Not long ago, my grandson donned a small chasuble and happily processed into Sunday Mass with the Pastor of my daughter and son-in-law’s parish. After they reached the front of the aisle and bowed, the pastor picked up my grandson, turned toward the congregation, and introduced them to a very young priest who was shadowing him for the day.
Yes, my grandson is only three years old and still fairly easy to pick up. Naturally, the congregation was charmed by this little tableau unfolding at Mass. First, there was the cuteness factor. Of course, my wife and I think he’s the cutest grandson in the world. We were at that Mass at our daughter and son-in-law’s invitation to see this special moment.
We loved the entire event and were proud of our grandson and of Father for taking the time to speak on a vital matter in a creative and illustrative way. As he held my grandson in his arms, he spoke about vocations in general and vocations to the priesthood in particular. A very important point that Father made was reminding the congregation that all are invited to foster vocations and that they, in particular, originate in our home. His exhortation to all of us there was to make our homes vocation friendly, with a particular eye toward encouraging priestly vocations.
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In recent years, under Bishop Fernandes’ leadership, our diocese has enjoyed a marvelous resurgence of young men committing to study and train to be priests. The number of seminarians in our diocese has nearly tripled compared to 10 or so years ago. This bodes well for our Catholic family here in the Diocese of Columbus.
However, let’s not congratulate ourselves too much, start coasting, and give in to the temptation of inertia. Let’s keep this fast growing effort going and make it increase even more rapidly in the future. An important point to hold onto as we consider this is that our vocations in life are intrinsic to our relationship with God.
The Church teaches that all people “are called to the same end: God himself (CCC 1878).” Furthermore, we are taught that, “All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity. All are called to holiness: ‘Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.’ (CCC 2013).”
This wondrous invitation to such closeness to and deep friendship with God, when we respond sincerely to the Lord, should lead us to a vital question: Why was I created by God? Now that is a big question. Each of us will spend a lifetime exploring it. Another question that accompanies this is: What is my purpose in life? As we pursue the answers to these questions, the understanding that God created each of us for a reason will serve us very well.
The answers to these questions lead us to our vocations. They are the specific and significant ways we fulfill the purposes for which God created us. In my own life, vocations to which I believe I have been called by God include father, husband, grandfather, son, brother, employee of the Diocese of Columbus, and, of course, deacon.
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I discerned these vocations over the course of my 64 years in this world, often with help and encouragement from others. For example, I was encouraged to explore a vocation to the Church’s Permanent Diaconate with simple words from other parishioners, such as “Have you ever thought about being a deacon?”
It just takes a few words to get a person thinking. It worked in my case and led me to a slowly dawning realization that I should explore that call and its possibilities. Encouraging and helping others to find their vocation is a genuine gift we can offer. And, of paramount importance to this line of thinking, as the pastor of my grandson’s parish noted, is the primacy of encouraging an understanding and embracing of vocations within our families, particularly on the part of parents to their children.
With this in mind, I join that pastor who held my grandson who was dressed in his homemade chasuble and urged his congregation to remember how important it is that they teach their children about vocations in the life of faith, especially the call of some men to the priesthood of the Catholic Church.
He told the congregation that my grandson may not become a priest as an adult, but he appreciated that his parents were teaching him about the Lord and vocations from a young age. I join him in inviting all young people to consider the vocations to which God is calling them. Let’s help all in our families understand that with God, all are invited to be part of His plans.
This also means that we must be careful not to exclude possible vocations such as the priesthood for young Catholic men and consecrated religious life for young Catholic women. It vitally important to help them be open to God’s will.
Let us be people who consistently say: “Follow what is in God’s heart” and not let our wishes and desires get in the way of the wondrous ways of our Lord. Let’s not impose our own predetermined ideas of how young people’s lives should turn out. That is what is right, and it requires trust in God and a profound humility in order to set aside preconceived notions we may have about the lives and destinies of our children and grandchildren.
This will lead us to be people of faith, hope, and confidence in God. The Catechism of the Church describes this with profound beauty, and I leave you with this passage. It describes the hopeful confidence that springs from trust in God as we help those in our families and maybe even some not in our families find their true calling and vocations in life:
“We can therefore hope in the glory of heaven promised by God to those who love him and do his will. In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere ‘to the end’ and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God’s eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ (CCC 1821).”