endowment. Shaw recruited the Society of Mary, a French religious community founded in 1836, to oversee the new seminary; the Society provided the faculty and all rectors for forty-four years until 1967, with individual members remaining on staff into the 1990s. Shaw also invited the Sisters of the Holy Family, an African American religious community founded in New Orleans in 1842, to care for the facility, which they did until 1982.
Notre Dame Seminary opened on 18 September 1923 with twenty-seven men from three dioceses registered for the first day of classes. Its first priests were ordained on 14 July 1924: the Revs. Felix Ferdinand Miller and Edward C. Prendergast for the Archdiocese of New Orleans, and Revs. Lawrence M. Fournet and Maurice J. Bourgeois for the Diocese of Lafayette. Shaw built the archbishop's residence next to the first seminary building in 1926 and died there on All Souls Day, 1934, leaving his entire estate to NDS.
The Most Rev. Joseph Francis Rummel served as Ninth Archbishop of New Orleans from 1935 to 1964. Around the seminary's Silver Jubilee in 1948, he added a convent for the Holy Family Sisters (1936), a Grotto honoring Our Lady of Lourdes (1943), twelve stained-glass windows in the chapel, the Oratorio of the Immaculate Conception (1948), and St. Joseph Hall (1954), which included a chapel, auditorium, library, and residence rooms. On 22 November 1952, the Von Trapp Family visited and sang in that auditorium for Rummel's jubilees. Notre Dame Seminary received authorization to confer degrees on 25 June 1948 by Act 136, Bill No. 832, of the Louisiana State Legislature, and beginning in 1950 became part of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (S.A.C.S.). Rummel integrated the seminary in 1949, fifteen years before the Civil Rights Act of 1964; in response, the Ku Klux Klan desecrated and burned an eight-foot-tall cross in front of his house on the seminary campus on 17 May 1956.
The Most Rev. John Patrick Cody became Tenth Archbishop of New Orleans in 1964. That year he added a swimming pool behind Shaw Hall and reordered priestly formation to align with the American 4-4-4 practice, founding St. John Vianney high school seminary, converting St. Joseph Seminary into a four-year college, and turning NDS into a four-year theologate.
The Most Rev. Philip Matthew Hannan served as Eleventh Archbishop of New Orleans from 1965 to 1988. He led the rebuilding of Catholic institutions, including NDS, damaged by Hurricane Betsy in September 1965, and implemented Vatican II reforms at the seminary. Hannan invited Pope (now Saint) John Paul II to visit New Orleans from 11 to 13 September 1987; the Holy Father stayed in the archbishop's residence built by Shaw next to the first seminary building.
The Most Rev. Francis Bible Schulte was installed as Twelfth Archbishop of New Orleans on 14 February 1989. As the millennium approached, NDS opened the 1999 academic year with 152 seminarians for the first time in its history, and honored its largest ordination class to date.
In the 21st century, major renovations funded by Thomas and Gayle Benson revitalized facilities including Shaw Hall and the former convent.
Campus and Formation
Priestly formation at Notre Dame Seminary follows a Propaedeutic Stage and a Vocational Synthesis Stage, encompassing Human, Spiritual, Intellectual, Pastoral, and Liturgical Formation. The seminary also offers Lay Formation through its Institute for Lay Ecclesial Ministry (ILEM) and an Enrichment Series.
Academics
Notre Dame Seminary offers the following degree programs: Bachelor of Philosophy (Philosophy for Theological Sciences), Master of Arts (Philosophy for Theological Studies), Master of Divinity, Master of Arts (Theological Studies), and Master of Arts in Pastoral Leadership. The seminary has held degree-granting authorization since 1948 and has been part of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (S.A.C.S.) since 1950.
Notable Alumni
- Rev. Felix Ferdinand Miller — ordained 1924, Archdiocese of New Orleans
- Rev. Edward C. Prendergast — ordained 1924, Archdiocese of New Orleans
- Rev. Lawrence M. Fournet — ordained 1924, Diocese of Lafayette
- Rev. Maurice J. Bourgeois — ordained 1924, Diocese of Lafayette