Moments of Validation:
Why Zach Turner Knows He’s in the Right Place
Zach Turner remembers in great detail the first time he was inspired to become a priest when he was 10 years old.
He was watching I Was There: The Holy Mass, a children’s program on EWTN, in which a young man is taken back in time to witness the passion and death of Jesus. When he’s transported back to the present, he is attending Mass and learns that at the moment of consecration, Jesus is speaking through the priest and acting “in persona Christi” – in the person of Christ.
“I got this very strange, but it was a very happy, inspiring, almost burning feeling in my chest where I realized that’s what I want to do, to have that opportunity of literally holding Jesus in my hands in the Eucharist during that moment in the mass.”
Zach grew up in Rosamond, Calif., in a Catholic home and was homeschooled from K-12. His time in college bore fruit in a few ways.
As he was exposed to others with many different views, he grew in appreciation for their experiences and learned to bridge the gap with his own experiences. It taught him not to be so judgmental. “It was an opportunity to find the good in other people’s perspectives in ways that challenged my faith and helped enrich it.”
Then, when he transferred to UCLA after earning his associate’s degree at the community college, he was introduced to the Paulist Fathers, who ran the campus ministry. Zach was impressed with how they accompanied young people on their faith journey.
“I was impressed with how they didn’t just try to offer me the perfect answer on a silver platter. They were there to listen to any doubts or concerns I had about different teachings about the faith, often insights I hadn’t thought about before. And I found myself thinking, ‘If I were to become a priest, this is the kind of priest I’d want to be’ – someone who can accompany others during their challenging moments of faith and be present to them and offer encouragement.”
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in religion, Zach was substitute teaching in a nearby school district when COVID hit. Temporarily laid off and frustrated with limited career opportunities, he decided to apply to enter the novitiate. So, at the height of pandemic fear and lockdown, he moved across the country to Washington, D.C., in August 2020 to start the program.
It wasn’t easy. He was homesick and it was a big life change in the midst of all the other global uncertainties. In fact, this had been one of his anxieties before joining – being far away from family and friends and moving away from the life he was familiar with.
He overcame his doubts with some advice from his mom to find the courage to step out into the unknown and trust in God’s plan. As he adjusted to life in the seminary, he discovered the great sense of community among his Paulist brothers. He feels like they have given him a second family. Today, Zach, 29, is in his second year of theology studies and next will begin his pastoral year at one of the Paulist communities around the country.
He had another moment of validation, not unlike his experience as a 10-year-old boy, when he felt God speaking directly to his heart.
About eight months after he began the novitiate, Zach visited Columbus, Ohio, on a Lenten assignment and began chatting with a local chocolate shop owner. Learning he was a parishioner at the Paulist church, Zach shared that he was a seminarian with them. The man almost broke into tears as he described how much the Paulists had meant to him during difficult moments in his life.
“I thought to myself, ‘It is a good thing I decided to come to this place because if I had not stopped here, I never would’ve had this experience.’ Seeing the joy on his face, even as he was speaking, I could feel God in my heart saying to me: ‘Zach, you are in the right place. I am real. I am here. I am with you. You are doing the right thing. This is where I want you to be.’ It was a real comforting assurance of the reality of my faith and that this was all worthwhile.”
And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.
-John 1:14
I've always loved this verse because of how beautifully it describes the Incarnation. The fact that God became a human being, both to redeem us and to make his home with us, is one of the most beautiful truths of our faith.
Zach Turner, CSP
Year: Second Theology
Home State: California
Home Parish: St. Junipero Serra Catholic Parish in Lancaster, CA
Patron Saint: St. Thérèse of Lisieux
Education: B.A. in History, University of California in Los Angeles
Current Location: Paulist House of Mission and Studies in Washington, DC
Profile by Estefania Garcia.
Zach Turner, CSP
Year: Second Theology
Home State: California
Home Parish: St. Junipero Serra Catholic Parish in Lancaster, CA
Patron Saint: St. Thérèse of Lisieux
Education: B.A. in History, University of California in Los Angeles
Current Location: Paulist House of Mission and Studies in Washington, DC
Zach Turner remembers in great detail the first time he was inspired to become a priest when he was 10 years old.
He was watching I Was There: The Holy Mass, a children’s program on EWTN, in which a young man is taken back in time to witness the passion and death of Jesus. When he’s transported back to the present, he is attending Mass and learns that at the moment of consecration, Jesus is speaking through the priest and acting “in persona Christi” – in the person of Christ.
“I got this very strange, but it was a very happy, inspiring, almost burning feeling in my chest where I realized that’s what I want to do, to have that opportunity of literally holding Jesus in my hands in the Eucharist during that moment in the mass.”
Zach grew up in Rosamond, Calif., in a Catholic home and was homeschooled from K-12. His time in college bore fruit in a few ways.
As he was exposed to others with many different views, he grew in appreciation for their experiences and learned to bridge the gap with his own experiences. It taught him not to be so judgmental. “It was an opportunity to find the good in other people’s perspectives in ways that challenged my faith and helped enrich it.”
Then, when he transferred to UCLA after earning his associate’s degree at the community college, he was introduced to the Paulist Fathers, who ran the campus ministry. Zach was impressed with how they accompanied young people on their faith journey.
“I was impressed with how they didn’t just try to offer me the perfect answer on a silver platter. They were there to listen to any doubts or concerns I had about different teachings about the faith, often insights I hadn’t thought about before. And I found myself thinking, ‘If I were to become a priest, this is the kind of priest I’d want to be’ – someone who can accompany others during their challenging moments of faith and be present to them and offer encouragement.”
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in religion, Zach was substitute teaching in a nearby school district when COVID hit. Temporarily laid off and frustrated with limited career opportunities, he decided to apply to enter the novitiate. So, at the height of pandemic fear and lockdown, he moved across the country to Washington, D.C., in August 2020 to start the program.
It wasn’t easy. He was homesick and it was a big life change in the midst of all the other global uncertainties. In fact, this had been one of his anxieties before joining – being far away from family and friends and moving away from the life he was familiar with.
He overcame his doubts with some advice from his mom to find the courage to step out into the unknown and trust in God’s plan. As he adjusted to life in the seminary, he discovered the great sense of community among his Paulist brothers. He feels like they have given him a second family. Today, Zach, 29, is in his second year of theology studies and next will begin his pastoral year at one of the Paulist communities around the country.
He had another moment of validation, not unlike his experience as a 10-year-old boy, when he felt God speaking directly to his heart.
About eight months after he began the novitiate, Zach visited Columbus, Ohio, on a Lenten assignment and began chatting with a local chocolate shop owner. Learning he was a parishioner at the Paulist church, Zach shared that he was a seminarian with them. The man almost broke into tears as he described how much the Paulists had meant to him during difficult moments in his life.
“I thought to myself, ‘It is a good thing I decided to come to this place because if I had not stopped here, I never would’ve had this experience.’ Seeing the joy on his face, even as he was speaking, I could feel God in my heart saying to me: ‘Zach, you are in the right place. I am real. I am here. I am with you. You are doing the right thing. This is where I want you to be.’ It was a real comforting assurance of the reality of my faith and that this was all worthwhile.”