Vocation Awareness Week

The observance of National Vocation Awareness Week (NVAW) began in 1976 when the Bishops' Conference designated the 28th Sunday of the year as the beginning of NVAW. In 1997 this celebration was moved to coincide with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord.

Let us remember to pray for priests and consecrated men and women this week, and for married couples and families. Send a card to a priest or consecrated person this week, thanking them for the gift of themselves given to Christ and to His body, the Church, or invite them for dinner. Pray for more vocations to priesthood and consecrated life – and consider a vocation to priesthood or consecrated life!

Be sure to check out all of the Vocations Events in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia by going to http://www.heedthecall.org/. There, you can click on all of our events. The dates for Vocation Awareness Week is January 11-18th, 2009.

In the Office of Vocations, we are especially focused on priestly vocations, since it is through the priesthood that the universal Church can have Holy Mass. It is not the role of just our office though, to encourage young men to consider a vocation to the priesthood. It is the role of the whole Church, from families to single people, from religious to parish priests. The fact of the matter is that vocations are everybody's business. The vocations office might get a man who is 18 and seriously thinking about a vocation to the priesthood; but what about the first 18 years of his life? It is through the example of his family, his parish priest, and other influential people in his life that will help the young man develop a potential vocation to the priesthood. The parish priests then have an essential role in the vocation of a young man, since more times than not, it is the parish priest who is the example of priestly holiness for the young man. Many people may know only their parish priest, so it falls onto them to give them a good example of living.

It also goes for the family. It is the family which is the seedbed for vocations. It is through the day in and day out of family life that will help train the boy to become a man filled with virtue and love for the Catholic Church. The family is called the seedbed of vocations because it is most often in the family where the first inklings of a vocation develops. The boy may only see their parish priest once a week, but their family he sees every day. The way a boy is raised is essential in the type of man he will become. As a society, we have lost the culture of vocations within the family. The family has become disconnected, and almost at odds with each other in the family. The family can also start to look for too many excuses not to follow the precepts of the Catholic Church, and it is in the family where a boy gets his influences. If his influences are bad, then it can wreck havoc on him for his entire life. One prime example of this is the fact that the divorce rate is as high as it is. Time and time again, there have been reports that come out that show the effects a divorce has on a kid, and yet, time and time again, a husband and wife opt out of it. As a society then, we must get back to the basics. I am convinced that when marriage is reestablished as the sacrament it truly is, then from that, vocations will spring forth. The priesthood and matrimony are dependent on each other. A couple needs the ordained ministry of a priest or deacon to get married, and the priesthood depends on good families, from which will spring forth vocations to the priesthood. So, if there is a husband or wife out there reading this, I thank you for your gift of marriage that you give to the Church, and I encourage you to continue loving your spouse, and may your family become a seedbed of vocations.

And finally, if you are a single man reading this, I do hope that you consider a call to the priesthood. I hope during this week of Vocation Awareness Week, you may take some extra time to pray to God for the graces to know your vocation. For you out there, please know that myself and the rest of the vocation office is praying for your continued discernment.

In the end, vocations are everybody's business. It can never fall onto one office, or one priest. We must all do our part to continue to seek out men who will give their lives for the sake of others. For more information on how you can encourage vocations, visit http://www.heedthecall.org/. May God continue to bless you, and may you always remain close to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through the Immaculate Heart of Mary.