Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix opens 3rd seminary house

PHOENIX — The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix expanded last week with a new seminary near Third and Monroe streets it will use to train future priests.

The 54-year-old diocese held a celebration last Tuesday to celebrate its expansion of the Nazareth Seminary, which is a network of Arizona schools that train men into Catholic priesthood.

The third and most recent seminary in the network is called St. Mary’s House. It was retrofitted from a 75-year-old building that used to be a friary next to St. Mary’s Basilica in downtown Phoenix.

During the grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new seminary, several diocese leaders spoke to the community.

One of the speakers was Father John Muir, the diocese’s vicar general and the pastor of St. Mary’s Basilica.

Muir said the diocese plans to built a multimillion dollar facility in downtown Phoenix that will cater to people of all faiths. It will be a hub of education and meetings, with a mental health ministry space, a coffee shop and other amenities to serve the community.

“These new initiatives represent an exciting new chapter, not only for the Diocese of Phoenix, but also for downtown Phoenix in general,” Muir said in a news release last week. “These developments will empower a new level of service and Gospel-based outreach to countless people for years to come.”

What’s unique about St. Mary’s House in Nazareth Seminary?

The opening of the Nazareth Seminary network marked a turning point for the diocese. Before its opening, Arizonans typically had to travel out of state to become priests.

The first location in the diocese’s household model seminary program was Nazareth House near St. Gregory parish in Phoenix, which opened in 2019. This location takes aspiring priests through their formation years.

The second is Our Lady of Perpetual Hope House in Scottsdale, which opened in August 2023.

Now, St. Mary’s House will house 20 men studying philosophy, which is an essential part of the educational path to becoming a Catholic priest.

Bishop John Dolan expressed excitement over the future of the diocese during the Oct. 1 event to celebrate the opening of St. Mary’s House.

“We are thrilled to open St. Mary’s House today and continue building the foundation of the Nazareth Seminary that will aid the priests for our future,” Dolan said. “It is wonderful that we have been able to repurpose such an historic building with rich ties to the Catholic beginnings in Phoenix.”

What’s next for the Phoenix diocese’s seminary program?

With this new expansion, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix is training 50 aspiring priests across its multiple locations.

However, as any Catholic knows, a priest’s training doesn’t end once they learn about philosophy. There’s another stage: their yearslong study of theology.

That’s why the diocese has plans to open yet another location in the Nazareth Seminary system. That will be St Joseph’s House, which will be where students will go after they leave St. Mary’s House. The diocese expects to open the fourth and final seminary in the fall of 2026.

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