November 6, 2024 By Darcy Fargo Michael Lennox and Keegan Robinson, both seminarians for the Diocese of Ogdensburg, are trying to determine where God is calling them as they pursue seminary students and, God willing, the priesthood. MICHAEL LENNOX “I first felt the pull in high school,” he said. “It was during Mass and during Consecration. I got this feeling that I should be a priest. I didn’t do much with it at the time. I just let it fall to the wayside.” After high school, he attended college at Jefferson Community College and later SUNY Potsdam. It was during college that he really started considering his vocation. “I was having doubts about what I was called to do,” Lennox said. “Was I called to be married, not married? I was questioning what I really want. Big life questions were coming up. I was battling with that. Talking to friends and telling them my woes, one said, ‘if you never actually give seminary a shot, you might never know for sure if you’re called to be a priest.’” While he decided he “had to go” to seminary during his junior year of college, he continued his studies, earning a bachelor’s degree in history and philosophy. “I thought I had to go (to seminary), but I didn’t want to worry about it yet,” Lennox said. “Senior year, I was talking to (seminarian) Kevin McCullouch, who was in Potsdam at the time. I told him I was thinking about applying. That was in January or February. He told me I had to contact the Vocations office immediately and that it took a while to get through the process.” Lennox is now studying at Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland. “Seminary is the wildest rollercoaster of my life,” he said. “It’s the highest of the highs and lowest of the lows in the same week. It’s so hard. At the same time, it’s so much grace and so many beautiful moments. There are so many blessings throughout.” Lennox says he enjoys the fraternity at the Mount. “It’s good being with people who understand what it’s like and who are walking the same path,” he said. The seminarian says it’s ultimately love that attracts him to the priesthood. “It’s love of God, love of the Church, love of God’s people – I want to serve them,” Lennox said. “Of course, the sacraments are wonderful. And being with the people of God and helping bring them closer to Him has been a crazy gift. Even small moments I’ve had in my pastoral assignments or in certain ministries – it’s always a gift to serve people and bring them closer to the Lord.” Lennox, who enjoys hunting, cycling and hiking in his free time, has been raised by his mother and stepfather, Margaret and Charles Briggs, and his father, Steven, who is deceased.
KEEGAN ROBINSON “I wasn’t raised in a Catholic home,” he said. “I did some investigating into other churches. I wasn’t sure if I was a believer in my late teen years. Then I went off to college. At one point, I was involved in the Mormon church for a couple of years. Then I had a conversion to the Catholic faith.” His conversion started as an intellectual process, studying the Church and her teachings. “I also had it like hit me in the heart, the Catholic Church, the tradition, the sacraments, the Blessed Virgin. Especially the Blessed Virgin Mary played a significant role in my conversion. Growing up Protestant and then later in the Mormon church, I didn’t have that sense of devotion to Mary. It’s great having a relationship with Mary. The motherly bond with her has been very significant in my life. The Eucharist was another profound doctrine of the Church that led me to faith. Most Protestant denominations have communion, but they do so sparingly, and they see it as a symbol and not the actual Body and Blood of Jesus. The Eucharist was a game changer for me.” Not long after he converted to Catholicism, Robinson began discerning his vocation. “I was at a point where I wanted to share what I’ve learned to others,” he said. “I want to bring about God’s mercy and love to people who need it most. Throughout my life, I’ve had mental health struggles – I’ve had some pretty low moments in my life. I feel like God is using me to bring healing to people who need it through lens of the Catholic Church.” At first, Robinson thought he may be called to religious life in an order, but that began to change as he discerned. “I became more and more attracted to parish life and being out in the world,” said Robinson, whose mother lives in Lowville and father lives in Lisbon. “Especially here, in the Diocese of Ogdensburg. It’s rural. The majority of the priests have a really special bond. I feel like this diocese is a special diocese.” Robinson, who initially planned to pursue a career in the legal profession, studied for a few years at SUNY Potsdam and SUNY Canton. He currently studies at Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, where he is in a propaedeutic year, a non-academic year that focuses on prayer and spiritual and human development. “It’s about how am I going to grow I holiness to become a good Christian man,” he said. “How am I praying daily? How am I treating my fellow neighbors? How am I growing in certain virtues?” Robinson said he looks forward to the academic portion of his formation. “Right now, this sets the foundation for future rigorous academics,” he said. “The instruction at Rother House (where he is housed with others in their propaedeutic year) is very good. We have skilled instructors, and they present dynamic material. Everything sets the stage for major seminary.” Robinson said he encourages any man who is considering the priesthood to trust God and follow his calling. “If God’s in the picture, there’s no reason to fear where he’ll lead you,” he said. It’s all about trust – trusting God will use you as an instrument for his greater honor and glory through whatever vocation that may be.” |
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