Daniel Ginnetty

Home Parish:   St. Mary's Parish, Franklin

Seminary:        Our Lady of Providence Formation House
                        Providence, R.I.

High School: Xavarian Brothers High School

Hobbies:          Piano, Music, Politics, Philosophy

Skills: A desire to learn

When was the first time you thought of priesthood?
I began thinking about the Priesthood when I was a senior in high school. I was on a retreat for the senior class and made a committment during prayer to start thinking about a vocation. It was more than a year later when I first seriously began thinking about my vocation, halfway through my freshman year at Catholic University.

What were major Catholic activities you participated in prior to the Seminary?
I worked as a sacristan at my parish in Franklin during High School. I was also involved in youth music ministry at St. Jude  parish in Norfolk.

What is your favorite Scripture passage?  Why?
Mt 6, 5-8 is an especially rich Gospel passage. This is Jesus' teaching on prayer given to his disciples during the Sermon on the Mount. Of course this is an important passage on its own because it is Jesus himself showing us explicitly how we are to pray. Also, St. Matthew has put this passage right before he records Jesus giving his disciples the most important Christian prayer, the "Our Father". I like this passage because Jesus tells us to go to our "inner room" to pray to our Father "in secret." It emphasizes the intimate relationship God desires with us, in our "inner room," and it challenges us to come to this place of personal prayer when we least want to.

What was your involvement in parish life before entering the Seminary?
I worked as a sacristan in my parish during high school. Also, I was an altar server and I was installed as an extraordinary minister of the Eucharist.

Who influenced/inspired you to priesthood?  Please Explain.
Many people have encouraged me to pursue a vocation, especially my pastor growing up at St. Mary's, Father Tom Walsh. The most direct influence on my vocation was Fr. David Goodrow who gave me a biography about St. John Vianney when I first told him that I was thinking about a vocation.

What would you say to a young man who thinks he may have a vocation?
Committ to spending some time (if possible daily) praying before the Blessed Sacrament. It is here that Jesus is present most fully and also where we are most ready to listen. Also, read the scriptures with the thought of your vocation in the back of your mind, looking for passages that stand out to you. Finally, do not look at the seminary fearfully, as an ultimate committment. Look at it as a place where you will most perfectly discern whether you are fortunate enough to be called to serve the Lord as His priest.

Please tell us, what are some of the most important parts of discernment?
Prayer and daily mass. Also, being attentive to hints in your daily life,in the way you interact with others and in the things people say to you.

Is Seminary formation different from what you thought it would be?  How is it similar and different from your expectations?
Seminary is what I expected it to be in many ways. I knew that we would have daily mass, Eucharistic adoration, and communal prayer according to the breviary. What I was not expecting, and what came as a pleasant surprise, is the brotherhood among seminarians, those with whom I live and any of the seminarians I meet. Being a part of this brotherhood is especially helpful to my discernment and formation.

What would people be surprised to know about you?
I am a big fan of Bob Dylan.

What activities would you recommend in order to foster a culture of vocations?
Occassional trips to participate in the mass according to the missal of Pius V. This "Tridentine" mass demonstrates very effectively the true dignity of a priest.

Did anyone invite you to consider priesthood?  Please explain.
I was lucky to have a lot of support from all of the priests at my parish when I began thinking about a vocation.

What influence (if any) has Pope John Paul II had on your vocation?
I worked as a confirmation retreat leader at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center when I lived in Washington. There I was inspired by what I learned about Pope John Paul II, especially his leadership ability in a difficult, post-conciliar time for the Church. It was easy to be inspired looking to John Paul II as the shepherd of the Church and it is easy now to pray confidently for his intercession.

How did you come to know Jesus Christ?
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is practically on my college campus, the Catholic University of America. I began going to mass daily at the basilica, partly because of the beauty of its liturgies.  I started to truly love the mass and of course, to love the mass is a major step toward knowing and loving Jesus Christ.

What were some of the spiritual events or activities that helped you develop and shape your personal relationship with Christ and His Church?
Going to mass daily and coming in prayer before the blessed sacrament, especially in Eucharistic Adoration.

What signs led you to believe that God was calling you to be a priest?
Encouragement that other people gave me, even when they did not know that I was discerning a vocation. Also, my prayer always seemed to lead me towards pursuing this vocation.

Please describe the importance of prayer in your life.
Prayer is where I am the most intimate with God, yet always remembering myself within the plural "we" of the Catholic Church. Prayer gives me the strength to live in the life that Jesus died to give; and, it also reveals to me more and more what that life consists of.

What are some of your favorite and most important spiritual readings/books/passages?
The most important book I ever read, barring the bible (which I discussed above), was a biography about St. John Vianney. He is the patron saint of parish priests. His life serves as the example of the radicalness of the priesthood, an example that has guided and continues to guide me in discerning my vocation.

What is your day like in the seminary?
I wake at 6 AM and I am in the Chapel by 6:30 (sometimes 6:31). We have 15 minutes of quiet prayer followed by morning prayer and mass. Then we all have breakfast together and go to our classes at Providence College. We come back for lectio divina and evening prayer at 530 and have dinner together at 6. Depending on the night we either have the night free (curfew at 11), night prayer in community, adoration, or a seminarian conference.

Through the Cardinal, God is calling you personally to help rebuild His Church.  How must the Priest respond to this mandate today?
The priest must be prepared to serve the church in humility because he has to bring God, not himself, to the laymen.

How does the Priest best follow in the footsteps of the Apostles?
By staying committed to the word of God in the scriptures, keeping up with regular good spiritual reading, and committing himself daily to be worthy of this Vocation.