St. John Paul II in his message for the 38th World Day of Prayer for Vocations, said: […] Within the Christian community, each person must discover his or her own personal vocation and respond to it with generosity. Every life is a vocation, and every believer is invited to cooperate in the building up of the Church... However, we turn our attention, in a special way, to the need and the urgent requirement for ordained ministers and for persons who are ready to follow Christ on the arduous path of consecrated life in the profession of the evangelical counsels."
Though I have only less than a year of being vocation director in our delegation, the last three lines of Pope John Paul the Second's message quoted above resounds personally inwardly to me to realize the need for ordained ministers. Based on my little experience, yet not in a pessimistic way of seeing things for the near future, we are facing a period of "vocational crisis."
As I have been visiting some places, schools, and parishes in the Philippines, many young people in their teens and twenties seem to have so little motivation and love toward the life of the Church, so much more to consecrated life; in addition and this is very crucial for us, If I may dare to say even worst, to carry out our specific charism for the evangelization of non-Christians.
The COVID-19 world pandemic is marking, if not changing, our habits. The crisis is proliferating in all aspects and hitting the life of many, including the faith-spiritual element of young people, which is closely related to vocation. Since years before the pandemic, we have been facing this crisis 'heavily' due to the continuous decrease in the number of vocations to the priestly ministry and consecrated life. Hence, vocation today is receiving an intense backlash, though the pandemic is not the only reason. The spiritual life, participation, and engagement in the Church life of the youth today appear very shallow. How then do they feel the call, the vocation to the consecrated life? However, this obliges us to rethink and seek new strategies to promote vocations. It is hard indeed, yet still with an open-ended hope for the bounty of vocation to consecrated life.
For fulfilling this hope of "catching" for more young people, collaboration is a MUST. Of course, as a vocational director, I should do more -a frontline, so to speak. Yet, our parishes should also provide activities and ministries that can foster "the culture and love for vocation for the youth" in a particular way for consecrated life. Furthermore, the family -parents, take a significant portion in forming, educating, and introducing their children to religious and consecrated life. Yes, we are facing the crisis vocational crisis to consecrated life. But this is not yet game over. There are a lot of opportunities in the crisis. There are ways we can do, to not give up on the realities.
We have learned how effective it can be to work in teams, strategically use social media, and build up support networks by collaborating with vocation directors of other congregations, schools, teachers, lay partners, and religious sisters. A culture of vocation promotion also invites each of us, Xaverian Missionaries, to take personal responsibility for promoting vocation to religious and consecrated life, especially to young ones and families, and continue giving witness to lives that inspire and attract the young. Indeed, fostering such a culture goes far beyond the work of vocation promoters alone.
Finally, for my reflection, as I have been doing vocation promotion, also facing the unpleasant reality of the youth who have very little interest in consecrated life and ordained minister, I ask myself: Does my life, as an ordained minister-priest and consecrated person, attracts people? Maybe another reason for the "crisis" of vocation is my witness of life is "not attractive and fascinating enough" in the eyes of the young.
Let us ask the Lord, the Owner of our work, to send us new laborers to His vineyard, Xaverian. Our father, St. Guido M. Conforti, intercede for us.
