Category: Vocations

Pope ordains 10 men to the priesthood of Jesus Christ

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Earlier today in Rome Pope Francis ordained 10 men to the priesthood of Jesus Christ. He showed up early to the sacristy to spend time in prayer with each of the men to be ordained. For bishops, ordinations are their way of being generative; the newly ordained are often referred to as spiritual sons of the bishop. The Pope ordained pastors, not functionaries; he ordained shepherds of souls, not church babysitters. Below is his homily.


Beloved brothers and sisters: because these our sons, who are your relatives and friends, are now to be advanced to the Order of priests, consider carefully the nature of the rank in the Church to which they are about to be raised.

It is true that God has made his entire holy people a royal priesthood in Christ. Nevertheless, our great Priest himself, Jesus Christ, chose certain disciples to carry out publicly in his name, and on behalf of mankind, a priestly office in the Church. For Christ was sent by the Father and he in turn sent the Apostles into the world, so that through them and their successors, the Bishops, he might continue to exercise his office of Teacher, Priest, and Shepherd. Indeed, priests are established co-workers of the Order of Bishops, with whom they are joined in the priestly office and with whom they are called to the service of the people of God.

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Jesus the Good Shepherd is desires intimate communion with us

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Good Shepherd Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, was observed in Rome with the ordination of 10 men to the priesthood by Pope Francis. Following the ordination the Pope delivered the weekly Regina Caeli address. Here’s an excerpt:

The voice of Jesus is unique! If we learn to distinguish it, He guides us on the path of life, a path that goes beyond the abyss of death.

But at a certain point Jesus, referring to his sheep, says: “My Father, who has given them to me…” (Jn 10,29). This is very important, it is a profound mystery, that is not easy to understand: if I feel attracted to Jesus, if his voice warms my heart, it is thanks to God the Father, who has put in me the desire of love, of truth, life, beauty … and Jesus is all this to the full! This helps us to understand the mystery of vocation, particularly the call to a special consecration. Sometimes Jesus calls us, invites us to follow him, but maybe we don’t realize that it is Him, just like young Samuel.

Pope Francis

Regina Caeli address, 21 April 2013

Fourth Sunday of Easter

World Day of Prayer for Vocations

Pope Francis begins reforming the US religious orders of women

Many, nor all, but many, women religious in the USA have been feeling under pressure to address their lack of unity with Scripture and Tradition (read: Magisterium) over the last few decades. Of course, let me emphasize, not all women religious, but there are enough that have been living lives that are inconsistent with the charism of their orders, and who have taught their own theology especially on moral matters. Some have set up their own teaching authority over and against that of the Holy See. But this is not a matter of who has the right to make decisions, but it is about how all members of the baptized live in communio with the Jesus Christ and His sacrament, the Church. Their justification may very well be explained that women religious believed they are doing what the Council decreed. Will the US sisters now offer spin on what said and done in Rome today? How will they support the shepherding of Pope Francis? Will the US sisters now reassess their place as members of the Mystical Body of Christ? 

Here is the press release of the Holy See:

COMMUNIQUE OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH CONCERNING A MEETING WITH THE PRESIDENCY OF THE LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE OF WOMEN RELIGIOUS IN THE USA

Today the Superiors of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith met with the Presidency of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) in the United States of America. Most Rev. J. Peter Sartain, Archbishop of Seattle and the Holy See’s Delegate for the Doctrinal Assessment of the LCWR, also participated in the meeting.

As this was his first opportunity to meet with the Presidency of the LCWR, the Prefect of the Congregation, Most Rev. Gerhard Ludwig Müller, expressed his gratitude for the great contribution of women Religious to the Church in the United States as seen particularly in the many schools, hospitals, and institutions of support for the poor which have been founded and staffed by Religious over the years.

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The Litany Run

Jenn Garza training for the OC Marathon_in_preparation of her litany run.jpgThose recent college graduates with educational debt need to pay off their debts prior to following their vocation as a priest, brother, nun or sister. No one is allowed to carry debt into religious life. Morally and economically religious orders can’t assume the educational debt of new recruits. They can help, but it is unfair for them shoulder the entire financial burden given finances today. Some orders, depending on the size of the loan will pay the student loans off over time as the new recruit progresses in the order. But there are ways to work through the financial burden without getting despondent.

Here is Jenn Garza’s story. Jenn wants to be a Norbertine nun of the Bethlehem Priory of Saint Joseph but needs help in paying off $53,000.
Read this website about the Litany Run: 26.2 to the Monastery, and how to help as part of your lenten almsgiving.
Living in debt to a bank, government or a family member is not a good thing at all, even if you are not entering religious life or priesthood. But it is unavoidable today. Modest income people can’t afford huge tuition bills but at the same time our students deserve the best education. So the tensions for Christians is that they ought not to carry large amounts debt, educational or personal for very long. If anything, Christians ought to save a percentage of money for a “rainy day” (like unemployment) and make a sensible donations to worthy causes.

Religious orders dying out

This morning the faithful bloggers at Rorate Cæli published an article, “Spain: Religious Orders prepare for the end,” outlining the decline of many religious orders.

There has been several decades of vocational contraception in religious orders not only in Spain, but you can name all the other countries in Western Europe AND in North America. All of the well known religious orders in the USA (the SJ, OFMs, Conventuals, CSC, Capuchins, to name a few) are clearly on the decline and are, in fact, preparing for death. In the last few years and certainly in the near future, some prominent religious orders of men and women are merging and monasteries closing. This past year one Benedictine monastic chapter voted to close their monastery and there are at least 9 others that could close and no one would blink.
No all is hopeless. One sees signs of hope among some provinces and some monasteries. But with new recruits not all is better: life in these communities remain fragile.
I am saddened by these events because there is no reason for the aborting of a charism given by the Holy Spirit for the Church. It is time for serious work in conversion, vocation and mission.

Marseille priest who loves his vocation: start afresh from Christ

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Can I say this? I want every priest to be like Michel-Marie Zanotti-Sorkine: a sign of unlimited availability to Christ and to humanity.

In Marina Corradi’s Avvenire article “The Pope is Right: Everything Must Start Afresh from Christ,” (thanks to Sandro Magister for bringing this article to our consideration) she portrays a French priest in way that is attractive and full of great humanity.

Two paragraphs strike me as important for us to reflect upon:

•  “…he affirms that a priest who has an empty church must examine himself and say: ‘It is we who lack fire.’ He explains: ‘The priest is ‘alter Christus,’ he is called to reflect Christ in himself. This does not mean asking perfection of ourselves; but being conscious of our sins, of our misery, in order to be able to understand and pardon anyone who comes to the confessional.’”

• “In church, he welcomes everyone with joy: ‘Even the prostitutes. I give them communion. What should I say? Become honest, before you enter here? Christ came for sinners, and I have the anxiety, in withholding a sacrament, that he could bring me to account for it one day. But do we still know the power of the sacraments? I have the misgiving that we have excessively bureaucratized the admission to

• baptism. I think of the baptism of my Jewish mother, which in terms of the request of my grandfather was merely a formal act: and yet, even from this baptism there came a priest.’”

His pastoral plan for those who ask the question about returning to the practice of the faith: “the Marian embrace, and impassioned apologetics, which touches the heart.”

A man with Russian-Jewish-Corisican-Italian blood, a singer-song writer, author (his latest is Au diable la tiédeur, {To the devil with lukewarmness}), and now an ordained Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Marseille.

Father Michel-Marie Zanotti-Sorkine is pastor at Saint-Vincent-de-Paul in Marseille.

All Saints and All Souls Days in religious orders

benedict and devil.jpgThe Church is not liturgically monolithic: let’s consider the various observances of feasts of All Saints and the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed (All Souls) in various religious orders:

All Saints
  • November 5: the Society of Jesus
  • November 7: the Order of Preachers
  • November 13: the Order of St Benedict; Order of St Augustine; the Trinitarian Order
  • November 29: the Franciscan Families
All Souls
  • October 5: the Capuchin Order
  • November 5: the Franciscan Families
  • November 8: the Order of Preachers
  • November 13: the Carthusians
  • November 14: the Order of St Benedict; the Trinitarian Order
  • November 15: the Order of Carmel
  • November 16: the Servite Order

New life in a New England seminary

SJS Boston logo.jpgThe heart of a diocese is a seminary (or a seminary program if a diocese doesn’t have a major seminary formation program). No would have guessed 10 years following the sex abuse crisis erupted in the Archdiocese of Boston, that Saint John’s Seminary would see new life in forming men to be Catholic priests. Patrick Doyle wrote a very descent article for the Boston Magazine titled “Resurrection” on the uptick of the call to priesthood and good work of the Boston seminary.

Blessings on Seán Cardinal O’Malley, Msgr. Jim Moroney, and Father Eric Cadin, indeed on all of the Saint John’s Seminary community! A true testimony to grace!