Seminarian Daniel Gormley Reflects on His Path to the Priesthood

As lifelong parishioner Daniel Gormley prepares for his ordination to the transitional diaconate in May, he reflects on the path that led him to pursue a vocation to the priesthood. From the strong example in the faith provided by his parents during early childhood, to the witness of his older sister who maintained an active faith life in her college years, Daniel has always been surrounded by models of intentional discipleship.

Describing himself as a St. John Before the Latin Gate parishioner “from birth,” Daniel also credits our faith community with helping him discern a call to serve the Church.

“Having a healthy parish life was really important, especially when I was growing up,” he says. “The Knights of Columbus was huge and my dad was involved with them. I remember putting up and taking down chairs for their events and that was good, it was really fun. We were within 10 minutes walking distance to the church, and they have a school attached, so it was really cool to float back and forth between the two. It always felt like one organism, one team.”

For three years beginning in the eighth grade, Daniel attended the Totus Tuus overnight camp in the Diocese of Wichita. There, he felt his prayer life come alive in a new way and first had an inkling that he might be called to the priesthood.

Leaving home to attend Pittsburg State and the University of Kansas, Daniel was equally blessed by the quality of spiritual care on campus. With the encouragement of some dynamic and inspiring priests, he began contemplating a vocation to the priesthood in his sophomore year. By the time he became a senior, he had discerned a call and applied to seminary.

Daniel completed his two years of minor seminary at Conception Seminary College in Missouri. In addition to the profound spiritual growth he experienced there, the camaraderie he found among the seminarians was a great blessing.

“The fraternity among the guys there was phenomenal,” Daniel says. “We were in the middle of nowhere — there were literally windmills on the property — so when we weren’t studying, we just hung out a ton and there were talent shows and banquets and team sports. We would go out there and play, and it was the worst soccer I’ve ever seen, but it was fun!”

Daniel is now in his third year of theology studies at Mount Saint Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio. As he comes ever closer to the conclusion of his seminarian studies, he looks ahead to the priesthood with enthusiasm.

“I think I’m most looking forward to really helping people be closer to Christ and His Church,” Daniel says. “I hope to help them connect to Christ in prayer, get to know Him in a really personal way, and receive the love that He wants to give everyone. I want to share the gift of faith. I was lucky to be born into a Catholic family and to have had 2,000 years of people figuring it out for us and establishing the Church. I feel really blessed to be born into the Catholic faith and want to pass that on to others.”

Daniel will be ordained a transitional deacon at Holy Family Cathedral in Tulsa on May 28. As this exciting milestone in his path to the priesthood approaches, he would like to express his deep gratitude to the people of St. John Before the Latin Gate for their continued prayers and support.

“It is awesome to go back to the parish and hear people say that they are praying for me,” Daniel says. “They are also very generous monetarily with the basket at the pancake breakfasts. I just want to say ‘thank you’ for the prayers and contributions. Thank you for being such a great example to me growing up, for being so welcoming to me and my family, and for helping to form me into the man I am today.”

Daniel Gormley (left)

Daniel Gormley (far right) with Archbishop Dennis Schnurr (second from right) and fellow seminarians, Gabriel and Leo