Catholics are now mainstream. The "Catholic Ghettos" such as Price Hill and Mercer County which were supported by classics such as "The Bells of St. Mary's" or Archbishop Fulton Sheen's "Sunday Night Catechism" no longer exist, and have a certain mystery to people of my generation. One aspect of that "Ghetto" culture that we no longer have is full seminaries and convents, as the culture itself supported the idea of religious vocations. It does not take a rocket scientist to recognize that this support is now missing!
So, what is our reaction? Certainly, we cannot turn back the clock. Therefore, how can we as Catholics promote vocations to the priesthood and/or religious life in a culture that no longer overtly supports the idea? I see a few steps that we can take to help reverse this trend and encourage our young people to realize that they are called to follow Christ throughout their lives — regardless of their specific vocations.
First, families must recognize that they are the basic building block of the Church. The Domestic Church is where your children learn to pray, to give thanks to God for the many gifts He gives, and to share their talents for the building up of the Kingdom of God. Aspects of this Domestic Church can be simple to build, too. Do you have Crucifixes in your homes? Do you pray before meals? My family had a tradition of praying the rosary together every Monday evening. It helped bring the faith alive to me. Some families celebrate the patron saint of each child, in addition to birthdays. As children become teens, help them to engage their faith. We had to give reports on the homily each week: What were the readings about? How did Father apply that in his homily? What would I have said differently? In order to answer these questions, I had to pay attention, to listen to the readings and see how they impacted my own faith. (This certainly helped in my transition to the seminary as well!)
The second aspect of rebuilding a Catholic culture is being willing to overtly share your faith with others, especially your own family! This is something that our Fundamentalist brothers and sisters are much more willing to do than we Catholics, but we can model our faith in very simple ways, such as reminding your boss that you have to leave early from work today because it is a Holy Day of Obligation. I have many friends that willingly wear a crucifix, and are not afraid to talk about Christ Crucified, or where they attended Mass during their vacation, to simply inviting co-workers to come to the parish festival, mission or retreat. Many people are waiting to be invited. Be that person who extends the invitation.
Third, show your support of vocations by giving a public display of support and encouragement to your pastor and any religious that might be serving in your parish. The greatest testament and witness for vocations to the priesthood are happy priests! We often hear only the worst news: Father, pray for my wife who is going into surgery, my father who has cancer, my cousin who is having a difficult pregnancy. These are all things we gladly accept and offer our prayers for, but do not forget to share the good news with him as well.
Finally, I challenge families especially to pray not just for the generic"‘increase in vocations," but also to add "that my son or daughter may be open to following Christ as a priest or religious." Priests do not fall out of the sky; they are raised in families just like your own. When I see the poster of the 33 men studying for the priesthood here in the Archdiocese, I also see the families that helped prepare them to respond to this call, and what a wonderful and joyous call it is. Do not be afraid to support your sons and daughters to follow where God may be leading them. I am convinced that this is the secret to happiness.
To find out more about how families and parishes can support vocations to the priesthood, visit www.cincinnativocations.org/parents_seedbed.shtml.
