The Contribution of the St John Vianney Seminary in the Training of Catholic Clergy in the Past 50 Years According to Professor Joy Brain

The Roman Catholic Church made it compulsory for its priests to study both philosophy and theology in the seminary before ordination. The aim of these studies is to produce scientifically capable and professional pastors. St John Vianney Seminary was established in 1948 in Pretoria, South Africa. In 2023 the seminary celebrated its 75<sup>th</sup> Anniversary. However, the article is on the history of different phases of the seminary for the last 50 years as described in the book authored by Brain, JB. The article explains historical documents that led to the formation of the seminary in the apartheid South Africa. The aim is to supplement the history of St John Vianney Seminary with impressions and anecdotes concerning the teaching staff and students. The researcher will reflect on some ideas regarding the seminary in the new dispensation. The research is conducted in the form of a Literature study and draws from literature on the historical book: <i>St John Vianney Seminary –</i> <i>50 Years of Priestly Training </i>by Professor J. B. Brain published in 2002 as the main source. To include some elements of the contemporary activities in the seminary, the research method is based on a mixture of literature analysis, oral story-telling and interviews.