Seminary and Graduate School of Theology - Mundelein Seminary

History
The University of Saint Mary of the Lake/
Mundelein Seminary is the major seminary and
graduate school of theology for the Archdiocese
of Chicago. Over the years, this mission has
expanded to include candidates for the Archdiocese
of Chicago as well as other dioceses within
the United States and abroad. More than
twenty-five other dioceses are represented in
the University community.
The University of Saint Mary of the Lake had
its beginning in 1844 as Saint Mary's College.
Founded by the Most Rev. William J. Quarter,
D.D., the first bishop of Chicago, Saint Mary's
College was granted a charter by the State of
Illinois, with power to confer the doctorate and
such academic or honorary degrees as are usually
conferred by similar institutions. Chicago
welcomed the University of Saint Mary of the
Lake as the first chartered University in the city.
At the same time the Divinity School of the University
was established ecclesiastically as a
major seminary. At its height, the University
included the College, the Divinity School, and
affiliated Medical School and Law School. The
University flourished until 1866, when financial
difficulties forced it to close. The Seminary continued
for another year, but suspended operations
in 1867.
In 1921, Archbishop George Mundelein
opened Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary under
the original 1844 charter. Over the course of
fifteen years, sixteen buildings were constructed
to complete the University campus. Archbishop
Mundelein was proud to display his new seminary
when it was used as a site for the International
Eucharistic Congress in 1926.
In September 1929, Cardinal Mundelein obtained
from the Sacred Congregation of Seminaries
and Universities in Rome a five-year
grant for the theological faculty to confer the
baccalaureate, the licentiate and doctorate in
theology. In September 1934, this temporary
grant was made permanent, and the seminary
became the first American institution to be honored
as a Pontifical Theological Faculty under
the new Apostolic Constitution Deus Scientiarum
Dominus. The Monsignor Reynold H.
Hillenbrand was Rector from 1936-1945, well
known for his work in liturgical and social justice
issues. In 1945, Samuel Cardinal Stritch replaced
Monsignor Hillenbrand with Rev. Msgr.
Malachy P. Foley, who served as Rector until
1966.
In 1961, under Albert Cardinal Meyer, the seminary
opened a second campus in Niles, Illinois.
This change involved harmonizing the ecclesiastical
course of studies, which operated on a
five- year minor seminary cycle and a seven
year major seminary cycle with the American
system of education. The Niles campus offered
liberal arts programs for the first two college
years, while the Mundelein campus program
encompassed upper-class college studies in
philosophy followed by a four-year theology
curriculum. Under Cardinal Meyer's successor,
John Cardinal Cody, the undergraduate program
was affiliated with Loyola University of
Chicago. Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary, now
exclusively a graduate school of theology and
seminary and ecclesiastical faculty, under the
leadership of Msgr. John Gorman (1966-1973),
began a revision of the graduate and theological
curriculum. The program which resulted from
that revision continued to be implemented for
more than a decade; its academic, formational,
spiritual, and pastoral aspects guided by The
Program of Priestly Formation of the National
Conference of Catholic Bishops and the directives
of the Congregation for Catholic Education.
In 1971, Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary became
affiliated with the Association of Theological
Schools. The Very Rev. Thomas Murphy
was appointed the fifth Rector in September,
1973. In 1976, in cooperation with the Archdiocese
of Chicago's Center for Pastoral Ministry,
the Seminary began a program of study leading
to the Doctor of Ministry. Also in September, the
Seminary celebrated at the Chapel of the Immaculate
Conception the 50 th anniversary of the
first ordination class to have been trained at
Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary.
In July 1978, the Very Rev. James Keleher
was appointed the sixth rector, replacing the
Most Rev. Thomas Murphy, who was named
Bishop of Great Falls-Billings, Montana.
In the fall of 1982, under Archbishop Joseph
Bernardin, the Seminary faculty initiated a thorough
revision of the program which had been in
place for ten years. The changes had as their
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