Fr. Mark Purcell, OSB
..and on drums.. A flamique* for the soul-- *(it's a rudimentary drum beat).
View Fr. Mark's Photo Album
Fr. Mark is from Ohio. He graduated from high school in 1989 and attended Ohio University in Athens, receiving a BS in Secondary Education in Math. Last year, he graduated Suma  Cum Laude with a Masters in Theology from St. Vincent Seminary. He recieved a Masters Degree in Divinity prior to his ordination in 2006.
When he was ten, Mark became interested in playing the drums.
His call to vocation came when he was 23 years old. “God, I believe, was clearly telling me that I was going to be a monk, and serve Him as a Priest .” Mark made his first profession of vows in 2000 and his final profession in 2003.
On the 16th of last month, Mark was ordained Deacon. He will spend the summer working in area parishes.
“When I was even younger than ten, I used put books on the floor and hit them with pencils, pretending they were drums.” Fr. Mark says he isn’t really sure what it is that makes drumming so attractive to him, but he says, “Playing the drums is more than a hobby for me ..it’s a nearly spiritual experience, a venue for my heart and soul to be heard.”
Graduating from college, Fr. Mark figured he’d spend a while as a math teacher, but was already feeling that his life lacked some essential piece.
In fact, Mark wasn’t even what you would call  deeply spiritual at the time. He lived a very “worldly” life. The more he enjoyed it, the more it became obvious to him that he had to go to confession and, finally, that is just what he did.
A radical conversion was the end result. After nearly four years of discernment, “God led me to Mary Mother of the Church Abbey where I continue to play the drums and try to use them as a vehicle to introduce rockers to God.”
Playing the drums is more than a hobby for me ..it's a nearly spiritual experience," says Fr. Mark
The Kit: Wine red Pearl Export Drum Kit.
+Tama Double Bass Drum pedal. +Tama high hat pedal. +14" Pearl Snare. +6" through 13" Toms. +4 Octobans. +2 floor toms; All have Evans drum heads. +2 timbales. +Assorted electric drums. +Zildjian, Sabian and Paiste cymbals. +assorted knick knacks.
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