Living for the Lord

“For if we live, we live for the Lord,” says St. Paul (Rom 14:8) in this Sunday’s Second Reading. This is quite an examination of conscience for me. Is my living really “living for the Lord”? Is the way I choose to act, think, speak, and believe such that the Lord would want to say, “That’s mine!” Is the motivation and goal of my day-to-day living focused on God and what he had in mind when I was created in his image and likeness? And how in the world do I approach an answer to those kinds of questions?

I asked a six-year-old, “What do you think it means to ‘live for the Lord’?” He answered, “It means you should get a job in a church.” I asked a ninety-six year old, who answered, “It means, darlin’, that he’s your everything.” I asked a college student: “It probably means more than I care to think about right now.” I asked someone who has been hurt by the Church: “It means God is bigger than any mistakes I or anyone else might make.” I asked someone who’s given her life in service to the Church: “It means rising above the fray.” I asked a friend: “Living for the Lord is trying our best to live in love.”

So…with all the data in, I am challenged to answer the question myself. What does it mean to “live for the Lord”? I suppose it means receiving the gift of life God gives me each day, and spending it freely on whomever it is I encounter on that given day, transmitting to them the gift of life and love so freely given me.

What does it mean to you?

USCCB Vocations Fair at World Youth Day!

If you’re planning to attend World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain, plan to join us at our Vocations Fair. Read more here.

“I will be with you”

In yesterday’s liturgy (EX 3:1-6, 9-12), we read of Moses who stood in the presence of God, before the burning bush . Moses was afraid and didn’t understand what God was asking of him. Sometimes we don’t know to what God is calling us, but he simply wants our availability, “Here I am, Lord.”

I suppose its like being “Open 24 hours” – being ready to do the will of God always, trusting that even though we may not “know the way” (JN 14:4-5) or think we can accomplish what God is asking, he will help us do his will. The Lord won’t abandon us to fulfill his will, for “I will be with you (EX 3:12),” says the Lord.

Eucharistic Adoration for Vocations

Dear Friends,

I was just looking through the USCCB site for quotes or information on the saint we celebrate today, St. Justin Martyr, and came across this wonderful page, A Holy Hour for Vocations. In this Holy Hour format a reflection on the Eucharist by St. Justin Martyr is offered for our reflection, “[This Eucharist] has been blessed by the word of prayer instituted by Him, and from it our flesh and blood by assimilation are nourished. This, we are taught, is both the flesh and blood of Jesus incarnate.”

Jesus incarnate is the giver of every vocation. May he bless all those called to the priesthood or consecrated life!

Visitation

Today we celebrate the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to her cousin Elizabeth. “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, ‘Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.’ (Luke 1:41-42)”

Elizabeth recognized the arrival her cousin, Mary, immediately, not only by the joyful sound of Mary’s voice in her ears, but also by the movements of the Holy Spirit in her and in the child in her womb. How much we can learn from Elizabeth and Mary in this passage for the discernment of our vocation! Discerning our vocation is like listening for the Lord’s call in our hearts. It may not be an audable voice we hear with our ears, but a voice we hear in our hearts. Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting with her ears, but more importantly it moved her deeply in her heart. Its important to be attentive to our interior response to God’s voice in our hearts, asking ourselves, “Am I responding to his call?” “Am I ignoring his voice?” “Am I welcoming his presence in my life?” Its important, too, to consider the encouragement we receive from others to respond to God’s voice. Mary certainly was that to Elizabeth!

In the Church there are many women’s religious communities that are named after this mystery of the Visitation and bring Christ’s love to those they meet. Let us pray for these religious communities, and ask Our Lord to help us bring His love to others today.

Pope Benedict’s 60th Annivesary of Ordination

Prayer for Priests prayer card

Dear Friends,

Pope Benedict will be celebrating his 60th anniversary of priestly ordination on June 29th this year! Dioceses and parishes across the world are planning to pray 60 hours of Eucharistic Adoration for the intention of the sanctification of the priesthood and for new and holy vocations to the priesthood. Read more here, and enjoy a prayer card that was made to use for this intention (but can be used any time of the year, too!).

Seeing Christ in Others

This is a wonderful video! Sister Eva Maria of the Little Sisters of the Poor shares with us a few lessons she has learned since she professed her vows in 2002. One lesson in particular struck me: “The more you get to know Christ in prayer, and accept him in your heart, the more you’ll recognize him in those around you.”

To be a priest or consecrated person means that we really must have a desire to serve Jesus Christ in others. It is very tempting to do something for another person with the motivation of looking good in someone else’s eyes or for our own glory. In fact, true service in charity can be at times very counter-cultural….helping someone else in their need may require patience, understanding, and a willingness to do what they cannot do for themselves. Helping another person in need gives us the opportunity to focus our attention on someone outside ourselves and to seek Christ who lives in them and gives them dignity.

May Our Lord give us the grace to love another person today and see Him in them.

The video clip was taken from “Everyone has a Vocation to Love: Whats Yours? The Vocation to the Religious Life for Women” by the Knights of Columbus.

Just do it.

We read that when Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James, and John, they responded immediately (MT 4:18-22). As I read this passaged I was very struck by the immediacy with which they acted. There was no hesitation, no rebuttal, no second-guessing…just action.

Its helpful to reflect on the way the Apostles responded and check my own responses throughout the ordinary situations in my life: waking up in the morning, how many times have I turned the alarm off and went back to sleep? Have I put off studying for a assignment or test that I know is coming up in school? Or have I even put off a chore that my parents or supervisor asked me to do?

Procrastinating is delaying or putting off something that should be done now. If you experience a “stir” within your heart about the priesthood or consecrated life, respond to it, act on it, ask your parish priest about it. St. Thomas Aquinas teaches, “It is praiseworthy to act quickly after taking counsel, which is an act of reason (II-II, Q. 127, a. 1).” Simply asking for more information doesn’t commit yourself to the priesthood or consecrated for ever; it just helps you answer the questions you have about it so you can respond to the promptings with reason. Don’t ignore it or let endless questions about it plague your mind. An old phrase from a “Nike” tennis shoes commercial come to mind: “Just do it.” We all have a responsibility to grow in our Catholic faith and in the spiritual life, but we can’t do it alone. The Church provides guides for us, to help us discern our vocation and live out our Christian call. Ask the questions; it won’t hurt.

May Our Lord strengthen you today to respond to His grace.

Shepherds and Robbers

Well, that was a little surprising. Here I was, ready at yesterday’s Fourth Sunday of Easter to hear another of the Resurrection accounts for the Gospel, when lo and behold, instead we hear Jesus talking about sheep and thieves. Even more strange than that, as he uses this imagery, he doesn’t say, “Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the shepherd,” like we might expect. Instead he says, “Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep.” He is the gate? Then who is the shepherd? Well, if I’m really paying attention when the Gospel is proclaimed, I’ll hear his answer: “Whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.”

I’m no exegetical expert, and I have no vast theology background in the Christian Scriptures, but it seems to me there must be something happening in this passage from the Gospel of John that is “bigger” than what I’ve noticed before now. If we were to keep reading (continuing where this Sunday’s Gospel leaves off,) we would hear Jesus immediately say, “I am the good shepherd.” But before I jump to that imagery with which I’ve been familiar since childhood, I feel the need to sit a little bit longer with the imagery of Jesus as the gate. Only those who enter through the gate do so with integrity, freedom, and understanding. Those who try to get in and out of the sheepfold other ways are “thieves and robbers,” trying to take by force what would likely be freely given them if they simply came in through the gate…since, according to Christ’s own words, anyone who enters through the gate is a shepherd.

So what’s the take-home value of this Gospel? For me, it’s about discerning whether I’m a thief or a shepherd in my spiritual life. Do I “go through” Jesus in order to gain life, or do I try to “steal” it in other ways? Do I pray through all aspects of my life, or do I only have recourse to God when my own efforts have come up short? Do I “play God” in my relationships and ministry by trying to fix things (or people!) and control outcomes, or do I place it all in his hands and allow him to take care of what is rightly his anyway?

Yes, yes…there are some powerful truths for me to learn in this weekend’s Gospel. Might there be for you, too?

“From the Field to the Altar”

Dear Friends,

The Knights of Columbus have been tremendous supporters to those called to the priesthood and consecrated life. In their article, From the Field to the Altar, we think you will enjoy and be inspired by these men who have chosen to leave “the world” to follow God’s call to the priesthood. As World Day of Prayer Vocations approaches this Sunday (May 15, 2011), let’s continue to pray for vocations to the priesthood!