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
