I decided to take classes at St. John's Seminary's Master of Theological Studies (MTS) degree program because I had already taken a number of courses in theology at the undergraduate level and thought it would be a good idea to pursue a master's degree. I had also taught religion in the past and figured that I might return to the classroom -- and a master's degree would certainly help.

Before taking the MTS courses at St. John's Seminary, I had already done a lot of reading of religious material over the years: the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Scriptural commentary, lives of the saints, etc. I thought I already knew a lot about the Catholic faith.

While taking these classes at St. John's Seminary, however, I was consistently surprised by how much I didn't know. I learned a lot. I concluded that the Catholic Faith is so rich and deep that one could study an entire lifetime and still merely be touching the surface of all there is to learn.

Learning the faith is not just for the sake of learning. I wanted to learn to deepen my relationship with God and to be better able to convey the Catholic faith to others. The ultimate goal is to get to heaven and to help others in getting there.

The classes at St. John's Seminary were enjoyable, and all the teachers were experts in their respective fields. I believe that they helped me in progressing toward the above-mentioned goal.

As a lawyer, I am not employed in the religious field. However, the courses have helped me to be more cognizant of the possibility of God speaking to me in the daily events of my life.

THOMAS HARVEY, ESQ., IS A MEMBER OF THE ST. JOHN'S SEMINARY MASTER OF THEOLOGICAL STUDIES CLASS OF 2019. HE IS THE CHAIRMAN OF THE MASS. ALLIANCE TO STOP TAXPAYER FUNDED ABORTIONS AND THE FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF MASS. CITIZENS FOR LIFE.