This Week's Homily

4^thSunday of Easter (A)

Called By Name…Reversing the Trend

Msgr. Thomas Gervasio

 
Our Lord says: “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name…he walks ahead of them and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice.” How appropriate then, that on this “Good Shepherd Sunday” our Diocese inaugurates the “Called by Name” initiative to promote priestly vocations.
 
Throughout our four county diocese, I am convinced that there are many young men called to guide and shepherd the church as priests. The Lord himself has instituted the Priesthood as essential for the life of the Church. The problem is that the call is difficult to hear for a few reasons:  
 
The first is that a priestly vocation is at odds with our culture. Social media, movies, and our public discourse view the priesthood negatively, which clouds young men from seeing the beauty and nobility of the priestly vocation.  
 
How do we speak about our priests among family, friends, and strangers? Our culture looks to possessions and financial advancement, a bright career, as portents to happiness; the priesthood involves too much sacrifice.  
 
The idea of celibacy as a commitment is viewed as impossible rather than a gift that frees a priest to be more available to minister to people with generosity. The decline in responding to the call is connected to the crisis within marriage and the family. The home should be the “first seminary of priestly and religious vocations. Families are much smaller and so some parents would even dissuade a son to even consider becoming a priest for their desire for grandchildren.
 
If we love the Lord and his Church, we should do all we can to reverse these trends by restoring an understanding of the true dignity, nobility, and importance of priestly ministry. Let us help create a new awareness, a new attitude, a new start.  
 
Part of this effort is to identity and invite a young man whom we perceive to possess the qualities to be a good priest to serve our diocese. In my home parish, identifying potential priests was an ongoing project. The Italian grandmothers who attended our school Masses would observe the boys passing by to their pew. They would pull the fellow into their pew, give them a hug, and say, “I am praying that you will be a priest! An invitation leaves a great impression!  
 
Our need is great and becoming greater. Many of our priests will soon retire and we will need priests to continue their work. I hope you could identify a young man aged 16 through 40 who loves the Lord, prays, is successful in school, generous and honest--a man of integrity.
 
If you can, I ask you to complete the card in the pew. The nominee need not be a member of our parish. He could be a member of your family or a friend. Place the card in the collection basket along with your offering, or bring it to the parish office this week, and our vocation director will take it from there.  
 
Thanks for your understanding and support of “Called by Name.”