Paul E Seaver

Seaver, Rev. Paul Edward, O.P., a member of the Order of Preachers and of the Dominican Friars’ Community of St. Thomas Aquinas Priory at Providence College, died on Monday, Apr. 17, 2023, at Landmark Medical Center in Pawtucket, RI, following a period of declining health.

Born in Woonsocket, RI, on Sept. 3, 1930, he was a son of the late William J. Seaver and Mary G. (Meakin) Seaver. He graduated from St. Mary’s High School in Milford, MA, in 1948. After receiving his bachelor degree in history from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, in 1952, he entered the novitiate of the Dominican Province of St. Joseph at St. Stephen Priory in Dover, MA, receiving the religious name William. He made his simple profession of vows there on Aug. 16, 1953. He studied philosophy from 1953 until 1956 at St. Rose Priory in Springfield, KY, and at St. Joseph Priory in Somerset, OH, making his solemn profession of vows in 1956. He was ordained a priest at St. Dominic Church in Washington, DC, by the Most Rev. Patrick A. O’Boyle, D.D., Archbishop of Washington, on June 5, 1959.

Father Seaver earned his bachelor, licentiate, and lectorate degrees in sacred theology from the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC, between 1956 and 1960. He was then assigned for a year to Blackfriars Hall in Oxford, UK, for further theological studies and as a faculty member in the theology department.

From 1961 until 1969, he was assigned to St. Stephen Priory in Dover, MA, where he taught theology, philosophy, and modern languages. Father Seaver was assigned to Providence College in 1969, where he taught for over two generations in the theology department.

He was a voracious reader across a spectrum of subjects, including history, literature, philosophy, theology, and current events, including politics and economics. He took great delight in sharing his knowledge with his students in the classroom and, after his formal retirement, with smaller groups in more casual situations. His positive influence in the lives of many young people was significant and enduring.

Father Seaver was pre-deceased by his parents and by his four older siblings: Elizabeth M. Seaver, Thomas H. Seaver, Barbara A. Seaver, and William J. Seaver. He is survived by nieces and nephews and their families. He is also survived by his Dominican brothers.

His body will be received into the Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary within the Priory of St. Thomas Aquinas at Providence College on Friday, April 21, 2023, at 4:00 p.m. Visitation will follow, concluding with the Office of the Dead at 7:00 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for him in the same Chapel on Saturday, April 22, at 10:00 a.m. Burial will follow in the Dominican Friars Cemetery on campus.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to Providence College, Office of Institutional Advancement, One Cunningham Square, Providence, RI 02918, for the Dominican Scholarship Fund.