Meet Our Seminarians
Back to Our Seminarians > Benedict Pradit Wonganant
Name: Benedict Pradit Wonganant
Date of birth: November 24, 1968
Hobbies and interests: photography, basketball, reading, traveling, tennis
Favorite saints: St. Benedict, St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Agnes
I was born into a large Catholic family in a Catholic village in the northeast of Thailand. The life of the village as well as that of my family was always church-centered. We not only went to Mass on Sundays but we would be in church almost every morning and most evenings. Our parish school was staffed by sisters who were very attentive to our learning and faith and they encouraged us to think about becoming priests.
The desire to be a priest came to me very early and at the age of twelve my family sent me to study in the city of Ubon which is about sixty miles from our village. My next step was to move near to Bangkok to learn more, as there were many things for me to learn. I had to work very hard to make a living and worked in the fruit and vegetable market where I gained a lot of experience meeting different people.
The desire to be a priest stayed with me all the time. When I was asked by a priest friend if I would like to become a priest in the Diocese of Oakland I felt that God was answering my prayers.
I am very happy here at St. Patrick's Seminary and am thankful that I am gaining the knowledge and the grace that will help me to do what God wants of me. My family back in Thailand prays for me every day and I am able to speak to them regularly on the computer phone. I love meeting people and find that people here in the United States are very much like the people at home.