Priestly Vocation

mymamamary · #1 Jul 10, '12, 4:33 am

Dear Forum

Over the past couple of days i have been posting the highs and lows of the call i feel i have. I want too clarify some stuff

Yes, i have a spiritual Director, i had one before, but he was transfered to another parish(Fr Johnson) so now i have a new one (Fr. Acervo)

I have a Confessor, again hes new, my old one moved

I have talked EXTENSIVLEY with a Vocations Director, Fr. Tim Birney, from Sacred Heart Major Seminary. He told me to stop discerning on whether or not i am called to Priesthood, as he feels i have that worked out very well

. He told me to start discerning as whether or not i am called to Diocescan or Religious Priesthood.

I have felt this call since i was 5 or 6

Yes, i am 16 but...i will be 17 in 20 something days.Grade 12 will come in september, my last year in high school, and after that, well i hope to move on to Seminary, so the time is close...

I enjoy high school, i love the camradrie with my friends, (sometimes too much

)

I love girls just like the next teen my age, but for some reason, i'm not into dating. I love Girls, dont get me wrong, just as much as the next guy my age, but for some reason

And yes, i have high and lows, alot of them, but the call is still there nonetheless,

Also i told the LORD to take the call away from me, if my call it isnt HIS WILL, the desire to be a Priest only strenghtened.

I LOVE Prayer, My Sacraments (Confession and HOLY EUCHARIST, weekly for me at a minimum), Philosophy and Theology are subjects im sure that i will love, I love People (im a pretty social person) and i love CHRIST and HIS Church .

Been on three discernement overnights at Sacred heart Major Seminary

Are any of these indicators????

Sorry for the long post, your thoughts dear readers?

Iaamiccwint · #2 Jul 10, '12, 5:03 am

Just pray and pray and pray...

Reflect,contemplate, and meditate.

I recieved advice from many well educated priests...

You should get at least a Bachelor's Degree in a secular non-religious subject...

What subjects do you like? If you like science, get a degree in Chemistry...
If you're into bussiness, get a degree in business. As son.

The priests I've spoken to have told me that in this day and age, it's best to get a degree first.
Actually, in my Archdiosese semanarians are required to have a Bacherlor's Degree before entering the seminary.

You're Class of 2013, no?
When you entered high school I entered college, so we're not that far apart in age.
I'm sure you will make a good priest.

Rainaldo · #3 Jul 10, '12, 6:53 am

Maybe now is the time for you to start transitioning from posting detailed chronicles of your emotional experiences to strangers on the internet, into actually doing something about testing your vocation. Investigate every order that strikes you as attractive in the least and go visit them when you are able. Develop an instinct for detecting orthodoxy, too.

If you want a partial list of useful books that raise issues you may not have thought of, I can post one here but only upon your request.

mymamamary · #4 Jul 10, '12, 7:07 am

Sure post the list,

also, i want something traditional. In fact, im going to join the Knights of the Holy EUCHARIST, and hopefully attend the Seminary of CHRIST the KING

LoyalViews · #5 Jul 10, '12, 7:38 am

Alright, you seem passionate about the Priesthood. You have my prayers.

You're 16, you've felt called since you were 5 or 6.
Most priests I know say they felt called when they were only young. On top of that, the vocations director said you have a vocation.

It's not too complicated of a puzzle, God Bless you, and I pray you do enter the Knights of the Holy Eucharist!

runningdude · #6 Jul 10, '12, 9:06 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by mymamamary

...
I have talked EXTENSIVLEY with a Vocations Director, Fr. Tim Birney, from Sacred Heart Major Seminary. He told me to stop discerning on whether or not i am called to Priesthood, as he feels i have that worked out very well

. He told me to start discerning as whether or not i am called to Diocescan or Religious Priesthood.

...

Are any of these indicators????

Sorry for the long post, your thoughts dear readers?

I don't get it, why are you second-guessing the vocations director????

Monster Simpson · #7 Jul 10, '12, 9:23 am

If you feel that God wants you to be a priest then do it.

Rainaldo · #8 Jul 10, '12, 9:41 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by mymamamary

Sure post the list,

also, i want something traditional. In fact, im going to join the Knights of the Holy EUCHARIST, and hopefully attend the Seminary of CHRIST the KING

Gerald Kelly, The Good Confessor, http://www.amazon.com/Good-Confessor...dp/B000JPKOZW/
Adolphe Tanquerey, The Spiritual Life, http://www.amazon.com/Spiritual-Life...dp/0895556596/
Pastores Dabo Vobis, http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/jo...-vobis_en.html
Leo Trese, A Man Approved, http://www.amazon.com/Man-Approved-L.../dp/B005JY2FU0
Rudolph Allers, Forming Character in Adolescents, http://www.amazon.com/Forming-Charac...dp/0912141670/
Anything by Charles Hugo Doyle, http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr...=relevancerank

curlycool89 · #9 Jul 10, '12, 9:42 am

Ah, I see what's going on.

You seem to have encountered the problem I like to call "over-discernment". You've already passed the line of "pretty sure" you are called (which is really, in most cases, where someone should start investigating or applying to seminary), but you are probably looking for absolute certainty.

2 points. First, there is no such thing as absolute certainty in a vocation (unless Christ Himself appears to you and says so, but that almost never happens).
Secondly, entering a Seminary (or Novitiate) is not a final choice. The seminary is the best place to discern the call to priesthood with others in the same situation and with priest-formatters who can guide you through the discernment.

People are telling you they see the signs that you are feeling, so unless you have a fundamental doubt (and if you do, you should discuss it with your SD), you should be applying to seminary or a religious order (if that's where you're called).

If you're really not satisfied, there's one thing you can do. You've probably been praying for guidance and asking God if this is your call. So flip it. Pray "God, I believe you are calling me to this vocation. If you are not, please give me a sign that you don't want me to go down this path".

Quote:

Originally Posted by mymamamary

also, i want something traditional. In fact, im going to join the Knights of the Holy EUCHARIST, and hopefully attend the Seminary of CHRIST the KING

The one in Mission, BC? For non-high school seminarians, so far as I know only the Archdiocese of Vancouver uses Christ the King (the rest of Western Canada uses St. Joseph's in Edmonton, and the eastern prairies sometimes use St. Peter's in London, Ontario).