(This is another in a series of monthly columns featuring a Diocese of Gary seminarian/priest or a religious novice/sister. We invite readers to get to know the diocesan seminarians, priests and religious sisters who serve the diocese, experience their faith and knowledge, and encourage the diocesan faithful to pray for vocations.)
Vocation promotion is not a simple venture. The task requires frequent publicity, intentional relationship-building, and a culture within each parish that supports discernment of God’s call.
On top of that, the Diocese of Gary has not historically been a bastion of priestly vocation promotion, as our number of priestly ordinations through the years has demonstrated. The work of vocations is a challenge that requires resilience and surrender to God’s will, as I have come to discover.
In spite of all this, we are beginning to notice a change. Within the last couple of months, I have received a significant number of vocation inquiries, not from high school students, but from men in their early 20s. This includes those who are approaching their college graduation, those who have been working for some years, and a few inquirers who have recently converted to the Catholic faith. The Lord is calling many men from our diocese to take a leap of faith in exploring the priesthood, and I am convinced there are still many more in our pews pondering the same prospect.
Last November, we launched the diocesan-wide Called By Name campaign. Priests preached on vocations and invited parishioners to submit names of men and women in their parishes who they believe possess qualities suitable to the priesthood or religious life. In our three high schools, furthermore, students were asked to point out classmates who would make great priests or religious.
As a result, we received names from 21 parishes and all three high schools, with a total of 229 submissions, listing 180 different names. Of those submissions, 88% were male and 12% were female. Each person whose name was submitted then received a letter of encouragement from Bishop Robert J. McClory, inviting them to contact the Vocations Office and seek further opportunities for discernment.
In the weeks following this initiative, we are already beginning to see promising results. A number of young men have reached out to me because they received a letter from the bishop and thus felt more confident to discern. We are then able to accompany them with robust resources for prayer and reflection. After some time of intentional consideration, some of them may take the next steps to apply to seminary, while others will confidently set the priesthood aside and pursue a different path of holiness in the Catholic Church.
In both cases, our goal of fostering intentional discernment will have been accomplished.
As with any area of expertise or profession, the key to development comes directly from personal relationships. If I do not get out to meet young men who are discerning, that is a missed opportunity. For that reason, in a small diocese like ours, I consider it a pivotal part of my role that I get to know the young men considering the priesthood.
Over Christmas break, we hosted a number of invite-based informal dinners for men discerning. This gives the chance for them to become acquainted with local priests and seminarians on a rather casual basis.
After all, I imagine that Jesus’ primary method for garnering disciples was not through promotional events, but instead through breaking bread over long meals.
To further foster openness to the priesthood in our young men, in the coming months I am leading visits to various seminaries to which we send our men preparing for priestly ministry. Those aged 16-20 years old will visit Immaculate Heart of Mary (Minnesota) in February, and those 21 and older will explore priesthood at Sacred Heart Major Seminary (Detroit) in March.
God has blessed us with a significant number of men discerning his will for their lives. Please give them your prayerful support and consider inviting someone you think would make a great priest to open his heart to the Lord’s voice.
To submit a name, visit dcgary.org, click on “Vocations” across the top and then scroll down to click on “Learn more or submit a name.”
Father Nathaniel Edquist is the director of vocations for the Diocese of Gary and the pastor of Holy Family Parish in LaPorte, shepherding St. Peter, St. Joseph and Sacred Heart churches.