Brother Mark Floreanini, O.S.B., is a member of the Saint Vincent College faculty. He earned a bachelor’s degree in studio art from Saint Vincent College, a Master of Arts degree from Saint Vincent Seminary, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Savannah College of Arts and Design. He is the founder of Archabbey Stained Glass and creates stained glass windows, paints, and does various other forms of art, including making pottery mugs, yarn bowls, spinning wool and crocheting. In 2025 he completed a stained glass mosaic of the Annunciation comprised of more than 70,000 individual pieces of glass,…
Dr. Patricia Sharbaugh is associate professor and chair of the Department of Theology at Saint Vincent College. She specializes in the field of biblical theology, with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pittsburgh, a Master of Divinity degree from Pittsburgh Theoogica Seminary, and a doctorate from Duquesne University. Her courses include Biblical Theology, Christology, the Epistles of Saint Paul, Wisdom Tradition in Theology and Women in the New Testament. Her research interests include: Christology in the Gospel of Matthew, Jewish-Christian dialogue, the theology of the cross, and the study of women in scripture. She lives with her…
Father Donald Raila, O.S.B., has been director of the Oblate program at Saint Vincent for more than 25 years. A popular retreat master, he has been a priest for more than 40 years. He has Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a doctorate in applied mathematics from Princeton University, as well as Master of Arts and Master of Divinity degrees from Saint Vincent Seminary. He has written three books and edited two, including Joy in the Life of a Follower of St. Benedict: An Exploration of Joy in Lent and in the…
Father Edward Mazich, O.S.B., is rector of Saint Vincent Seminary, where he also teaches Sacred Scripture and serves as director of liturgy. A priest for 25 years, he has a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from Penn State University, a Master of Arts degree in theology from Saint Vincent Seminary, a Licensitate in Sacred Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, a Licentiate in Fundamental Theology from the Gregorian University in Rome, and a Doctorate in Theology from the University of Oxford. Father Edward serves as an associate editor of The Bible Today, has written and published at…
Father Gilbert Heater, O.S.B., is presently serving as parochial vicar at Mary Queen of Saints Parish in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. An alumnus of Saint Vincent Seminary, he was ordained to the priesthood in May of 2025 after earning the Master of Divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary that same year. He also holds the Master of Arts degree in Catholic Philosophical Studies from Saint Vincent Seminary, and a Bachelor of Science degree in music composition from Lancaster Bible College. A convert to Catholicism, he received the Demetrius R. Dumm Award in Sacred Scripture from the Seminary. He has co-directed…
Father Nathanael Polinski, O.S.B., is academic dean, director of intellectual formation and associate professor of Sacred Scripture and Biblical Languages at Saint Vincent Seminary. The book, That the Scriptures Might Be Fulfilled Through Perfect Worship: An Investigation of John 19:36-37, based on his doctoral dissertation, was published in 2020. Father Nathanael has a Bachelor of Science degree in metallurgical engineering from the University of Pittsburgh, where he also earned the Master of Business Administration degree. He the Master of Divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary, as well as the Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree, and obtained his doctorate from The…
Father Patrick Cronauer, O.S.B., is professor of Sacred Scripture and Biblical Languages at Saint Vincent Seminary, where he has taught for 30 years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Assumption College, the Master of Divinity and Master of Theology degrees from Weston School of Theology, the S.S.L., from the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Rome; and the S.S.D., from École Biblique et Archéologique Francaise, Jerusalem. He has also done graduate studies at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and lived and worked in a small Benedictine community in Israel in the early 1970s. He has organized and led the biennial third…
Father Paul O’Connor, S.J. is a Jesuit priest and the Director of Mission & Identity at the Jesuit Retreat Center in Cleveland, Ohio where he is a retreat director, teacher, and presenter for a variety of Ignatian retreats, especially the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Father O’Connor has done extensive training in Ignatian spirituality and retreat direction. He conducts life transitions retreats, assists people with Ignatian discernment and decision making, and leads Ignatian retreats and programs with the homeless.
Christopher Pardini is a faculty member in music at Saint Vincent College, where he teaches organ, piano, sacred music and music theory, directs the College Concert Series and is developing a post-baccalaureate certificate program in sacred music. Director of music and liturgy at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral, Greensburg, he has a Bachelor of Music degree in sacred music from Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey, and a Master of Music degree in organ performance and literature from the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester, New York. A nationally-recognized specialist in Sacred Music, he is also a published composer…
Teaches as an assistant professor of theology at Saint Vincent College. There, he teaches classes in systematic theology and environmental ethics. A native of Pittsburgh, he is an alumnus of Saint Vincent College. In 2023, he published The Eucharistic Vision of Laudato Si’: Praise, Conversion, and Integral Ecology (The Catholic University of America Press). Currently, he is writing a book tentatively entitled Ora et Labora in Our Common Home: A Benedictine Invitation to Care for Creation (under contract with Liturgical Press). He regularly gives popular presentations at parishes and dioceses. His wife, Catherine, also teaches theology at Saint Vincent; they…
