Saint George parishioner begins nine-year journey to priesthood

Intermountain Catholic

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Tristan Dillon

SALT LAKE CITY — A young man from Saint George Parish has responded to God’s call and, with the blessing of his pastor and Bishop John C. Wester, entered the seminary to begin preparation to become a priest for the Diocese of Salt Lake City.

"Ever since I was little I’ve always kind of felt like I was being called to it," said Tristan Dillon, who moved with his family to St. George from Tacoma, Wash. about three years ago. "It’s not so much my decision as what God wants me to do."

When he first arrived in Utah he began volunteering at the parish thrift store. "I just loved being part of the community and being so close to the parish," he said. "Often I would go into the parish and pray in front of the Blessed Sacrament, and just enjoy and love it. … Having the routine of having the Church be a part of my daily life was so appealing to me."

As his senior year of high school approached, he began working on his spiritual formation with his pastor, Father Martín Picos, and entered the seminary the fall after his graduation.

"By my senior year of high school I knew that this is what I want to do, so I didn’t feel like pushing it off," he said.

"He is really committed to this calling," Fr. Picos said, adding that Dillon was involved with the youth group and other aspects of the parish as well as the thrift store. "He likes to serve, he likes to be part of the people. … He is committed to this vocation from the beginning, to God’s calling in his life."

The Diocese of Salt Lake City has seven men studying for the priesthood in various locations: Jorge Roldán at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio, Texas; Dillon and David Trujillo at Mount Angel Seminary in St. Benedict, Ore.; Joe Delka and Stephen Tilley at the Pontifical North American College in Rome; and José Camberos and Jorge Martí- nez at Saint Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, Calif.

"We’re very pleased and grateful for those vocations," Bishop Wester said, adding that, although the diocese is doing well in the case of vocations, "we can always do better. We have to pray to the Lord of the Harvest for the gift of vocations. God gives the increase."

Young men and women who are considering a religious vocation should first approach their pastor, said Deacon Ricardo Arias, diocesan director of vocations. He added that they should also take "time to pray to be sure God is calling them. … It’s God’s call, it’s not something ‘I want;’ it’s to discover what God is asking of them."

Seminarians are required to earn a bachelor’s degree; they then typically receive four years of theology and take a pastoral year, during which they work in the diocese.

The young men in seminary are supported financially by the diocese through the Diocesan Development Drive, which pays for their education and provides a monthly stipend. The Knights of Columbus and some parishes also contribute financially to seminarians. The Catholic Foundation of Utah has a couple of endowments dedicated to them as well.

Another way that the diocese supports seminarians is through prayer and letters.

"I’m getting so many cards and thank-you letters and notes and everything from people," Dillon said. "I have a stack of cards, and every week I’ll find a letter in my mailbox from someone. It just means a lot that these people that I worked with, or who just saw me in church, that they know me and they’re, like, ‘This kid is doing something special.’"

His family’s support is also important, he said. "My mom has been very supportive; my sister’s been there for me my entire life; and my dad, who’s not even Catholic, is super excited about what I’m doing. I know that if they didn’t believe that I should be here, they would tell me. … They’re confident in what I’m doing. I don’t have much doubt. I believe that I’m here for a reason, and they believe in me, and that helps me believe in myself."