Deacon Ryan Braam

My life before the seminary:

The year before I entered seminary, I was a freshman at Catholic University studying computer science. While at Catholic, I altar served for Campus Ministry liturgies and was an editor for a student-run pro-life magazine. I started at Catholic after graduating from St. Mary's Ryken High School in 2014.

What convinced me to enter the seminary:

For me, entering seminary first started with the renewal in my faith life that came from theology classes at Ryken. Inspired by my teachers, I desired to have a deep, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. This led me to resolve to practice my faith in an intentional way once I started college at Catholic, especially going to Mass daily and regular Confession. About halfway through my first semester, I had the epiphany that I had never seriously considered the priesthood my entire life. The more I seriously considered the possibility of priesthood, the more greatly the Lord gave me the desire for it. From there, I simply followed the Lord's lead, and within six months I was applying to seminary.

Other interests include:

Many of my interests remain from my life before seminary, such as long distance running from cross country and track in high school, as well as computer programming from my freshman year at Catholic. Additionally, I always enjoy watching a Washington Nationals game, reading, and dabbling in writing poetry and short stories.