Vocation Awareness

In the beginning of the Gospel of John, Jesus invites his first followers to become his disciples with these words: “Come and See.” By this invitation Jesus invites us all to discern our vocation as his disciples. This year Pope Francis has called for 2015 to be a year focusing on the “Consecrated Life,” the ancient and ongoing practice of members of the church to dedicate themselves exclusively to God and spreading the Gospel through the “religious” or “consecrated” life by living a life through the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience and following a particular rule of life of one of the saints.

Like Jesus’ invitation in the Gospel of John, this year of “Consecrated Life” invites the whole church to consider God’s call to each and every member. Along with considering our own vocation to serve the Lord in our lives, we are invited to think again and to appreciate anew the vocation of men and women religious in the church.

Our own individual vocation as Christians begins with our baptism. From that time forward we discern how the Lord calls each one of us to serve him. Some choose to serve the Lord through “consecrated” or “religious life.” Some choose to serve the Lord through the vocation of marriage or single life. Some choose to serve the Lord as ordained priests and deacons.

Next weekend Seminarian Paul Cygan, a Second Theology student at Christ the King Seminary, will speak at all the Masses, reminding us of not only our personal call to serve the Lord, but also encouraging us to pray for and support vocations to the priesthood. We are well aware of the diminishing number of priests facing us in the future and so the importance of praying for and supporting new vocations to the priesthood.

The need for more priests is great today and will be ever greater in the future. In fact, at the present time there are at least 8, if not more, parishes in our diocese that at one time had at least one resident priest. Now they have none and replacements are few and far between. Many of our priests are serving one or more parishes or apostolates. So, we ask you to welcome Paul Cygan next weekend. Please pray for him and our own parishioner Ryan Keating as they discern the Lord’s call to follow him while at Christ the King Seminary.

God willing they will one day serve our diocese as priests.

Msgr. Manganello