Diocese of Tulsa launches new diocesan theological institute

The Diocese of Tulsa & Eastern Oklahoma has capitalized on a unique opportunity to elevate the entire spiritual life of our local Church by launching a  new diocesan theological institute. The Institute, yet to be officially named, will be at the service of the Church in Eastern Oklahoma primarily by teaching and forming our Catholic leaders within our parishes and schools, which will have an exponential effect on our catechesis, discipleship, and evangelization. Some of the areas of support currently being discerned are teaching in the diaconate program, offering ongoing formation for parish catechists, starting a new spiritual direction program, and providing ongoing formation for Catholic school teachers. 
 
To carry out the good work of the Institute, the Diocese is happy to announce the hiring of two new employees:  Dr. Richard Meloche, PhD, and  Dr. Marcel Brown, PhD. Dr. Meloche, who will serve as the Director of the new Institute, and Dr. Brown will take the next few months to travel around the Diocese listening and learning from our local leaders before officially launching the Institute later this year. Both men exhibit a great love for the Church, and the Diocese looks forward to how their ministry will support our local parish and school leaders.

Dr. Richard Meloche is a native of Canada and earned his initial degrees in philosophy and theology from the University of Western Ontario. He enjoyed a 5-year doctoral fellowship at Ave Maria University in Naples, Fla. during which time he immersed himself in the study of the Catholic intellectual tradition, with a specific focus on the writing and thought of St. Thomas Aquinas.  After successfully defending his dissertation he worked as a DRE at a large parish in Jacksonville, Fla. before moving to Shawnee, Okla. to teach at St. Gregory’s University. At SGU, Dr. Meloche taught courses in theology, philosophy, and the ‘great books,’ and toward the end of his tenure was asked by the administration to leave the classroom to oversee all academic operations of the university as Vice President of Academic Affairs. Dr. Meloche and his wife of 13 years, have recently welcomed their sixth child.  When he is not reading St. Thomas he enjoys all things good, true, and beautiful. 

Dr. Marcel Brown, a native of Denver, graduated from The University of Dallas with a degree in English prior to pursuing doctoral studies at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He and his wife married in 2005, Year of the Eucharist, and the couple has recently been blessed to welcome their eighth child. The couple served as team-teaching catechists at St. Rita Catholic Church in northern Virginia while Dr. Brown worked to complete his dissertation on the centrality of the Eucharist for The York Cycle, the most prominent example of devotional drama in England prior to the life and times of William Shakespeare. Upon completing his doctorate in English in 2013, Dr. Brown joined the faculty of St. Gregory’s University, teaching courses in literature and language, great books, the liberal arts, The York Cycle, Shakespeare, and Tolkien. During his time at St. Gregory’s, Dr. Brown was also tapped to serve as program-head for Great Books, University Seminar, the Academic Success Center, the Liberal Arts Core Capstone, and eventually Core Academic Programs as a whole. When he is not reading, writing, and teaching, Dr. Brown enjoys conversing with his wife, making music with his family, and fishing shorelines of all kinds with his children.