Chris McDonnell, UK
christymac733@gmail.com

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The spirit of vocation

Vocations Sunday is usually coincident with Good Shepherd Sunday. Each year we are asked to 'pray for vocations' -to the priesthood and religious life as we face a diminution of ordinations and religious communities have an advancing age profile.  

We have limited our understanding of the word. It is used in a restrictive and narrow manner. Yet all about us we see men and women following a vocational way of life in the service of others, often receiving a poor financial return for their labours.  

What does it mean 'to have a vocation'? Service, generosity, care and love are all involved. Teaching was once spoken of as being a vocational calling. Whenever I had student teachers visit our school I would advise them that if they genuinely liked children and really wanted to teach, then it was indeed a worthwhile and rewarding task; if not, then look for some other option. We have lost so many of the values implied by vocation, often seeking only an increasing financial return for our labour.  

The word 'vocation' says something about the task being undertaken and our own response in rising to that challenge. Jean Vanier, who died recently, could never have foreseen the consequence of the first generous care he gave to two men with disability. That was over fifty years ago. The outcome has been the world wide l'arche community foundation that has carried on and expanded his generous action in 1964.  

A busy doctor in the surgery, an over-worked nurse on the hospital ward, those in charge of a pre-school nursery unit, all, at the end of a day's work feel tired and often exhausted. But they also feel a degree of satisfaction knowing it has been a worthwhile job well done.  

In a similar manner, Aid Workers, whether working here in our own country organising resources or their colleagues working directly with those in need through natural disasters or in distant war-torn countries, express a vocational conviction.  

So why do we limit our use of the word in the Church to the bishop or priest, the sister or brother?  

Some people have a sense from an early age as to what they want to do and they doggedly pursue it unwaveringly through the years till they achieve their goal. Others cast around in their formative years seeking something they can respond to.

We often associate the wording 'calling'  with 'vocation'. People  are influenced by the company of others, those whose example suggests a direction that might be followed. But there is a risk here for if we undertake a task, it must be out conviction that it is the right path for us to follow. Mistakes are sometimes made and a fresh start is necessary.  

Preparation is necessary if we are to have even a moderate chance of success. One of the fundamental flaws when we choose a particular calling lies in the expectation that you know what is ahead. Yet none of us do.  

There is a degree of trust involved, trust that our choice is the right one, trust that we have the strength to walk the journey and trust that others will support us whatever the weather. That's why ownership of our choice is so important. It is not good enough to live out someone else's dream. It has to be ours and we need to be accountable for our choice. The American poet, Mary Oliver, concluded her poem 'The Summer Day' with these memorable words-"Tell me what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" that's pretty direct.  

We make plans, have bright ideas and set off with purpose. But then, quite unexpectedly, circumstances change and we are faced with a significant choice. Remember John Lennon's words-'life is what happens when you are busy making other plans.'  

Life is not a pre-cast mould, that come what may, we must accept and follow. How we respond to the challenges that face us determines our path with all its joys and sorrows.  

We judge others too easily, often reflecting fixed attitudes that allow for little compassion.  

Returning to the use of the word vocation as determined by the Church, it can be a struggle framed in rigour. Writing his final reflections during the last six months of his life, a life of teaching from the very depths of his priestly mission, Daniel O'Leary spoke of this conflict: "...the Institution's insistence on compulsory celibacy....this unnatural, un-incarnational and mandatory condition for becoming a loving servant of God's people is at the root of most of the current tragedies raging in the heart of Christ's community."  

One person, two vocations is a reality we need to embrace, for the sake of individual men and women directly involved and for the mission of the Church that is our home.  

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