From: Huntersville, N.C.
Age: 23
Home parish: St. Mark, Huntersville
Status: Started Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, Cincinnati, August 2022
Favorite verse or teaching: The explanation of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, as affirmed by Pope Pius IX in his 1854 encyclical “Ineffabilis Deus” (“Ineffable God”)
Favorite saints: St. Joseph and St. Thomas Aquinas
CHARLOTTE — Instead of throwing Hail Marys on the football field, seminarian Bradley Loftin opted for another path in life – offering prayers instead of passes – when he entered St. Joseph College Seminary in 2018.
Loftin, 23, attended St. Mark School and Christ the King High School in Huntersville, where he enjoyed playing both basketball and football.
“I really wanted to go play college football, but instead of pursuing that, I decided to pursue the priesthood,” Loftin says. He credits his high school chaplain at the time, Father Paul McNulty, and his pastor, Father John Putnam, for fostering his vocation.
“Without speaking to Father Putnam about my vocation, I can say I wouldn’t have pursued it,” Loftin says. “He told me that I would have many difficulties and that I would never make the right choice without prayer. I signed up for a weekly Holy Hour. I asked three of my friends to join me. Now, four years later, three of us four are in seminary.”
Loftin and eight of his brother seminarians graduated from St. Joseph College Seminary in August and now attend Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati – among 49 men currently in some stage of formation to serve as priests in the Diocese of Charlotte.
He reflects on his journey in a conversation with the Catholic News Herald:
CNH: When did you first hear the call to a vocation to the priesthood?
Loftin: I first heard the call when I was a junior at Christ the King High School. I realized that the life I was living wouldn’t fulfill me. I wanted to sacrifice my life for something noble, and I knew I wasn’t living a life that would make me happy. When I saw the priests around me, I saw men who gave their lives to save souls. I knew I had to make a change. While I was afraid of making it public, I knew I had to pursue what God wanted from me in discerning a call to the priesthood.
CNH: What have you been doing to help deepen your discernment during your time in seminary?
Loftin: Since entering the seminary I’ve really enjoyed teaching and giving instruction about the faith. When St. Joseph College Seminary was still near St. Ann School, I would go there in my free time. During breaks now, I enjoy going to St. Mark School and teaching about the faith there and at home-school groups. There is no greater sight than to witness someone learning about God and then beginning to grow deeper in their love for Him.
Charlotte seminarians Christian Goduti, Matthew Harrison II and Bradley Loftin are shown at a Christ the King High School football game in Huntersville in 2018. Loftin credits their friendship for helping him discern his vocation. All three men are now studying at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Amy Burger)CNH: Can you share an example of how your interactions with students are making an impact?
Loftin: One of my favorite moments was when I visited St. Mark School and was able to answer the questions of the students. One student asked me what my favorite part of seminary was. When I replied that I loved the connection of prayer and fraternity at the seminary, the young man’s face lit up with excitement. I think back to this interaction as a motivation to keep spreading the joy that comes with the life that God provides for seminarians and priests.
CNH: Have you acquired some new skills since you entered seminary?
Loftin: Something I have learned is maintenance work. In my summers, I work at St. Mark as part of the maintenance staff. This has required me to learn new skills, from plumbing and electrical to maintaining landscaping. I think these skills will be a great help to me in the priesthood, as maintaining the church and grounds is a critical part of parish life. The skills I’ve learned will be able to assist me in that.
CNH: What advice do you have for a young man discerning a call to the priesthood?
Loftin: My advice is to listen to the angel in the first chapter of Matthew’s Gospel: “Do not be afraid.” While you may have fears about discerning the priesthood, realize that God will give you the grace to be His priest. God will strengthen you to follow Him, and He will lead you. Trust in the Lord so that you may discern.
— SueAnn Howell
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.
Father Jacob Mlakar
Leading others to Jesus through sacraments, wisdom of the saints
Father Jacob Mlakar has been appointed to pastor both St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Jefferson and St. Frances of Rome Mission in Sparta.Tuesday, Oct. 22: Father Jacob Mlakar becomes pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish and St. Frances of Rome Mission
JEFFERSON — Father Jacob Mlakar was up late at Casa Santa Maria, a home for American priests studying in Rome, when he received the call that surprised him.
Monsignor Patrick Winslow, vicar general and chancellor of the Diocese of Charlotte, told him he’d been appointed to pastor St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Jefferson and St. Frances of Rome Mission in Sparta.
“I was surprised and excited to be made pastor. … It was a wonderful surprise,” said Father Mlakar, who had expected to remain an assistant pastor for a year or two more. “It gave me something to look forward to and made me all the more motivated to finish my studies.”
While it might seem daunting for a first-time pastor to take on two churches instead of one, Father Mlakar’s few months have proven a breath of fresh air for him.
“There’s a learning curve, but I am happy to serve the populations of the parish and the mission,” said the Ohio native, who earned his theology degree from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas.
“Being in Rome studying for a year, I didn’t hear many confessions. I didn’t do any anointings. Being back here, I was able to get back into those things because of my previous parish experience.”
After his ordination in 2020, Father Mlakar served as parochial vicar at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Charlotte for a year and for two years at Holy Cross Parish in Kernersville before moving to Rome – an experience he says equipped him in both spiritual and practical ways for his ministry.
He recently shared observations from his few months as a pastor.
CNH: What does it mean to you to become a pastor?
Father MlakarFather Mlakar: It means a great deal. This is what I’ve wanted to be, especially to be pastor in the mountains. … There’s a lot of new things I’m learning, but I am definitely enjoying being back in parish ministry after earning my licentiate and being able to take more of a leadership role in the parish.
CNH: How did your studies this past year prepare you for your pastor role?
Father Mlakar: The licentiate and spiritual theology is all about the spiritual life, especially studying the writings of the saints. It was (taught) in the Dominican tradition, but we studied all the great spiritual writers.
That’s been extremely helpful in my preaching and the way I relate to people and the advice I give on the spiritual life. It’s a very good theological degree but also it is very practical for a parish priest to be able to get up and draw from the great wisdom of our spiritual tradition.
CNH: How have your first months as pastor been going?
Father Mlakar: They’ve definitely been busy, starting with moving into a new house and trying to keep a tidy house and clean office, and yet keep up with all the parish needs. I’ve been meeting with everyone to talk about the programs that are going on like faith formation, O.C.I.A. and the parish councils. They want to tell me about the good work they’re doing and see how I can support them. It’s a great example of people coming together and keeping the life of the parish flourishing.
We also began planning for the big liturgies like the Holy Hour, Vespers and Mass celebrating the 10th anniversary of our new church, plus the parish picnic afterward. A lot of it has been being there for the daily worship of God as I start to get into some of the bigger administrative responsibilities.
CNH: How have your years as a parochial vicar helped prepare you to be a pastor?
Father Mlakar: Gaining better familiarity with what I would call the human experience, especially meeting with people and ministering to them in their needs. That’s helped with the normal pastoral experience, being familiar with the sacraments.
Drawing on my experience as a parochial vicar, I was able to return to some of those things and build off routines and schedules.
CNH: What is your favorite part of being a priest?
Father Mlakar: Definitely visiting the sick and anointing the sick, because I was ordained during COVID, and when I was at St. Vincent de Paul, we were the go-to parish for one of the big hospitals in that area. At a time when many people weren’t able to get into the hospital to visit the sick, they actually were calling us pretty frequently to visit and administer the sacraments. That is a sacrament that’s always touching to administer, especially to those who are receiving it for the last time.
CNH: Can you share a part of your own spiritual life?
Father Mlakar: The everyday pastoral tasks up here involve a lot of driving. St. Frances of Rome Mission is about a 40-minute drive from St. Francis Parish in Jefferson. I’ve been on the road a lot, so I’ve had to learn how to use that time for reflection and renewal for prayer instead of listening to a podcast or something like that.
CNH: What are you reading?
Father Mlakar: During these first months as a pastor, I’ve developed a devotion to St. Gregory the Great. He has a book on pastoral care, so he has been my favorite saint recently. He was a pope in the early Middle Ages, and he wrote the go-to book for pastors even way back then, and it’s been used throughout Church history, so that’s been my spiritual reading, and he’s been my saint that I’ve been praying to and thinking about a lot.
— Annie Ferguson
Bishop Michael Martin will formally install these first-time pastors during special Masses in the coming weeks. Meet the others.