PLEASE PRAY WITH US FOR AN INCREASE IN VOCATIONS TO THE ORDAINED MINISTRY AND THE CONSECRATED LIFE:
Lord Jesus, as You once called the first disciples to make them fishers of men, let your sweet invitation continue to resound: Come! follow Me!
Give young men and women the grace of responding quickly to Your voice.
Support your bishops, priests and consecrated people in their apostolic labor.
Grant perseverance to our seminarians and to all those who are carrying out the ideal of a life totally consecrated to Your service.
Awaken in our community a missionary eagerness.
Lord, SEND WORKERS TO YOUR HARVEST and do not allow humanity to be lost for the lack of pastors, missionaries and people dedicated to the cause of the Gospel.
Mary, Mother of the Church, the model of every vocation, help us to say "Yes" to the Lord Who calls us to cooperate in the divine plan of salvation.
We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
(Pope John Paul II)
Holy Orders is a sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to the apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time: thus the sacrament of apostolic ministry. It includes three degrees: epicoscopate, presbyterate, and diaconate.
Catechism of the Catholic Church 1536
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Those discerning God’s call to be a priest or deacon may speak with the pastor or call the Diocesan Vocation office at 712-255-7933.
IN TALKING WITH YOUR CHILDREN, have you neglected to raise the call to Church ministry? The process of answering God’s call begins in childhood. Throughout adolescence and adulthood, the attitudes assumed in childhood begin to influence the course of one’s life. A vocation or a talent will not grow to fruition unless it is nurtured in childhood and adolescence by a parent. Often children talk about what they want to be “when they grow up”: doctors, lawyers, athletes, nurses, movie stars, teachers, carpenters. They may talk about these roles, but do they ever talk about being a priest, sister, or brother? You are the hand of God — encourage your children to consider Church ministry.
A STUDY COMMISSIONED by the Knights of Columbus revealed that 75% of Catholic young people who had seriously considered religious life felt they were never encouraged to pursue that goal. Do you know someone who would make a good priest or sister? Why not tell them so? Your encouragement may be all they need.
PRAYER IS A MOVING FORCE in vocation development. Prayer is effective; prayer is powerful; prayer is essential. Few are called to priesthood or religious life, but all are called to pray for vocations. “Lord, your Church is in need. Touch the hearts of many within our parish with the desire to serve you. Call forth from this community priests, men and women religious and deacons. Help us to live lives that will nurture childhood trust into adult commitment. May this parish be a source of hope and a source of ministers for your Church, your people and your world. Amen.”
DID YOU KNOW that there are special seminaries for men entering the priesthood later in life, seminaries where students range from ages 25 to 60? Many of these men have thought about being a priest at one time or another but, for whatever reason, pushed the idea to the back of their minds. They are men who have made a career change to a second vocation, the priesthood. They are ordinary people, men who have been electricians, teachers, barbers, policemen, social workers, farmers, businessmen, dentists. Some are widowers, even grandfathers. Diverse though their backgrounds may be, they now share one aim in life: to become a priest and serve God’s people. Could you be one of them?
WHAT KINDS OF PEOPLE become priests, sisters or brothers? Are they uncommonly holy, unusually saint-like? No. They are people who make mistakes, people who are not afraid to be human while in God’s service. Are they people who cannot face the competition and cruelty of the “real” world? No. They are people who believe that through ministry they can immerse themselves in the world and make positive changes. Are they people who do not relate well with other people? No. They are people who love others — people who find real satisfaction chatting with a 93-year-old parishioner, holding the hand of a cancer patient, listening to the troubles of a streetwise teen. They are people with the courage to touch lives, hearts, and souls in a high-tech, unchurched world. Are you that kind of person?