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August 29, 2023By Carissa Krautscheid
On a Monday in late August, all Catholic school teachers gathered at the Diocese of Tucson’s Chancery. They were called together by Bishop Edward Weisenburger, who commissioned them to promote Vocations whenever possible.
The Diocese of Tucson hosted the Vocation Ministry workshop for nearly 600 Catholic school teachers, parish catechists, and youth ministers from across the Diocese of Tucson.
“Vocations are our number one priority,” Bishop Weisenburger emphasized.
A Vocation is “a calling or summoning. A Vocation is God’s invitation to love and serve him and his Church in a particular way of life. It is a call to live on earth in a way that will impact eternity” (Vocation Ministry).
We are all called to holiness as we journey towards our eternal home. The question becomes: which Vocation best leads you to unity with God in Heaven? The three Vocations are Priesthood, Consecrated Life, and Matrimony.
Fulfilling our Vocation leads to “our sanctification in this life,” said Rhonda Gruenewald, founder of Vocation Ministry. The Diocese of Tucson is the 54th diocese in the United States to be trained by Vocation Ministry on how to weave Vocations back into the culture of our parishes, schools, and broader community.
“You are vitally important to the health of the Church,” Gruenewald said as she encouraged parish catechists, youth ministers, and schoolteachers.
According to Gruenewald, about 75 percent of priests say they first heard the call to the priesthood before the age of 18 while 40 percent heard the call between the ages of 6 and 13.
That may seem quite young but think about what is happening during that time. Children may become altar servers and have likely received the sacraments of first Holy Communion, first Reconciliation, and sometimes Confirmation. The richness of the Sacramental life draws children to God.
Remember that Jesus called little children to himself. “Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these” (Matthew 19:14).
God never stopped calling people to the Priesthood, Consecrated Life, and holy Marriages. He remains faithful to his Church, but are we listening? The Diocese of Tucson’s Vocations Director, Fr. Alan Valencia, said, “We don’t have a Vocations crisis. We have a crisis of listening and decision making.”
Bishop Weisenburger agreed that it is time to reprioritize the pursuit of holy Vocations. “The culture needs to learn from the Church – not the other way around.” He commissioned teachers at Catholic schools, parish catechists, and youth ministers to prioritize holy Vocations in their ministries.
“We are in the business of making saints. Aren’t we?” Gruenewald challenged educators to reframe the goal of their work. “It behooves all of us to help each person find their Vocation. Every person is given a unique call in the Church. God has called each person to something special. If they don’t do it, it goes undone.”
Helping each person find their God-given Vocation might seem daunting, but Gruenewald reminded participants of the Gospel, “The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest” (Luke 8:8).
“We just worry about the good ground, the one percent,” Gruenewald reassured. “The Holy Spirit will do the 99%. If you are creating disciples, there should be fruit.”
In the Diocese of Tucson, the average age of a priest is 67. Today there are about 200 priests serving the diocese, including a handful who are second vocation priests. You can learn more by visiting https://diocesetucson.org/vocations-1
Our duty as Catholics is to scatter as many seeds as possible, to walk with discerners on their journey, to remember that holiness is the ultimate goal, and to pray for the unfolding of God’s Kingdom here on earth.