In the article “How to Discern Elements of Your Personal Vocation” by Fr. Peter Ryan, Professor of Moral Theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, he says,
“With respect to future possibilities, we cannot discern whether we should do something, but only whether we should try to do it…The real possibility that we could die before we carry something out or that other things could intervene and make something impossible should warn us not to conclude that we are definitely called to do something in the future, but only that we are called to try to do it. Often enough, all God wants is the effort; and if we make the effort, we produce the results he desires.”
Takes a lot of the pressure off, doesn’t it!
Brian doesn’t have to discern whether he will marry Leslie; he only has to try to date her. Cheryl doesn’t have to discern whether she will be a religious sister; she only has to try to live in the community for a time. Tim doesn’t have to discern whether he will be a priest; he only has to apply to the seminary and see if he is accepted. Where these people end up on the other side of their decision to try is in God’s hands.
Young adults are at a point in their lives where they are discerning many things including personal vocations. Personally, I’m often frustrated with the fact that I can’t see the future, and even more frustrated when what I think will happen doesn’t end up happening. (What can I say, I’m a planner.) But as Fr. Ryan says, our effort to try is often what God desires as it shows faith and hope. God wants us to say to him, “I don’t know where this path will lead, but Yes Lord, I’m going to follow you anyway.” We can act within these uncertainties saying and believing, Thy Will be done.
The good priest is like a soldier who is willing to live a sacrificial life for his people. He is called to live a life of discipline and follow orders from the Lord and his bishop. His sword is the Word of God and he fights on the Battlefield of the soul. The Battle is the Lord’s and to Him belongs the victory. For the priest it is enough to know that he has, by God’s grace, moved the battle line forward even a few inches. Pray for priests and for vocations. Pray also for Catholic priests who are military Chaplains.
I put this video together by splicing scenes from Fishers of Men. The music is by Lyle Lovett, “I’m a Soldier in the Army of the Lord.” It is available at iTunes.
I promised to provide updates on our Run For Vocations team that is training for the Marine Corps 10K and marathon in October. Here is an update you don’t want to miss. More than 50 people have signed on to run and raise money for vocations. If you are not a runner but want to support vocations, have I got a deal for you!
Come join us at Five Guys Burgers on Thursday, July 23 and 20% of your purchase will be donated to the Archdiocesan Run for Vocations. Please plan to bring a friend along as well.
Restaurant Night at
Five Guys Burgers and Fries
University Town Center
6451 America Boulevard, Hyattsville MD
(near East-West Highway and Belcrest Road)
Thursday, July 23, 2009
5 pm-8 pm
Say “Run for Vocations” when ordering
and Five Guys will donate 20% your sale to the Run for Vocations
Enjoy a fun evening out with family and friends while supporting vocations in the Archdiocese of Washington.
Learn more about the Run for Vocations Team at www.dcvocations.org.
When I talk with Catholics who have left the Church, the number one reason I get that they left was poor preaching.This is especially true of those who left for the Evangelical Churches. Catholic priests as a group have the reputation of being poor preachers. I think there are several reasons for this.
The expected length of a Catholic sermon is 7-10 minutes. This is far too brief a time to really develop well a biblical or doctrinal theme. It results in a slogan based and brief exhortation. In this matter the people of God have to work with us. Most Catholics are upset if the liturgy goes more than 50 minutes. We all need to agree to take more time to be with the Lord. Longer sermons are necessary to really develop and break open most passages. Most Protestant sermons are about a half and hour. True, I don’t want a preacher to go longer unless he really has something to say but it is also true that most priests have to wrap up when they’ve barely gotten started. It’s not a good context for preaching.
This leads to the second point. I think many of us priests confuse exhortation for preaching. Most of the sermons I grew up with could be summarized in two sentences: “1. Jesus is challenging us to do better today.” And 2. “Let us try to do better and now please stand for the creed.” This is exhortation but true preaching takes the Word of God and does four things: Analyzes, organizes, illustrates, and applies it. It doesn’t just exhort us to do better it shows how, and sets for the why and wisdom of God’s Word. This as you might guess takes a little more than 7 minutes.
Good preaching is edgy. It comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable. But too many priests are afraid of offending or upsetting. Despite the fact that we serve a Lord who got killed for what he said, too many of us are not willing to suffer even the raised eyebrows of our congregation. We have to be will to talk forthrightly about serious issues today, about sin, about injustice, about promiscuity and so forth. We have to speak the truth in love but the “Jesus loves you sermons” are not enough. Jesus loved us enough to speak the truth to us even when we killed him for it. We priests have to get a spine, and a heart and be willing to preach even the difficult stuff. It has been my experience that Catholics respond well to tough sermons. They don’t want angry priests but they do want priests who are zealous for the truth.
How about a little enthusiasm? If you really care about what you are saying shouldn’t it be reflected in your mannerisms and tone of voice? Too many priests have a kind of lecture like discursive approach instead of a fiery Charismatic approach. True enough there are different personalities but a fiery enthusiasm is hard to hide. But being on fire can’t be faked. It comes only from prayer and a deep love for God and His people.
Now I raise all this because this blog isn’t just supposed to be a cheer leading section. One of the purposes of this blog is to reach out to Catholics who have drifted or outright left. And I KNOW this is one of the big issues.
So alright readers I know you can add to the list above. Perhaps your feed back will help some of us priests improve. So have at it. Be kind and constructive but speak the truth. We priests can use it. And pray, pray, pray. You get the priests and the sermons you pray for. Also encourage Father when he does well and gently admonish him if he needs improvement.
Before you write take five minutes and listen to this sermon by Fr. Bill Casey, a great preacher, for his take on this! It’s powerful and talk about edgy! He tells us priests to stand up like men with a backbone. He also thinks that help is on the way. There is hope since the Holy Spirit has not given up on us!
By the way the goofy looking preacher with the big mouth in the picture at the top is yours truly. 🙂
This summer, the Archdiocese of Washington is marriage-minded! Check out these resources as well as events sponsored by the Office of Young Adult Ministry.
Attend a Series of Talks
Sundays July 12, July 19, and July 26 at 6:30pm
Relationship Speaker and Discussion Series
Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle North Conference Room
6:30pm (after the 5:30pm Mass) Light Dinner Included
July 12 Dr. Andre Leyva
“Dating and Mating from a Catholic Perspective”
Dr. Andre Leyva is the President and founder of the Psychology Center in Montgomery County, Maryland and a member of National Association of Hispanic Psychologists. He is a nationally and internationally recognized trainer, consultant, and key note speaker. His doctoral dissertation on Conflict Resolution was published and requested by mental health professionals in Europe and South America. He has written for two family magazines and has authored articles and workbooks. He is a frequent speaker at the Archdiocese of Washington’s Theology on Tap and Marriage Preparation program. Dr. Leyva has been married for 25 years and has six children.
July 19 Dr. Catherine Yohe
“The Essential Groundwork of Friendship”
Dr. Catherine Yohe received her Ph.D. in Historical Theology with a focus on spirituality from Catholic University of America. Her dissertation was on human friendship as a means to grow in union with God, and most of her publications and lectures have centered on the lay vocation or friendship. She has taught at Catholic University and LaSalle University and is presently teaching Scripture and Catholic Doctrine at Trinity School at Meadow View. She has been married for fifteen years and has a thirteen year-old son.
July 26 Deacon Al Turner
“While I’m Single: Living Life to the Fullest”
Deacon Al Douglas Turner is the Director of the Office of Black Catholics of the Archdiocese of Washington. He is assigned to the Church of the Nativity in Washington, DC. and was recently appointed to the Maryland Catholic Conference Respect Life Committee by Archbishop Donald Wuerl. Deacon Turner received a Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction in 2006 and a Master of Theological Studies degree in 2007 from the Washington Theological Union in Washington, D.C. Before his retirement from ABC News in 2007, Deacon Turner was employed for more than 28 years as a broadcast technician/ cameraman covering the White House, Capitol Hill, and news events around the world.
Mount Angel Abbey is a community of Benedictine Monks founded in 1882 from the Abbey of Engelberg in Switzerland. They maintain a monastic tradition that has been a vital part of the Roman Catholic Church for more than 1500 years. “Responding to God’s call to holiness and preferring nothing whatever to Christ,” they dedicate themselves, under a Rule and an abbot to a life of prayer and work. They strive to support one another in community, to serve God, the Church, and the larger society. They do this as they celebrate the Holy Eucharist together, pray the Liturgy of the Hours five times daily in choir, and devote themselves to reading and silence.This video shows forth monastic life at Mount Angel Abbey, a Benedictine Abbey in Oregon.
The following video shows a wide variety of religious garb and clerical attire on display in Rome.
What is the purpose of a religious habit? Religious life is not hidden, neither is it occasional. To enter the priesthood or religious is to publicly accept the consecration of one’s whole self to the service of God and neighbor. That is why the most traditional religious garb covers the whole body. It is more than a tee-shirt, a hat or an emblem of some sort. It is a covering of the whole body to indicate the entirety of the consecration.
Further, each habit is distinctive since each religious community has a particular charism or gift by which they collectively serve the Church. Religious and priests do not merely consecrate themselves for their own agenda. Rather they join others with a similar and proven charisms in communities recognized by the Church.
The word “Habit” also suggests that religious life and priesthood are not an occasional activity, or even a 9 to 5 job. The are the habitual identity and life of the one who receives the call. That is also why the habit is usually worn at all times.
The widespread disappearance of clerical garb and religious habits back in the 1970s was a disturbing trend. Many religious and priests no longer saw themselves as set apart, as distinctive. Many wanted to blend in and also lost a sense of the charism of their order. Many also preferred anonymity since it made them less busy and they no longer had to live as “public” people.
It is good to see from this video that religious garb is still on display in Rome. Many orders have returned to distinctive clothing. Other, newer orders have also replaced the older dying ones. These younger orders almost always and consistently wear religious habits and garb.
Reflecting on the Holy Priesthood, Pope Benedict draws highly from the writings of St. John Vianney who 150th Birthday is being celebrated this year too:
Here the teaching and example of Saint John Mary Vianney can serve as a significant point of reference for us all. The Curé of Ars was quite humble, yet as a priest he was conscious of being an immense gift to his people: “A good shepherd, a pastor after God’s heart, is the greatest treasure which the good Lord can grant to a parish, and one of the most precious gifts of divine mercy”.[3] He spoke of the priesthood as if incapable of fathoming the grandeur of the gift and task entrusted to a human creature: “O, how great is the priest! … If he realized what he is, he would die… God obeys him: he utters a few words and the Lord descends from heaven at his voice, to be contained within a small host…” Explaining to his parishioners the importance of the sacraments, he would say: “Without the Sacrament of Holy Orders, we would not have the Lord. Who put him there in that tabernacle? The priest. Who welcomed your soul at the beginning of your life? The priest. Who feeds your soul and gives it strength for its journey? The priest. Who will prepare it to appear before God, bathing it one last time in the blood of Jesus Christ? The priest, always the priest. And if this soul should happen to die [as a result of mortal sin], who will raise it up, who will restore its calm and peace? Again, the priest… After God, the priest is everything! … Only in heaven will he fully realize what he is”. These words, welling up from the priestly heart of the holy pastor, might sound excessive. Yet they reveal the high esteem in which he held the sacrament of the priesthood. He seemed overwhelmed by a boundless sense of responsibility: “What use would be a house filled with gold, were there no one to open its door? The priest holds the key to the treasures of heaven: it is he who opens the door: he is the steward of the good Lord; the administrator of his goods … .
The words of St. John Vianney DO seem “excessive” by today’s standards. We tend to be a bit more cautious and sober in our speaking today. Today is my 20th Anniversary of Ordination to priesthood and I hardly think of God “obeying” me as I speak the words of consecration. And yet God does “obey” not for my sake but for the sake of his people. I have often thought, if I gave a good sermon, or taught effectively, or just saw anything go really well in my priestly activity it was not so much for my sake or my glory, but for God’s people and God’s glory. I have learned to ask that I preach and teach well and administer the sacraments effectively simply because God’s people deserve the very best. In the end I hope it is not God who obeys me but I who obey God and get out of the way so he can take over. Perhaps what St. John Vianney really refers to is a kind of subordinate obeying that God does. He inspires the Priest to ask for what he [Christ] wants, and in the end it is one Christ and one will, one obedience.
I want to show you a movie clip. I am no big fan of Hollywood, for lots of reasons. But I must say, it was a Hollywood movie that played a role in my discovery of a vocation to the priesthood. I went to this movie with my college girlfriend who also sang in Church Choir with me back in 1981. So here I sat in the theater with my girl and suddenly, in Dolby stereo rang out a choir singing the Kyrie from Viadonna’s Missa L’Hora Passa. And the camera panned into a scene from a solemn high mass in Latin (the movie was set in the 1940s). Robert DiNiro was the priest and he played the role of the priest perfectly. But strangely it was in a Hollywood movie that I first saw close up the dignity of the priest celebrant as he carefully pronounced the words of consecration. Yes I know it was an actor, but I saw for the first time displayed the power of what a real priest can do. I also beheld a liturgy beautifully celebrated which I must say, sadly, was not the usual case in my suburban parish church of the time. Well, I didn’t tell my girlfriend that evening, but for the first time the priesthood seemed attractive, from a movie, a Hollywood movie. I didn’t think of being a priest yet, but I had never thought of a priest as anything special before that night. Now I did. Here is the clip of what I saw and heard in 1981 (From the Movie True Confessions).
In the article “How to Discern Elements of Your Personal Vocation” by Fr. Peter Ryan, Professor of Moral Theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, he says,
