Seminarian Spotlight: Deacon Peter Townsend

This is part of a series highlighting the stories of the men who are completing their formation for the priesthood at MTSM. To read more, click here.

When Deacon Peter Townsend from the Diocese of Charlotte on Saturday, May 30 and begins the next step of his own vocational journey, the people he will serve can be assured of his continued willingness to challenge himself to do what is best for them. Along with a life-time desire to become a member of the priesthood, he will bring the flock he is assigned to a desire and knowledge of his ministry that has been earned through years of hard work, study and prayer.

“It was one of the first Eucharistic Congresses in Charlotte and I was really inspired seeing all the priests and Bishop (Peter) Jugis processing in,” Deacon Townsend said. “After Mass while Bishop Jugis was talking to others there, I ran up to him and tugged on his vestments, much to the horror of my mother, but he was very kind, got on a knee and introduced himself and asked me my name.

“Not long after that at dinner, my parents asked my siblings and myself what we wanted to be when we grew up,” Deacon Townsend continued. “I said I wanted to be a priest, and it has always stayed that way. I entered College Seminary in 2018 and the rest history.”

St. Joseph College Seminary in Mt. Holly, North Carolina has become the first step for the men from the Diocese of Charlotte to enter discernment for the priesthood and played a very important role in the perspective and work ethic Deacon Townsend took into his time in Cincinnati.

“When I was at St. Joseph’s, we had a priest come in that was very clear that the Church needs priests who can understand and defend Her faith,” Deacon Townsend recalled. “I started Seminary not really liking the intellectual life, but moments like that helped change my perspective. When I came to Cincinnati, I really wanted to try my best to study and delve into the intellectual traditions of the Church, which is something I think Mount St. Mary’s is really great at.”

That desire to improve and grow intellectually has not only taken Townsend weeks away from the priesthood, but he will also leave MTSM with a Master’s Degree in Theology after writing and defending his thesis The Particularity of Priestly Friendship.

“I saw the Master’s thesis program and thought ‘this is going to be really hard, but I think it is going to be worth my time,” Deacon Townsend recalled. “Guys from my diocese I looked up to, Father Peter Rusciolelli and Father Chukwunonso Nnebe-Agumadu, also did their Master’s theses here and it helped me feel like it was really possible.

“Between spending time reading, studying and in discussion with my thesis director Dr. (Alan) Mostrom, I was fascinated by the idea of priestly victimhood in the Scriptures and in (Venerable Archbishop) Fulton Sheen’s The Priest is Not His Own,” Deacon Townsend continued. “In my thesis, I argue that the priest is called to and given the potential for a divine friendship and intimacy with Christ that is distinct form the friendships others can have with Him. However, it is up to the priest, through God’s grace, to act on that friendship and by doing so, becoming a saint and save his soul and save the souls of his flock.”

His time in Cincinnati also presented the opportunity to get pastoral experiences within the parishes of the Archdiocese. Deacon Townsend assisted at Mass at St. Mary’s in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Cincinnati, part of the Eastside Catholics Family of Parishes that also includes St. Cecilia’s in Oakley and the Oratory of St. John Vianney in Madisonville.

“Our Bishop (The Most Rev. Michael T. Martin, OFM Conv.) is very keen on us to be in parishes every weekend,” Deacon Townsend remarked. “It has been really special to experience the liturgical life of the Church in a parish like St. Mary’s. It is an older parish, older than most of the parishes back in Charlotte, but it has a very rich culture to it. I have been very edified by the people that don’t just have Catholicism as a culture, but they live it as well. I have really enjoyed my time there.”

When discussing the value of the process of seminary formation for priests, Deacon Townsend continued on his theme of recognizing the completeness of his formation, referencing St. John Paul II’s Pastores Dabo Vobis for its importance in helping reinforce the pillars of priestly formation (human, spiritual, pastoral and intellectual) but was also sure to credit those who came before him.

“I have been very blessed to have excellent formation starting at St. Joseph’s and now here at Mount St. Mary’s” he said. “I have encountered many priests who want to ensure we have the best formation we can because they did not have the best, and being provided that is a blessing for the Church at large. It is edifying for the faithful because they see it, they notice it, they believe it to be essential as well and they support it, and that is amazing.”