St. Mary's Seminary is the first Roman Catholic seminary in the nation: rich in tradition while focused on priestly preparation for the 21st-century.
These pages provide information on the history, personnel, environment, and formation (in the Sulpician tradition) at St. Mary's.
The three pages in this section of our site touch on the very basics of the formation process.
A major part of priestly formation is intellectual formation, accomplished through the pursuit of academic degrees.
St. Mary’s Ecumenical Institute (EI) was founded in 1968 by St. Mary’s Seminary & University, America’s oldest Roman Catholic seminary, in cooperation with ecumenical leaders. St. Mary’s is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools and by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. The Ecumenical Institute encourages people of all denominations to explore theological studies in a serious, open-minded, and supportive environment. All EI programs are available wherever you are - on campus in Baltimore, and on-line.
The Ecumenical Institute invites people of all denominations into theological study that pursues excellence and promotes ecumenical understanding and respect. All EI programs are available wherever you are - on campus in Baltimore, and on-line.
St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute has a rolling admissions policy. Students may apply at any time for admission by submitting the appropriate materials.
The Ecumenical Institute offers accredited graduate theological programs for two master’s degrees, several graduate certificates, and introductory explorations.
The post-master’s Certificate of Advanced Studies in Theology (CAS) is designed for individuals who possess a master’s degree in theology (e.g., MAT.), ministry (e.g., MACM), divinity (e.g., MDiv), or a related field and who desire to continue their theological education with a general or focused program of study.
The Doctor of Ministry program roots ministry in the mission of God, the ways God is working in your context, in your ministry, and in you.
Students have a host of resources available to support their theological education, from free parking and a great library to writing assistance and advising.
St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute offers accredited graduate theological education that is intellectually rigorous, personally enriching, and professionally empowering.
More than 750 alums of St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute are making a difference in Baltimore, in Maryland and D.C., West Virginia and Pennsylvania, and around the world.
General communication and individual contacts
It is the mission of the Center for Continuing Formation to encourage bishops, priests, deacons, and lay ecclesial ministers to engage in human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral growth and to enable processes of growth that are ongoing, complete, systemic, and personalized.
Conference space rentals include a large room that will seat as many as 58 and smaller rooms that will seat from 4 to 30.
St. Mary's Center for Continuing Formation offers and hosts a variety of continuing formation programs for priests in the spirit of the Bishops' new Basic Plan for the Ongoing Formation of Priests.
St. Mary’s Seminary & University’s Pinkard Scholars is the cornerstone of Youth Theological Studies at SMSU.
For more information about any of our conference facilities or space rentals, please contact our offices directly.
The Marion Burk Knott Library of St. Mary’s Seminary and University is the largest specialized theological library in the Baltimore area, with additional materials in the areas of philosophy, psychology, pastoral counseling and church history, among others. The library receives over 390 periodicals and maintains a collection of 20,000 volumes of bound periodicals. Other holdings include newspapers, microfilm, and audio-visual materials.
The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary & University opened in the spring of 2002. Located on the campus of the nation’s first Roman Catholic seminary, this program brings together the archives of the Archdiocese of Baltimore (est. 1789), St. Mary’s Seminary & University (est. 1791), and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States (U.S. Province est. 1903), making it one of the most significant repositories for records relating to the early history of the Catholic Church in the United States.
Click here for more information about hours and visitor policies.
This section was created to provide researchers with a brief description of the open collections in the archives of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, St. Mary's Seminary & University, and the Associated Sulpicians of the United States.
The Associated Archives at St. Mary’s Seminary & University has developed a genealogical policy responsive to individuals researching their Catholic roots.
We facilitate personal integration of the human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral dimensions necessary for authentic priestly witness and service in the image of Jesus Christ.
Director of Pastoral Formation
B.A., Calicut University, Kerala, India M.S., Chaminade University M.A., Gonzaga University
Ms. Leelamma Sebastian joined St. Mary’s faculty in the summer of 2020 as Director of Pastoral Formation. Originally from Kerala, India, she has lived most of her life in California and Hawaii, and she has two adult daughters who live and work in the San Francisco Bay area.
From a young age, Ms. Sebastian was greatly influenced by her brother, a priest in the Missionaries of Charity, and his ministry with the poor and the homeless. Inspired by his example, she left home for the first time at age 15 to experience Mother Teresa’s message of “seeing Christ and the dignity of life in every human being, no matter their station.” That new-found determination to live for others was the beginning of her personal and spiritual formation. Two years later, she returned to her hometown, where she enrolled in college, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in economics.
Marriage and a move to San Francisco followed, until she and her family relocated to Honolulu, where she attended graduate school. While studying for her master’s degree in Counseling and Psychology at the Chaminade University of Honolulu, Ms. Sebastian counseled teens and young adults at the Mary Jane Center, a residential homeless program of Catholic Charities for pregnant teens and adults. Upon graduation from Chaminade University, she worked for the Diocese of Honolulu as program director for the Oahu Office of Social Ministry. Years later, she completed a second master’s degree, this one in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University.
In 2001, Ms. Sebastian and her family returned to the Bay Area as she became the program director of the Jesuit Retreat Center of Los Altos, where she also trained as a spiritual director in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. After twelve years, Ms. Sebastian became both a formation advisor and Associate Director of Pastoral Year at St. Patrick’s Seminary and University in Menlo Park, California. Her work at St. Patrick’s enabled her to utilize her years of training and experience in spiritual formation and retreat direction to engage seminarians in their formation journey.
Service to the Church
Recommended Reading
There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work 1 Corinthians 12:4–6