1. Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
“Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.” John 17:3

2. We all share a Call to Holiness
Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
We all share a Call to Holiness
Primary call is to live our Christian call to holiness and friendship with Jesus in the Church.
“I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father”
John 15:15
“So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect”
Matthew 5:48

3. We each have a Specific Vocation
Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
We each have a Specific Vocation
All specific vocations flow from the universal call to holiness.
God’s specific plan for each person:
Can be known
Is revealed by God in various ways
Leads us to deeper communion with God
God’s plan for the most fulfillment and happiness possible in this life.

4. Asking the Right Question
Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
Asking the Right Question
“What is it that God desires me to do with the life He has given me?”
Vs.
“What do I want to do with my life?”

5. All vocations are good and build up the one Body of Christ.
Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
All vocations are good and build up the one Body of Christ.
“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone.” 1 Corinthians 4-6

6. Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
We are a Eucharistic People: God gives us the Eucharist through the institution of the priesthood.
“Then he took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me.’” Luke 22:19

7. We should all promote priestly vocations.
Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
We should all promote priestly vocations.
“If you are a Catholic, you have a huge stake in the priesthood and vocations.” --Cardinal Sean O’Malley, Vocations: Everybody’s Business

8. Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
“The command – ‘Do this in memory of me’ – also obliges us to promote priestly vocations so that the Eucharist can be celebrated. In Christ’s plan for the Church it is the priesthood that allows the Eucharist to be celebrated everywhere and at all times. The priesthood is not a human invention but a gift from God by which God continues to give Himself to His people throughout history.” --Cardinal Sean O’Malley, Vocations: Everybody’s Business

9. Importance of Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
Taking up the Challenge: Vocations to the Diocesan Priesthood as a Priority in Pastoral Planning
Some Best Practices for Parishes and Collaboratives to promote Vocations to the Diocesan Priesthood in the Archdiocese of Boston

10. Taking up the Challenge: Vocations to the Diocesan Priesthood as a Priority in Pastoral Planning
Some best practices:
Creating a Collaborative Vocation Team
Suggested Activities

11. Collaborative Vocation Team
Taking up the Challenge: Vocations to the Diocesan Priesthood as a Priority in Pastoral Planning
Collaborative Vocation Team
What does a Collaborative Vocation Team do?
Leads the parish in activities that promote a Culture of Vocations and specifically vocations to the diocesan priesthood through:
Prayer
Awareness
Inviting

12. Who is on a Collaborative Vocation Team?
Taking up the Challenge: Vocations to the Diocesan Priesthood as a Priority in Pastoral Planning
Who is on a Collaborative Vocation Team?
Each parish in the Collaborative should be represented on the Team
Members may include:
Pastor and/or Parochial Vicar
Parishioners
Youth Minister
Pastoral Associate
Director of Religious Education
Youth and Young Adults
Religious
Deacons
Others

13. How do you create a Collaborative
Taking up the Challenge: Vocations to the Diocesan Priesthood as a Priority in Pastoral Planning
How do you create a Collaborative
Vocation Team?
The collaborative may choose to simply recruit members from the pastoral team and from parishioners known to have an interest. OR
You may choose to give a presentation to the parish on a particular weekend and invite people to join the team.

14. Suggested Activities of a Collaborative Vocation Team
Some best practices of : Prayer Awareness Inviting

15. Suggested Activities of a Collaborative Vocation Team
Some best practices
Please see resource provided
Note: all materials can be found at
/disciples-in-mission

16. Suggested Activities of a Collaborative Vocation Team
Some Best Practices:
Prayer: every day, every person, every home
Vocation Cross/Vocation Chalice Program in each parish
Weekday and Weekend Prayers of the Faithful at all Masses, all year.
Regular Collaborative-wide and/or Parish-wide Pray for Vocation Events: Annual 40 Hours Devotion
Monthly Rosary for Vocations Evenings
Monthly Holy Hour for Vocations
Annual Novena to St Patrick
Ongoing “Let Them Know you are Praying” Program of seminarian support

17. Suggested Activities of a Collaborative Vocation Team
Some Best Practices:
Awareness: in the Church, in the classroom, in the home
Religious Education Curriculum for every year and into preparation for every sacrament.
Annual Vocation Awareness Week Activities or Good Shepherd Sunday Vocation Weekend
Ongoing information sharing through bulletin items, posters, prayer cards, brochures, etc from Vocation Office

18. Suggested Activities of a Collaborative Vocation Team
Some Best Practices:
Inviting: right question, right time, right way
Annual Discernment Retreat: Meet as a Team to surface the names of men to be invited. Forward on to vocation office each year.
St Andrew Dinners: participate in the dinner by bringing young men to one or more of the dinners each year.
Personal invitation from pastor or parochial vicar to men in the parish who he thinks may have a priestly vocation.

19. Promoting a Culture of Vocations and Vocations to Diocesan Priesthood
Discussion
“He said to them, ‘The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest’”
Luke 10:2