The Deep Secret of Vocations
Everyone has one and each of them is unique. There, now you know. Now that it's out in the open, we can talk about it openly.
We are all aware of the “vocational sacraments,” namely, ordination and marriage. However, a vocation does not need to be made manifest by a sacrament to nevertheless be a vocation and no two vocations conferred by ordination or matrimony are exactly the same in every particular.
This understanding of vocation was made clear by St. Thérèse of Lisieux, when she wrote about her own discovery of vocation. She was a cloistered nun, which is a recognized vocation that is not conferred by a sacrament; but that was insufficient for her. She continued to think about and study vocation to the point where she concluded that her vocation was to become “love at the heart of the Church.”
Each vocation is unique because each person is unique. No two cells in the body are identical in all respects. By analogy, in Christ's body there are no “carbon copy” saints. This is why it is important to realize where God is calling you personally. God does not need us to be copies of other saints. He already has each one of them, eternally. Hence, it is improper to attempt to be anything other than what God has made us to be. This is a message of hope to all those who are seeking to undersand the Church and discover their place and role within, only to find themselves discouraged. There is tension between the different callings but this is the very tension of life itself.
But still, that doesn't define the fullness of vocation. Each one of us has certain talents, gifts, and inclinations that are unique and not available to anyone else. It is in the blossoming of all of these gifts of God through His grace that one’s vocation is defined. Already you may have an inkling of it. Then seek to order more of your life towards what seems to be the clearest part of you. Resonance rather than dissonance is a sign of wholeness. Part of “working out [my] salvation in fear and trembling” is the discovery and proper execution of the details of your particular vocation. God will tell you, through grace, who you are and how you are to function for the greatest good of all. Your job is to respond to the best of your ability - to seize the day.
Vocation really is about immersing yourself in God's love - utter abandonment, total surrender, complete reliance on Him - day by day.
We are all aware of the “vocational sacraments,” namely, ordination and marriage. However, a vocation does not need to be made manifest by a sacrament to nevertheless be a vocation and no two vocations conferred by ordination or matrimony are exactly the same in every particular.
This understanding of vocation was made clear by St. Thérèse of Lisieux, when she wrote about her own discovery of vocation. She was a cloistered nun, which is a recognized vocation that is not conferred by a sacrament; but that was insufficient for her. She continued to think about and study vocation to the point where she concluded that her vocation was to become “love at the heart of the Church.”
Each vocation is unique because each person is unique. No two cells in the body are identical in all respects. By analogy, in Christ's body there are no “carbon copy” saints. This is why it is important to realize where God is calling you personally. God does not need us to be copies of other saints. He already has each one of them, eternally. Hence, it is improper to attempt to be anything other than what God has made us to be. This is a message of hope to all those who are seeking to undersand the Church and discover their place and role within, only to find themselves discouraged. There is tension between the different callings but this is the very tension of life itself.
But still, that doesn't define the fullness of vocation. Each one of us has certain talents, gifts, and inclinations that are unique and not available to anyone else. It is in the blossoming of all of these gifts of God through His grace that one’s vocation is defined. Already you may have an inkling of it. Then seek to order more of your life towards what seems to be the clearest part of you. Resonance rather than dissonance is a sign of wholeness. Part of “working out [my] salvation in fear and trembling” is the discovery and proper execution of the details of your particular vocation. God will tell you, through grace, who you are and how you are to function for the greatest good of all. Your job is to respond to the best of your ability - to seize the day.
Vocation really is about immersing yourself in God's love - utter abandonment, total surrender, complete reliance on Him - day by day.
1 comment:
Thank you for sharing this!
Post a Comment