CHARLOTTE — For seminarian Connor White, the journey to priesthood is much like practicing for a marathon – it demands discipline, consistency, perseverance and a willingness to sacrifice.
In many ways, White envisions his path through St. Paul’s lens: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).
White will be ordained as a transitional deacon May 23, a step on his journey to the priesthood. A cradle Catholic who attended St. Mark Church in Huntersville with his family, White went to Catholic school and excelled in both cross-country and academics, things he believes prepared him for a life of discipleship.
White’s running partner Deacon John Cuppett, who will be ordained a priest on May 30, will be vesting him. Cuppett believes White’s approachability and friendliness will serve him well when the time comes to lead his own flock.
Right now, White is on track to be one of the first of four seminarians from the 2018 Christ the King High School graduating class to reach this vocation milestone.
White’s longtime classmate Bradley Loftin will also become a transitional deacon on May 23. Loftin, who has known White since kindergarten, believes his friend has grown in the faith.
“Throughout the years of getting to know Connor more and more, it is clear to me he has a deep love for our Lord and the Church,” Loftin says. “The devotion he has to the people he loves stands out to me.”
Loftin, White and some high school friends have a tradition that has caught on with priests and seminarians at St. Mark Parish.
“Every Saturday at 11 p.m., it would be me, White, and a few of our friends from high school. We would do an hour of Eucharistic Adoration and get a milkshake from Cookout after,” Loftin says.
After this Easter Vigil, the tradition continued as it has for the past eight years – this time with Monsignor Patrick Winslow, vicar general and chancellor of the diocese, who celebrated the Vigil Mass at St. Mark.
“Even Father Winslow showed up this year,” says Loftin, who noted that while White favors Oreo Mint milkshakes, “I am more a Reese’s guy.”
Meet Connor White
White’s home parish: St. Mark, Huntersville
Colleges: Elon University and St. Joseph College Seminary
Degrees: Philosophy and Latin
Theology: Mount St. Mary’s Seminary and School of Theology (Athenaeum of Ohio)
Summer assignments: Holy Cross (Kernersville), St. Margaret Mary (Swannanoa) and St. Francis of Assisi/St. Frances of Rome (Jefferson and Sparta).
Since ordinands typically select someone who was instrumental to their vocation to vest them, who will be vesting you? Deacon John Cuppett will be vesting me. Deacon Cuppett and I entered seminary together in 2020 and quickly became close friends. We shared so many great memories in seminary, and I asked him to vest me so this occasion will be yet another event that we can share together.
What are some of your hobbies? I love running and playing golf with family and friends. I also enjoy reading, cooking with friends and making coffee/espresso-based drinks.
When did you first realize you had a call to the priesthood? I first began discerning a call to the priesthood during my confirmation retreat around the beginning of high school.
Why did you decide to become a priest in the Diocese of Charlotte? I was born and raised in the Charlotte area, so this diocese is home. I received the sacraments here and attended Catholic school (K-12) at St. Mark and Christ the King. I feel called to minister to this diocese, as this is where my faith has been cultivated and vocation fostered.
Do you feel a special devotion to any saints? My closest saint-friends are St. Elizabeth of the Trinity and St. Therese of Lisieux. They both have taught me how to pray and charitably live with others. St. Elizabeth emphasizes the Divine Indwelling (the Holy Trinity residing within the soul of a baptized person), something I was immediately drawn to. I also have devotions to other priest-saints: St. Thomas Becket, St. John Fisher and St. Pius X.
Who helped you on your faith journey? St. Paul reminds us “faith comes from hearing,” so the faith is handed on by our elders. My family and, more particularly, my parents have raised my siblings and me by sending us to Catholic school and nurturing the faith at home. Father John Putnam, pastor at St. Mark Parish, has also helped me, encouraging my vocation and seminary discernment.
What did you do as a child that may have foreshadowed the priesthood? While at Christ the King, I worked with the chaplain at the time, Father Paul McNulty, who ultimately became a great priestly role model. Living the Catholic life is not a solo endeavor, and I have met some of my closest friends in school, some of whom are also in seminary.
— Lisa M. Geraci
Your DSA contributions at work
Seminarian education is funded in part by the annual Diocesan Support Appeal. Learn more about the DSA and how to donate online at www.charlottediocese.org/dsa.
Seminarian Patrick Martin, shown here at the Bishop’s Youth Pilgrimage, enjoys teaching young people about the faith because it increases his own understanding.HUNTERSVILLE — Teaching young Catholics about one of the works of a famous author has opened up new perspectives on the road to the priesthood for seminarian Patrick Martin.
Martin has recently been teaching Catholic teens at a Cincinnati parish about “The Screwtape Letters,” a Christian apologetic novel by legendary author C.S. Lewis, best known for his “Chronicles of Narnia” series.
In the novel, written as a series of letters, a senior demon named Screwtape teaches a junior “tempter” about ways to undermine humanity’s faith, illustrating the many ways that a lack of faith can harm a person’s relationship with God.
The class not only helps Martin, whose home parish is St. Mark in Huntersville, develop his skills in teaching the faith to others, but it also helps him tie together and apply things he has learned during his years in the seminary.
“It’s a different style of book than they’re used to studying, and it honestly wasn’t a book I had been meaning to read,” Martin said. “I’d read other things by Lewis and had attempted to read this book years ago but got too busy, so I’m learning the book at the same time I’m teaching it. It’s an exciting way of applying both my philosophy and theology studies in seminary to the material, helping to explain it and break it down.”
It’s the second class for young people that Martin has taught at the Ohio parish, close to where he is studying theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati. He previously taught a course on Theology of the Body.
He completed philosophy studies at St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly before studying in Ohio, and will be ordained as a transitional deacon – a step on the journey to becoming a priest – on May 23.
In an interview with the Catholic News Herald, Martin shares more about his life:
CNH: What was your journey to discernment like?
Martin: It started when I was young – I was blessed to be home-schooled, and my mother made the effort to bring me to daily Mass along with my siblings. That daily experience really helped me to build a relationship with the Mass and also to see how the priests approached the sacrifice of the Mass as well as their approach and interaction with people.
I felt a call to the priesthood but then during middle school stepped away from discerning priesthood and thought God was calling me to be a married man. I thought about getting a business degree and working to provide for a family. …
Then during high school I felt like I needed to reassess and re-approach discernment, and Father John Putnam at St. Mark invited me to be the sacristan there. As sacristan, I really experienced the brotherhood of the priests and their love for the Lord and for people. I thought about it and discerned strongly and, through the advice of the priests I knew, I entered seminary after high school.
CNH: What are your hobbies?
Martin: I’m really big into athletics. I grew up playing soccer and swimming and still like to play soccer in seminary – I spend time playing with my brother seminarians, and we have a makeshift team. I’ve also gotten into weight lifting and in recent years got into marathon running – I started that my first year here in Ohio. I train with fellow seminarian Connor White, who is an avid runner. The training is a great way to let our brains reset. It helps me to regulate and re-engage. Every spring I’ve been running a marathon called the Flying Pig here in Cincinnati, which takes its name from the city’s history as a leader in the pork industry.
CNH: Who is your favorite saint?
Martin: The saint I hold most dear is St. John the Evangelist – I have a statue on my desk of him looking at me right now. I chose him as my confirmation saint, and he’s been my go-to saint on multiple levels since then. I’m the middle child of my family and the youngest boy, and seeing John the Evangelist, John the Beloved, as the youngest of the apostles was impactful to me, because as the youngest boy I felt some competition growing up. I saw that John was the youngest but was also impactful. He has a special relationship with Christ, a closeness to our Lord, and was particularly there with Him during the Passion. He was the one who helped Our Lady through the Passion.
— Christina Lee Knauss