There is a tendency to picture one’s discernment, whether the lifelong vocation question or a smaller decision, as a tense and perilous choice in an all-or-nothing, heaven or hell moment.
Vocations
It was the first time some of the students had ever seen a nun. A pair of Sister Servants of the Lord visited St. Jude the Apostle Church in Lewes earlier this year to give the religious education students a look at women in habits. They talked about their call to the vocation, how they live and what it’s like to be a nun.
Priests are called to be “a true icon of Jesus,” drawing closer to God the Father by devoting their lives to the care of all God’s children, Pope Francis wrote.
Life as a parish priest is a “Eucharistic adventure” that involves serving God’s people under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Pope Francis told transitional deacons.
Not everyone can run a half marathon. And it’s probably a safe bet that even fewer can do so in a habit. But in a January half marathon in Naples, among runners dressed in tank tops, short running shorts or even shirtless were two consecrated women religious in their in white, long-sleeved habits and black athletic shoes.
The community of St. Patrick Catholic Church of Dallas packed the sanctuary Jan. 6 as Auxiliary Bishop Greg Kelly concelebrated a 5 p.m. vigil Mass for the Epiphany of the Lord preceding a “Fond Farewell” reception for Father Josef Vollmer-König, who served as the parish’s pastor and then pastor emeritus.
Sixty-two young men, high-school-aged or older, and their families attended the St. Andrew’s Dinner sponsored by the Diocese of Dallas Office of Vocation on Nov. 7 at Holy Trinity Seminary. A St. Andrew’s Dinner provides an opportunity for young men interested in priestly vocations to meet, pray, dialogue, and dine with the bishop and diocesan priests in a “no pressure” atmosphere.
Every year the U.S. Catholic Church dedicates a week in November to pray for and promote vocations to the priesthood, the diaconate and consecrated life through prayer and education.
At the depth of every human heart is a vocational calling. It is the echo of Christ’s voice speaking to His people where we cannot help but listen and follow after Him. Pope St. John Paul II wrote, “In the hidden recesses of the human heart the grace of a vocation takes the form of a dialogue. It is a dialogue between Christ and an individual, in which a personal invitation is given. Christ calls the person by name and says: ‘Come, follow me.’”
The future of the church in north Texas starts at home, Bishop Edward J. Burns told a room full of participants gathered for a Diocese of Dallas Synod listening session on “Vocations and Ministerial Formation” in the St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church parish hall on Jan. 28.