March 16, 2011
Baltimore, MD - The Provincial Council of the Society of St. Sulpice, Province of the United States announces the appointment of Sulpician Father Phillip J. Brown, S.S., J.D., J.C.D., as Rector of Theological College, the seminary of The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, effective July 1, 2011. This appointment has been made by the Sulpicians with the approval of His Eminence Donald Cardinal Wuerl, S.T.D., Archbishop of Washington and Chancellor of the University, and of Mr. John H. Garvey, J.D., President of the University.
Sulpician Provincial Father Thomas R. Ulshafer praised Father Brown as "a learned and dedicated priest who loves the ministry of priestly formation and who will see that Theological College remains a strong national seminary." Father Ulshafer also pointed out that Father Brown is an alumnus of Theological College and that he served on the faculty of the School of Canon Law at The Catholic University of America from 2006-2010.
Father Brown was ordained in 1989 for the Diocese of Bismarck in North Dakota. Prior to entering the seminary, he had earned a degree in civil law and practiced in North Dakota for five years. After ordination he earned a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and he served as a judge of the tribunal of his diocese from 1999-2001. He is a former member and Senior Consultor of the Board of Governors of the Canon Law Society of America and has chaired several committees for the Society. In addition to his degrees in canon and civil law, Father Brown also holds a bachelor's degree in music and he enjoys playing the piano.
Before serving on the faculty of The Catholic University of America, Father Brown was assigned for five years to the faculty of St. Mary's Seminary & University, the Sulpician seminary in Baltimore. For two of those years, he was the academic dean of the seminary program. Since 2007 he has also been General Treasurer of the Society of St. Sulpice in Paris.
Father Brown will succeed Father Melvin C. Blanchette, S.S., Ph.D., who has been rector of Theological College since 2007. Father Ulshafer called Father Blanchette "a very effective leader of the community at Theological College. He is a deeply dedicated and thoughtful priest who has been an excellent role model for seminarians." Father Blanchette will remain at Theological College.
Theological College is a national Roman Catholic seminary, affiliated with The Catholic University of America. Founded in 1917, Theological College is owned and operated by the Society of St. Sulpice, pioneers in priestly formation in the United States since 1791.
For more information, contact the Office of the Sulpician Provincial at 410-323-5070 or e-mail provincial@sulpicians.org .
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