Guess who might be called to be a priest?

[Marieteresa]

Randall, prayers for you on your journey! I think it was a wise decision not to date while your discerning.

In JMJ

[MC IMaGiNaZUN]

lol

Rock on Randal

You know i used to try to avoid my vocation out of fear that i am not holy enough.

I am still not holy enough...

I am just no longer afraid.

SHALOM

[Mel K. Sedek]

Randall wrote: "There are people out there, who say, well, you are young, why can't you see the world first, and then, later, if you still feel called, you can discern at that time. I preferred to give my 'first fruits' to God. . .to discern the religious life first, then if it became clear that I was not called to that way of life, then discern the call to married life. I say this to you because you too are considering the possibility of the priesthood/religious life."

Dearest Randall,
I am glad and happy that you have discovered God's call to holiness even at a very young age. This is what "vocation" is all about, i.e., "God's call to holiness" period. As much as many people still insists on adding an "s" to vocation, dissecting and compartamentalizing it into three segments (viz., married, single and ordained), vocation, I believe, is a singular human act in response to God's call to love, evangelize, and to be holy.

Jesus gave us ONE vocation and ONE spirituality. St. Paul elaborated this teaching in his principle of ONE faith, ONE baptism, ONE Lord of all. We received this ONE vocation from Jesus Christ when, after rising from the dead He took His disciples to mountain, bid them goodbye and commanded them to "preach the Good News to all, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." After He had said this, He was taken up into heaven.

Notice that the command of Jesus is ONE addressed to ALL: "go out to all the world and preach the Good News!" This is our vocation, this is our call, our mission. This vocation, this call, this mission has but ONE purpose -- to make us holy. And how do we do that?

Our response to this call to holiness is expressed three ways: (1) as a married person, (2) as a single person, and (3) as an ordained person. Regardless of how we respond to God's call, we all are given the same command and asked the same thing -- to be HOLY. We bring God's love to all, evangelize the world, and become holy whether we are married, single or ordained. This equality in vocation. grounded in the teachings of the Christ, is what we all share together. Nathan's comment above is so to the point when he remarked that married life is not less than ordained life. So true. And to add to that -- so is single life! All these ways of life are equal in the eyes of God for they achieve the same purpose, follow the same command and bring about the Kingdom of God.

To discern God's call then is NOT a sectional experience; that is discern to be married now and later on, discern to be single, and after that, discern to be ordained or be a religious.

To discern God's call (vocation) is to discover where God is calling you to bring His love, evangelize His world, and achieve your holiness. Is God calling you to bring His love to a family, a spouse, children? Is God inspiring you to preach the Good News unattached in the world? Is God leading you to find holiness as a consecrated person? All these discernments should only lead you to "holiness" which is the purpose and goal of vocation.

I'm glad you are not afraid, for fear is the enemy of our vocation. Jesus have said: "fear is useless, what we need is trust!" In the words of JPII, I tell you "abbiate non paura" -- do not be afraid -- our God will show you the way. In your discernment, ask the Lord where holiness lies for you. Then go and discover it!

Bonne chance, good luck.

Mel

[HisChild]

[quote name='Mel K. Sedek' date='Mar 25 2006, 03:34 PM']Randall wrote: "There are people out there, who say, well, you are young, why can't you see the world first, and then, later, if you still feel called, you can discern at that time. I preferred to give my 'first fruits' to God. . .to discern the religious life first, then if it became clear that I was not called to that way of life, then discern the call to married life. I say this to you because you too are considering the possibility of the priesthood/religious life." . . . . .


Bonne chance, good luck.

Mel
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Mel,

Actually *I* wrote that TO Randall. He did not write that.

While I understand what you've written, and yes, you are correct in that we are ALL called to holiness. . .I have to disagree.

We are all called to holiness. That vocation, if you will, is not something we discern, because we are all called to attain holiness, yet it is a lifetime endeavor. That is to say, we will never reach our goal. It is always something we can constantly improve, even if we are holy. It is not some state where, once we reach it, we can sit back on our laurels and say 'I'm done'.

However, God calls each of us to a specific vocation. Discernment is the process of discovering God's will in our life. It is not simply something we choose. There are people out there who would, just to name one example, 'choose' to be a priest, but, for whatever reason, is not God's will for their life. (This is why there are vocation directors, who can assist those faithful, who wish to discern a possible religious vocation, to whether they are called to religious life, and that community/diocese in particular.)

Since the vocation to the married life, and the vocation to the religious life/priesthood have different relational goals. . that is, one is called to be celibate 'for the sake of the kindgom', it is prudent to not attempt to discern both vocations simultaneously. Most spiritual directors would agree, as have most posters on this thread, that while discerning the possibilty of the religious life, getting into a relationship wouldn't be the most prudent of actions.

In the end, Randall, that is a decision which you will have to make on your own, but if I could give any advice, it is to find a good and holy priest who is willing to become your spiritual director, and assist you on your journey.

God bless you.

[Mel K. Sedek]

My apologies to Randall and my thanks for PCPA2BE for the comment above and for the correction.

As much as I would like to follow your argument PCPA, I regret to say that "you lost me." I'm not really sure whether you are agreeing with my earlier statement about the idea of "God's call to holiness" or giving another opinion about vocation. In any case, I'm not exactly sure which point you were disagreeing.

As you disagreed to something I have stated, I also would would like to respectfully disagree with your statement that "we will never reach our goal", i.e., holiness. Yes, you are indeed right in saying that holiness is a lifetime process. So is priesthood, married life, and other expressions of life. It is a lifetime process. Holiness cannot and should not be separated from the three aspects of life. The core of each apect of life is holiness. As a priest. religious is called to be holy, so are married couples and single people. This is what binds us together as ONE, sharing ONE baptism, ONE faith, ONE vocation.

If I may again use your very own argument -- discernment is a process; and yes, it is truly is and Randall is going through. A Process is a cognitive approach to immediate realities. This is one of those human functions where one, fully aware and conscious of his/her intellect and freedom, instinctively sort the random events and moments in his/her life in relation to a belief system or faith experience. In order for discernment to be effective and true and just, the discerner must entertain all and everything that are present in his/her life in order to come up with an informed decision. We cannot choose properly unless the choices have been given.

God's call is plain and simple: "come, follow me." Jesus did not say how, where and when. But as St. Paul would have it, this call is what transformed the world and humanity. Jesus is calling Randall, period. How he Randall responds is up to him. God cannot impose Himself to Randall or choose for him. Randall need to make that choice. Keep in mind though, God choose us first and God keeps choosing us (see John 15:16ff.). it is up to us to choose God in ways of life we feel we are called to be. And whatever way of life that be, you are still called to be holy.
And I do support PCPA's suggestion: find a good and holy priest to be your Spiritual Director, Randall. Spiritual Direction is the place and time where you could bring all your hopes and fears, dreams and wishes, questions and confusions. This is a grace-moment where, together with someone who is guided and inspired by God, you will discover the life you are called to live. And once you have journeyed with your Spiritual Director to the satisfaction of your spirit, then speak to whoever you need to speak to in order to make complete you discerment.

I shall pray that God finds along your journey.

MEL

[magnificat]

Mel,

I think that perhaps you're confusing the general call to holiness that we have (via Baptism) and the call to a specific vocation. And trying to attain perfect holiness does last a lifetime...with perhaps the exception of the saints.

Perhapse what PCPA2be was trying to say is that we do have a choice because of our free will...there really is nothing to stop us from being married or being a religious. But if that's not God's call for us, then we are falling short of attaining the "maximum" holiness that we could attempt to attain. Not to say that we couldn't be a decent or even good spouse or religious, but that God's vocational call for each of us is the unique path to holiness for each of us.

So you're right, God doesn't impose his will on us, yet discernment is not the same as picking out what shirt to wear or what to have for dinner. As you said, God HAS called us and continues to call us...to a SPECIFIC vocation. Discernment is the process of being open and hearing the Spirit leading us to knowledge of what that vocation is.

[HisChild]

Thank you, Magnificat, for that post, and for clarifying what I was trying to say. You were most eloquent and articulate.

God bless you.

[HisChild]

double post. Mea Culpa!

Edited March 27, 2006 by PCPA2Be

[TheresaMF]

Slightly different topic . . .

Hi Randall! Tonight I happened across the story of another Randall who responded to God's call to the priesthood in the Dominican order's [url="http://www.op-stjoseph.org"]Eastern Province[/url]: [url="http://www.op-stjoseph.org/Students/profiles/sullivanprofile.htm"]Br. Ezra Sullivan, O.P.[/url] (Ezra is his religious name.) Just thought I'd pass that on. God bless and Our Lady keep you!

+TMF

[Funky_R]

Wow! Lots of things have been going on here!

PCPA2Be, your posts have been very helpful, as well as everyone else's. I wish I had something to update with, but I don't. Not much has happened, but God's sense of time is different from ours, so it could be a day, or a week, who knows? But I hope to get in contact with some people this week, I'll let y'all know as it progresses.

Good to know I've got support from everyone.

God Bless,
Randall

[MC IMaGiNaZUN]

[quote name='Funky_R' date='Mar 24 2006, 07:59 PM']Dear pham:

    However this will be difficult, because I am going to still be attracted to girls, just as I will throughout the rest of my life. So doing this will also test my ability to remain celibate. But personally, this is not being easy. I'm pretty much giving up any oppourtunity to find my spouse, to just listen to God and find out if he means for me to take another path.
Thanks,
Randall
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Boy you are so lucky, i wish i had a community like this to help me out...

A friend of mine entered the jesuits a year before i entered the augustinians. I made the decision not to date two years prior to entering. He didnt have a long period like that of not dating, and i know from talking to him that i am struggling in that area much less than he is. It is not a matter of loosing his vocation, its just a matter of the practicality of life.

The simple fact is, some people WILL feel like they cannot be friends with you anymore, especially girls, well at least that is the way it has been with me. But to my friends who i have eased into my vocation have stuck very close to me.

I personally find that when i have many close friendships with many women and men, that i really have little or no desire for physical romance. (I will always have desire for a romantic relationship with God, but by romantic i mean adventurous)

SHALOM