Am I called?
The journey to a final decision to become a priest is a process of discernment. There are two sides to discernment, and the Holy Spirit is actively intertwined throughout both sides. On one side, there you are, reflecting internally, perhaps asking family and friends for advice, trying to decide “Should I or shouldn’t I be a priest?” The other side of the decision is the Catholic Church. The Church is the more objective side, the institutional side, which includes the Diocesan Vocation Director, the Seminary and the Archbishop. Once you make the decision to formalize your discernment and engage the Vocations Office, you and the Church start moving down the road together. You have the ability to back away at any time stopping the whole process. And so does the Church. If the Vocation Director, the Seminary or the Archbishop feels you may not have what it takes to be a priest, then it is their obligation to make that decision to stop the process.

It’s a judgment. You have to assess your abilities and skills. The journey and ultimately the job require intelligence, wisdom, the ability to gain the necessary skills and emotional maturity. Like being the pilot of a commercial airliner, not just anyone gets into the cockpit. It takes the right skills, aptitude and years of training. With this understanding, some people leave the seminary for various reasons and do not become ordained. Therefore, it also takes determination and grace.

In most cases, your discernment and training will go smoothly, but there may be times when you need to take some time away and re-evaluate before joining the process again. The Holy Spirit is intertwined and enmeshed throughout this long and difficult, but rewarding process, both in you and the institution, because we’re all the Church. When you reach the final steps, and are ready to make a commitment, the steps lead to the Archbishop laying hands on you and then you’ve become a priest.

What does discernment involve?

Discernment basically means “hearing the call” and trying to figure out where God might be calling you to serve Him. It is a life-long process of growth and listening to how God moves the heart in a new way of service.

Discernment takes place in a number of ways: first in prayer, the conversation with God. In prayer, we begin to listen with the ear of the heart as we feel that call to move deeper into a relationship with Christ. It is the initial response to the Call that Jesus gives: “Come after me, and I will make you Fishers of Men.”

Silence is also important. The example of Jesus himself points this out, as he so often takes time away from the busy-ness of his ministry to stop and pray in a deserted place. Remember, he began his ministry with 40 days of silence in the desert!

Listening: so often today, prayer is asking God for something. “Lord, help me to pass this test! Lord, watch over my parents or Grandparents who are sick. Lord, protect my friend on her journey to Europe.” What has to be kept in mind is that prayer is a two-way conversation; we must silence our hearts and minds and listen to where God wants to lead. If we believe that God created each of us in His image and likeness, while we were still in the womb; we need to trust that He will not lead us astray.

Obedience: in today’s world, this is a four letter word! Obedience is responding in trust to the path that God is leading you towards. Again, it goes back to if we trust that God has what is best for us in mind.

Response: the old joke about praying to God to win the lottery comes in here: to win, first you have to buy the ticket! A vocation requires a response in this world, no matter what the vocation is. The initial response is a deeper participation in the Eucharist, spending time before Christ in the Eucharist. As the call becomes clearer (or to help it become clearer), attendance at discernment retreats and events is helpful. Visitations to the seminary can also be clarifying, and discussing your call with either your pastor or the vocation director also helps.

Finally, the prayer of discernment is the prayer of guidance. Do not be afraid to ask God for an indication of what He is asking you to do.

Do you have any discernment ideas?

Discernment is an art and it is learned by doing, not just by reading about it. It is a function of an individual’s personal relationship with the Lord. When we desire to do God’s will, are willing to be open to God and have a solid knowledge of God, then discernment is possible. Therefore, prayer is an essential component to the process of discernment. To be a truly discerning person, we need to be humble, charitable and courageous. As we become more familiar with the Lord in prayer, we will come to know that the “still small voice” speaks in peace, never in turmoil, anxiety or restlessness.

Some practical suggestions which will help you discern God’s call are:

1) Daily Mass – To discern God’s call, you are encouraged to participate in the daily celebration of Mass so that you can grow in your relationship with the Lord through frequent reception of the Blessed Sacrament.

2) Sacrament of Penance – The celebration of the Sacrament of Penance is the way in which one attempts to live a more holy life, through the frequent confession of sins and reception of the merciful grace of God. Regular use of this sacrament will guide you to a deeper understanding of where your greatest struggles are in life and will provide you with God’s grace to gain mastery over those weaknesses. Perhaps begin by receiving the sacrament monthly. Many of the holiest people of our time went to weekly confession, including Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa.

3) Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament – The body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ are substantially present in Holy Eucharist. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is a powerful way to grow in love with the Eucharistic Lord and to grow in the spiritual life. Many churches now have regular times each week when the Holy Eucharist is exposed in a monstrance, but even if you cannot find or attend exposition, you can still pray before the tabernacle where the Blessed Sacrament is kept. Bring a rosary, a favored book of prayers and/or a book about Adoration.

4) Daily Prayer – This is time set aside for God alone, usually in a quiet place at a specific time each day. This prayer time might consist of talking to the Lord in one’s own words, or praying the Sacred Scriptures, especially the Gospels. Developing a daily habit and pattern of prayer will help one to hear more clearly the call of the Lord. Consider praying Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer from the “Divine Office,” which is a set of prayers said each day by priests and religious across the world. Compact forms of the “Divine Office” are provided in the book Shorter Christian Prayer available from Catholic Book Publishing (New York) or in the monthly magazine Magnificat, both of which can be found at a Catholic bookstore. The books Prayer Primer: Igniting a Fire Within and Seeking Spiritual Direction: How to Grow the Divine Within by Fr. Thomas Dubay are wonderful guides for deepening one’s prayer life.

5) Devotion to the Blessed Mother – Pray the rosary daily, or at least pray some Hail Marys. Seeking the powerful intercession of the Blessed Mother is especially recommended in the discernment process.

6) Get Involved – In Matthew Chapter 25, our Lord welcomes into paradise those that have put their faith into action by helping people in need (the hungry, homeless, etc). Get involved in some form of service with the Church. There are many ways to get involved including outreach to the poor (e.g. St. Vincent De Paul Society), helping with Religious Education programs & youth groups, lectoring at Mass and visiting the sick or elderly. These are all ways to get a taste of “ministry” and may increase your desire for ministry and service.

7) Read Good Books – Learn more about God, your faith, your Church, and how to grow in holiness by reading good books. Obviously, the most important book is the Bible. Get a good Catholic translation of the Bible and begin with the Gospels. After the Holy Bible, the next critical book is The Catechism of the Catholic Church. This is the primary source for official Church teaching on just about every issue you will face in your day to day life. Finally, read works written by great saints. The more you get to know them from their own words, the more “real” they will become to you. You will realize that your struggles are not very different from their struggles. Some good ones to begin with include John Paul II’s Gift and Mystery: On the Fiftieth Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination, St. Augustine’s Confessions, St. Francis De Sales’ Philothea: Introduction to the Devout Life, St. Teresa of Avila’s The Way of Perfection, & The Life of Teresa of Avila, St. Alphonsus Ligouri’s The Duties and Dignity of the Priest & The Passion and Death of Jesus Christ and St. Therese of Liseux’s Story of a Soul. You can also read books about the great saints like The Cure D’Ars by Abbe Trochu. There are also some great books on the priesthood which you can find under Recommended Reading.

8) Spiritual Direction – Speaking with a priest or qualified individual trained in spiritual direction about one’s prayer life and seeking advice from this person on a regular basis can be very helpful as one discerns their vocation. Be very selective in whom you approach for spiritual direction. Pray fervently to the Holy Spirit to guide you to the best director possible and find out as much as you can about the spiritual maturity of potential directors. Seek someone who is deeply prayerful, loves the Church, loves their own vocation and has a mature understanding of the struggles involved in moving closer to God.

9) Discernment Programs – Attend discernment retreats at seminaries or other discernment events hosted by the diocesan vocations office. Visit seminaries and meet the priests and other seminarians. These are valuable activities that will give greater clarity to God’s call.

10) Vocation Director – In order to obtain further information about seminary and priestly life, contact the Vocation Director. Regular meetings/discussions with the director may also help you uncover God’s will for your life.

(Thanks to CincinnatiVocations.org for help with content)