| January 22, 2012 Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Could it be me? "Whoever opens his heart to Christ will not only understand the mystery of his own existence, but also that of his own vocation; he will bear the abun-dant fruit of grace." -Pope Blessed John Paul II Jesus calls men to be priests just as He called the Apostles today in the Gospel. The vocation to priestly service is a call to share in the very priesthood of Jesus Christ so that His unique saving mission may continue through the proclamation of the Kingdom, the pastoral service, the proclamation of the Word and most especially in the celebration of the Sacraments. What is a vocation, a call? Through baptism, every Christian has a vocation, that is, a call from God to serve the Church in holiness. The Gospel calls everyone to a life of loving self-sacrifice. The Holy Spirit reveals to each be-liever his/her particular vocation. For most of the baptized the particular vocation of man and woman is marriage. But for others there is a particular call to service for the good of the Church—and the building of the Kingdom of God. The call to giving witness to Christ by a life directed by Gospel values, as a consecrated religious, embracing evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience, as a married person, dedicating one’s life and love to an-other person and sharing faith within a family. For each and every vocation, the Holy Spirit manifests a person’s vo-cation through prayer and the Sacraments. I would like to spend particular time asking the young men in our parish to consider that Jesus may be call-ing you to be a priest; ordained to service at the altar, to preach the Gospel, and dispense the mysteries of salvation, as a single man. A priestly vocation is recognized through and interior attraction from the person of Jesus Christ who calls out to the young man, just like we heard in last Sunday’s first reading with the call of Samuel. It is espe-cially through the reception of Holy Eucharist, that the young man is strengthened and taught how to respond like Samuel "Here I am. You called me." and "Speak Lord, your servant is listening." This Sunday we hear in the Gos-pel the call of the Apostles "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men" and in the Psalm "Teach me your ways, O Lord." Christ calls His priests just the same. The inner man needs to be formed to surrender to God’s call, this is the same both in the Old & New Testament, but there is a change with the Apostles and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, God calls and remakes the man, in the priestly sense, to follow Him in the very person of His Son. What is a diocesan priest? Every priest is called by God to live and act in the very person of His Son, Jesus Christ. The diocesan priest, in union with his bishop, serves the People of God in many ways: Baptizing people, Celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, Absolving sins through Penance and Reconciliation, presiding over Marriages, Bury-ing the dead, Anointing & visiting the sick, Preaching the Gospel, Teaching the faith, Counseling the troubled, Visit-ing the imprisoned and caring for the poor and those in need. Diocesan priests serve the local church in various ways for example: pastors and vicars of parishes, in campus ministry, religious education, adult education, hospital chap-laincy, prison chaplaincy, retreat ministry, diocesan administration, and military chaplaincy, and many more. The priest’s life must be healthy at the human level so that the offering of his whole being is free and joyful. The priest is to be in love with Christ and His Church. He cares for those he serves as brother and sister. This means he should maintain strong relationships with family and friends. Above all, the diocesan priest is a man of prayer, finding joy, and strength in the Father who has called him to ordination and service in the Church in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ. Saints Ann parish, like every parish and every family needs to pray and encourage priestly vocations, not just because of the current crisis in vocations and our history as a local church hurt by the sin of priests and religious, but because Christ and His Church depend on men following Him. Christ needs a new generation of holy priests who will help with the continued healing of a Church in so much need. Please pray for vocations and those young men in our parish who hear the vice fo the Lord. Please visit the website for our vocation office www.vocationsboston.com. If you have heard the Lord call out or feel that stirring and attraction to priestly service, please know that I am here to help you and guide you to respond to Him, "speak Lord, your servant is listening." Asking Mary and the Apostles to intercede for our Church. In His love, Fr Sean
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