1 Pedro 2

Ang Batong Buháy at ang Bayang Pinili

2 Kaya nga, talikuran na ninyo ang lahat ng kasamaan, ang lahat ng pandaraya, pagkukunwari,
pagkainggit at paninirang-puri. 2 Gaya ng sanggol, kayo'y manabik sa dalisay na gatas na espirituwal upang
lumago kayo tungo sa kaligtasan, 3 sapagkat “Naranasan na ninyo ang kabutihan ng Panginoon.”
4
Lumapit kayo sa kanya, sa batong buháy na itinakwil ng mga tao ngunit pinili ng Diyos at mahalaga sa
kanyang paningin. 5 Tulad ng mga batong buháy, maging bahagi kayo ng isang templong espirituwal.
Bilang mga paring itinalaga para sa Diyos, mag-alay kayo sa Diyos ng mga handog na espirituwal na
kalugud-lugod sa kanya sa pamamagitan ni Jesu-Cristo, 6 sapagkat sinasabi ng kasulatan,

“Tingnan ninyo,
inilalagay ko sa Zion ang isang batong-panulukan, pinili at mahalaga;
hindi mapapahiya ang sinumang sumasampalataya sa kanya.”
7
Kaya nga, mahalaga siya sa inyong mga sumasampalataya sa kanya, ngunit sa mga hindi
sumasampalataya, natutupad ang mga ito:

“Ang batong itinakwil ng mga tagapagtayo ng bahay

ang siyang naging batong-pundasyon.”
8
At

“Ito ang batong katitisuran ng mga tao,

batong ikadadapa nila.”

Natisod sila sapagkat hindi sila sumunod sa salita ng Diyos; ganoon ang nakatakda para sa kanila.
9
Ngunit kayo ay isang lahing pinili, mga maharlikang pari, isang bansang hinirang, bayang pag-aari ng
Diyos, pinili upang magpahayag ng mga kahanga-hangang ginawa niya. Siya ang tumawag sa inyo mula
sa kadiliman patungo sa kanyang kahanga-hangang kaliwanagan. 10 Kayo'y hindi bayan ng Diyos noon;
ngunit ngayon, kayo'y bayang hinirang niya. Noon ay hindi kayo nakatanggap ng habag, ngunit ngayo'y
tumanggap na kayo ng kanyang habag.

Ang Salita ng Diyos!

Salamat sa Diyos!

Come, Holy Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love.

Lead: Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.

Response: And you shall renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray. O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant us in the
same Spirit to be truly wise and ever to rejoice in His consolation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

LUMEN GENTIUM CHAPTER V

THE UNIVERSAL CALL TO HOLINESS IN THE CHURCH

(218) The followers of Christ are called by God, not because of their works, but according to His own
purpose and grace.

Every person must walk unhesitatingly according to his own personal gifts and duties in the path of living
faith, which arouses hope and works through charity.

It is charity which guides us to our final end. It is the love of God and the love of one's neighbor which
points out the true disciple of Christ

10 Ways to Know If God is Speaking to You!

Have you ever wondered if God was speaking to you in the midst of a serious decision? Have you
struggled with the idea of believing that God can speak to you? Today, Jeff shares 10 ways to know if God
is speaking to you.

Snippet from the Show

“God often speaks to us not in commotion, but in the silence of prayer.”

Shownotes

John 10:27 – “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me”

Jeremiah 29:13 – “You will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart”

General Audience of Pope St. John Paul II, p.1 – “The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that
“the human person participates in the light and power of the divine Spirit. By his reason, he is capable of
understanding the order of things established by the Creator. By free will, he is capable of directing himself
toward his true good. He finds his perfection ‘in seeking and loving what is true and good’ (cf. Gaudium et
spes, n. 15)” (n. 1704). The Holy Spirit, who “searches the depths of God”, is at the same time the light that
illumines man’s conscience and the source of his true freedom (cf. Dominum et Vivificantem, n. 36).”

Proverbs 14:12 – “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.”

1 John 4:1 – “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are of God; for
many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

John 7:17 – “if any man’s will is to do his will, he shall know whether the teaching is from God or whether I
am speaking on my own authority.”
CCC 1 – “God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to
make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close
to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men,
scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness
of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Savior. In his Son and through him, he invites men
to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life.”

Proverbs 16:9 – “A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.”

10 Ways to Test Your Thoughts Concerning the Will of God!

1. Does it agree with Sacred Scripture?

 General Audience of Pope St. John Paul II, p.2 – “Adhering to God’s plan for man
revealed in Christ Jesus and fulfilling it in one’s own life means discovering the authentic
vocation of human freedom, as Jesus promised his disciples: ‘If you continue in my word,
you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and truth will make you free’ (Jn
8:31-32).”

 John 15:14-15 – “You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call
you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you
friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

 John 14:6 – “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to
the Father, but by me.”

 CCC 112 – “Be especially attentive ‘to the content and unity of the whole Scripture’.
Different as the books which compose it may be, Scripture is a unity by reason of the unity
of God’s plan, of which Christ Jesus is the center and heart, open since his Passover.”

2. Does it agree with Sacred Tradition?

 CCC 113 – “Read the Scripture within ‘the living Tradition of the whole Church’. According
to a saying of the Fathers, Sacred Scripture is written principally in the Church’s heart
rather than in documents and records, for the Church carries in her Tradition the living
memorial of God’s Word, and it is the Holy Spirit who gives her the spiritual interpretation
of the Scripture (‘. . . according to the spiritual meaning which the Spirit grants to the
Church’).”

 CCC 114 – “Be attentive to the analogy of faith. By ‘analogy of faith’ we mean the
coherence of the truths of faith among themselves and within the whole plan of
Revelation.”

3. Will you become more like Jesus?

 Luke 6:40 – “A disciple is not above his teacher, but every one when he is fully taught will
be like his teacher.”

 John 15:5 – “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it
is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
 4. Is it consistent with your vocation

 Paul went to a difficult place because it was part of God’s plan for his life.

 1 Cor 16:8-9 – “But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, for a wide door for effective work
has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.”

5. Is it consistent with how God has made me?

 Prov. 22:6 – “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not
depart from it.”

6. Is there a peace deep within your heart?

 Col 3:15 – “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called
in the one body. And be thankful.”

 1 Cor 4:21 – “What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of
gentleness?”

7. Would those who know you confirm what you are about to do? Get counsel

8. Does it build up the kingdom of God?

 Matt 6:33 – “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be
yours as well.”

9. What is the fruit of your action or decision

10. Spend some quiet time with God

 1 Kg 19:12 – “and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the
fire a still small voice.”

Matthew 14:28-33 – “And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, bid me come to you on the water.’ He
said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus; 30 but when he saw
the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’ Jesus immediately reached out
his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘O man of little faith, why did you doubt?’ And when they got into
the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”

At your baptism you were marked with oil as a sign that you are consecrated to God and
anointed by the Holy Spirit. Your anointing also was a sign that you are joined to Christ and
share in his threefold mission as prophet, priest, and king.
The Israelites anointed their priests and kings with oil. They spoke of their prophets as being
anointed with the spirit. Jesus, known as the Christ, the anointed one, fills all three roles.
According to Luke, at the outset of his public ministry, Jesus read from Isaiah and claimed that
the words referred to him:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
Luke 4:18
A prophet is a messenger sent by God, a person who speaks for God. He or she witnesses to
God, calls people to conversion, and may also foretell the future. Prophets often are killed for
their message.
Jesus fits this description. He is none other than the Word of God in the flesh. He called the
world to turn from sin and return to the Father and was put to death for it. In Scripture Jesus is
presented as a prophet. Crowds identified him as “Jesus the prophet” (Matthew 21:11). He spoke
of himself as a prophet: “No prophet is accepted in his own native place” (Luke 4:24). He
foretold his passion and resurrection.
A priest is a mediator, or bridge, between God and human beings. He offers sacrifice to God on
behalf of all. Once a year on the Day of Atonement the Jewish high priest went into the Holy of
Holies in the Temple. There he offered sacrifice to God to make up for his sins and the sins of
the people.
The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews compared Jesus to Melchizedek, a mysterious, superior
priest in the Old Testament who blessed Abraham. Jesus is the greatest high priest. Because he is
both divine and human, Jesus is the perfect mediator. He is not only the perfect priest, holy and
sinless, but the perfect sacrifice. The sacrifice of Jesus need never be made again. Jesus “entered
once for all into the sanctuary, not with the blood of goats and calves but with his own blood,
thus obtaining eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:12). Jesus continues his role as priest. “He is
always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make
intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).
A king is a person who has supreme authority over a territory. When the Jewish people were
ruled by kings, they became a nation. They longed for a Messiah who would again make them
great.
Jesus is spoken of as a king in the Gospels. Gabriel announced to Mary that the Lord God would
give her son the throne of David his father, and he would rule over the house of Jacob forever.
Magi looked for a newborn king of the Jews. When Jesus last entered Jerusalem, crowds hailed
him as a king. He was arrested for making himself king, and the soldiers mocked him as one.
When Pilate asked if he were king of the Jews, Jesus replied, “You say so,” and he clarified, “My
kingdom does not belong to this world” (John 18:36). The charge written against Jesus was
“Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews.” Jesus announced the kingdom of God. His mission
was to have God reign in the hearts of all and to have peace and justice in the world. Jesus
exercised his royal office by serving.
† Christ, help me carry out my baptismal mission! †

POPE FRANCIS

MORNING MEDITATION IN THE CHAPEL OF THE

DOMUS SANCTAE MARTHAE

For a culture of encounter

Tuesday, 13 September 2016

An invitation to work for “the culture of encounter”, in a simple way, “as Jesus did”:
not just seeing, but looking; not just hearing, but listening; not just passing people
by, but stopping with them; not just saying “what a shame, poor people!”, but
allowing yourself to be moved with compassion; “and then to draw near, to touch
and to say: ‘Do not weep’ and to give at least a drop of life”. Pope Francis used
these words in his homily to describe the message contained in the liturgical
readings of the Mass he celebrated at Santa Marta on Tuesday morning.

Focusing in particular on the scene of the widow of Nain, from the Gospel of Luke
(7:11-17), the Pope highlighted that this passage from “the Word of God” speaks of
“an encounter. There is an encounter between people, an encounter between
people who were in the street”. And this, he commented, is “something unusual”. In
fact, “when we go into the street, every man thinks of himself: he sees, but does
not look; he hears, but does not listen”; in short, everyone goes their own way. And
consequently “people pass each other, but they do not encounter each other”.
Because, Pope Francis clarified, “an encounter is something else” entirely, and this
is “what the Gospel today proclaims to us: an encounter between a man and a
woman, between an only son who is alive and an only son who is dead; between a
happy group of people — happy because they have encountered Jesus and followed
him — and a group of people who weep as they accompany the woman”, who is a
widow and is on her way to bury her only son.

“The Gospel says: ‘When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her’”. In this
regard, the Pope pointed out that it is not “the first time” the Gospel speaks of
Christ’s compassion. “When Jesus saw the crowds, on the day of the multiplication
of the loaves”, he was also seized with great compassion, the Pope said, “and
before the tomb of his friend Lazarus, he wept”.

This compassion, the Pope advised, is not the same as what we normally feel
“when, for example, we go out into the street and see something sad: ‘What a
shame!’”. After all, “Jesus did not say: ‘What a poor woman!’”. On the contrary, “he
went further. He was seized with compassion. ‘And he drew near and spoke. He said
to her: Do not weep’”. In this way, “Jesus, with his compassion, involves himself
with that woman’s problem. ‘He drew near, he spoke and he touched’. The Gospel
says that he touched the coffin. Surely, however, when he said ‘do not weep’, he
touched the widow as well. A caress. Because Jesus was moved. And then he
performed the miracle”: that is, He raised the young man to life.

Thus the Pope pointed out an analogy: “The only son who is dead resembles Jesus,
and he is transformed into an only son who is alive, like Jesus. And Jesus’ action
truly shows the tenderness of an encounter, and not only the tenderness, but the
fruitfulness of an encounter. ‘The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus
returned him to his mother’. He did not say: ‘The miracle has been done’. No, he
said: ‘Come, take him, he is yours’”. That is why “every encounter is fruitful. Each
encounter returns people and things to their place”.

This discourse also reaches out to the people of today, who are far too “accustomed
to a culture of indifference” and who therefore need to “work and ask for the grace
to build a culture of encounter, of this fruitful encounter, this encounter that returns
to each person their dignity as children of God, the dignity of living”. We “are
accustomed to this indifference”, the Pope said, whether it be “when we see the
calamities of this world” or when faced with the “little things”. We limit ourselves to
saying: “Oh, what a shame, poor people, they suffer so much”, and then we move
on. Pope Francis explained that an encounter, however, is different: “If I do not look,
— seeing is not enough, no: look — if I do not stop, if I do not look, if I do not touch,
if I do not speak, I cannot create an encounter and I cannot help to create a culture
of encounter”.

Returning to the Gospel scene, the Pope highlighted that at seeing the miracle that
Jesus performed, “the people were seized by fear and they glorified God. And I like
to see here too”, the Pope explained, “the day-to-day encounter between Jesus and
his bride, the Church, who awaits his return. And every time that Jesus finds pain, a
sinner, a person in the street, He looks at them, He speaks to them, He returns
them to his bride”. Therefore, “this is today’s message: Jesus’ encounter with his
people; the encounter of Jesus who serves, who helps, who is the servant, who
lowers himself, who is compassionate with all those in need”. And, said Francis,
“when we say ‘those in need’ let us think not only of the homeless”, but also “of
ourselves, of those of us, who are in need”, Pope Francis said, “in need of Jesus’
words, of his caress — and also of those who are dear to us”. Offering a concrete
example, the Pope described the image of a family gathered at the table: “so often
people eat while watching TV or writing messages on their phones. Each person is
indifferent to that encounter. Even right there at the core of society, which is the
family, there is no encounter”, he said. Hence his final exhortation “to work for the
culture of encounter, in a simple way, as Jesus did”.

Muling Binuhay ang Anak ng Isang Biyuda Lucas 7:11-17

11
Pagkatapos nito, nagpunta naman si Jesus sa isang bayang tinatawag na
Nain. Sumama sa kanya ang mga alagad at ang napakaraming tao. 12 Nang
malapit na siya sa pintuan ng bayan, may isang lalaking namatay na dala ng
mga tao patungo sa libingan. Ito ay kaisa-isang anak na lalaki ng isang
biyuda. Napakaraming tao mula sa bayan ang sumama upang
makipaglibing. 13 Nahabag ang Panginoon nang kanyang makita ang ina ng
namatay kaya't sinabi niya rito, “Huwag kang umiyak.” 14 Nilapitan niya at
hinipo ang kabaong at tumigil ang mga may pasan nito. Sinabi niya, “Binata,
sinasabi ko sa iyo, bumangon ka!”
15
Bumangon ang patay at nagsalita; at siya'y ibinigay ni Jesus sa kanyang
ina.
16
Natakot ang lahat at sila'y nagpuri sa Diyos. Sabi nila, “Dumating sa atin
ang isang dakilang propeta! Dinalaw ng Diyos ang kanyang bayan!”
17
At kumalat sa buong Judea at sa palibot na lupain ang balitang ito tungkol
sa ginawa ni Jesus.
DOCUMENTS OF THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL

Constitutions

Dei Verbum - "Word of God"

Lumen Gentium - “the light of the nations.”

Sacrosanctum Concilium - the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy

Gaudium et Spes - Joy and Hope

Vocations
What is the difference between a vocation and a career? Career and vocation are very similar
words and outside a Catholic setting they are used interchangeably which causes confusion
because in our Church they are two distinctly different terms. A career is a way of making a
living to sustain oneself and family which is generally grouped into a series of jobs. For instance,
a person goes to college and graduates as an engineer. As the years pass the engineer might
progress from an engineer to a lead engineer, a subject matter expert, then a manager. This
progression could have occurred over many years and speaks of the person's career.

A vocation is different. A vocation isn't so much a job but who the person is and more
importantly it comes from God. Vocation comes from the Latin vocare which means "to call."
This call is found in Scripture as it states "Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone!
Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being,
and with your whole strength" (Dt 6:4-5 NABRE). We are all called to holiness and how this is
played out in our lives is different. There are four different callings to our vocation: marriage,
religious life, priesthood, and the single life. All of these callings are ordered to get us closer to
God.

In a marriage the union is meant for each spouse to grow with each other and get each other to
heaven. Religious life is a call to join a community to build up the Kingdom of God. They are
sisters, brothers, monks, or nuns but they all strive in a unique way to serve God through service
and prayer. Men in religious life can also be ordained to the priesthood. The priesthood is a
calling to serve God's people in a religious community or a diocese (archdiocese). A priest is not
"better" than any other Catholic, but have a special role in leading the people in prayer and
administering the sacraments. The single life is another way in which a person can live out their
vocation. It is an opportunity for a man or women to use their time to serve God with the
freedom they have that is characterized by the single life.

It is important to pray for all vocations, but in a special way pray for an increase of vocations for the
Archdiocese of Los Angeles. There is a great need as "the harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest" (Mt 9:37-38). If you feel you are
called to the priesthood learn more at http://www.lavocations.org/.

Prayer for Vocations

Father, in every generation you provide
ministers of Christ and the Church.
 We come before you now, asking that you
call forth more men to serve our Archdiocese
in the ministerial priesthood.
Give us priests who will lead and guide
your holy people gathered by Word and Sacrament.
Bless us with priestly vocations so that we can continue
to be a truly Eucharistic Church,
strengthened in our discipleship of Jesus Christ,
your Only Son.
Raise up, we pray, men who are generous in their service,
willing to offer their lives and all their gifts
for your greater glory and for the good of your people.
We make our prayer in the presence and power
of the Holy Spirit, through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

Let’s start with the basic question: What is a vocation?

A vocation is, essentially, an occupation. In a religious context, a vocation

implies someone has had a divine call to live a religious life.

Through the Sacrament of Baptism, we all have one calling in our lives:
holiness. This means following Jesus to the best of our abilities. However,
holiness will look different depending on one’s specific vocation. It’s
important to listen and recognize the signs that determine how one answers
and finds a place in life. There are four distinct types of vocations in the
Church.

 Religious Life — Commitment in life to live as Christ lived through vows of

poverty, chastity and obedience.
 Priesthood — Conformed to Jesus Christ through the Sacrament of Holy
Orders, priests are called to be chosen instruments in the world.
 Married Life — Faithful commitment to each other consecrated by the
Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, they strive to please God through their
devotion to each other and building a faith driven family.
 Single Life — Commit their lives to serve others in their work and prayer.

What is the difference between diocesan and religious priests?

Both are ordained, but are distinguished by the vows they take and the
community where they serve.

 Diocesan Priest: A diocesan priest serves parishioners within a diocese and

reports to the Bishop. They most likely will be assigned to a parish and live in
that community. His main focus is serving the parish by preaching the
Gospel, administering the Sacraments, and sheepherding the flock entrusted
to him by Jesus.
 Religious Priest: A religious priest is a specialist in serving the needs of a
larger community that is not necessary based in a parish. His roles may
 change if he is doing missionary work, teaching or evangelizing in a
community.

2 Tesalonica 2:15

Magandang Balita Biblia (with Deuterocanon)

15 Kaya nga, mga kapatid, magpakatatag kayo at panghawakan ninyo ang

mga katuruang ipinasa namin sa inyo, sa pamamagitan man ng aming sinabi
o isinulat.

This week in the Catholic Church is national vocations awareness week, a time when I would
normally post a video encouraging discernment, inviting people to apply to the friars, maybe
even promoting my book, Called: What Happens After Saying Yes to God, available on Amazon
and Franciscan Media…
Yes, in normal years, that is what I would be doing.
But not this year.
Instead, I have an important, maybe slightly unorthodox message to share:
Don’t become a priest.
Probably didn’t see that one coming!
Unless you read the title, then that’s probably why you clicked on the video, but still, probably
not the sort of message you would expect to hear from a priest.
Especially in a time of priest shortages, many are absolutely desperate for anyone they
can get, not turning able-bodied men away.
And yet, I stand by it.
This video is not clickbait.
The purpose of this video, really and truly, is to discourage some people from being priests.
You see, I was in a seminary class a few years ago when our professor broke from his lesson
to exhort the men in the room.
He said, “Gentlemen, if by the time you are ready to be ordained a priest you still
do not have a strong prayer life, if Jesus Christ is not the foundation for everything
you are and everything you do…
I need to you leave the seminary.
We do not need you.
We have enough bad priests already who do not pray, live by human values, and lead people
astray.
Unless you are completely devoted to being a man of prayer, you need to find another
profession.”
It. Was. Awesome.
I could feel the chill throughout the room.
Just utter silence.
Here was this normally upbeat priest, always with a smile on his face, giving one of the
harshest speeches we would ever hear in seminary.
We don’t need you.
I can’t say that it was a “wakeup call” for me per se, as being a part of a religious
order, this is already emphasized a lot, but it was definitely a good reminder, certainly
shocked a lot of people in the room, and it absolutely needed to be said.
Because, really, there are a lot of reasons that people think that they want to be a priest.
There are many latent motivations for entering seminary, and they are not always the best
or most lasting.
When we look to the problems that are caused by some priests in our Church today, my guess
is that they didn’t pop up out of nowhere.
They developed, over a long period of time, from a poor foundation in the discernment
and seminary process.
It was with this little speech in mind that I decided, this National Vocation Awareness
week, that I was going to add to my professor’s words.
Surely a poor prayer life is a major problem, but it is not the only one.
So for instance, if you think that being a priest is a 9-5 job in which you can clock
in and clock out, turning off your phone and ignoring the needs of the sheep because it’s
the middle of the night, your day off, or simply inconvenient… we don’t need you.
We already have plenty of priests like that.
What we need are men who are so deeply committed to the mission of Christ, so connected to
their flock, that the people they serve are as important to them as their own families.
We need priests who are true fathers, sacrificing for their kids, attending to their needs,
not because it is their job, but because they love them.
Similarly, if you think that you, as a priest of the Church, are the arbiter of God’s
grace, the gatekeeper and protector of the sacraments, always looking for flaws in your
parishioners and concerned more with rules and regulations than mercy and grace… we
don’t need you.
We already have plenty of priests like that too.
What we need are men who understand that they themselves are sinners, they they rely on
the same grace as everyone else, and so minister from their own brokenness.
We need priests who see themselves as reconcilers, not prosecutors, who will go out of their
way to bring people back to God.
If you think that just because the Church is low on priests that it needs you, that
you are somehow indispensable, that your preaching or administration is what is going to save
the Church and so you are doing the Church a favor… we don’t need you.
We already have plenty of priests like that.
What we need are instruments, not saviors, servants, not kings.
Christ is the savior of the world and truly he could raise up descendants of Abraham from rocks.
It is not my Church and it is not yours, but Christ’s, and as much as we may, in very
particular situations act in the person of Christ, it is still him that is glorified, not us.
If you want to become a priest because you are looking for a safe haven to hide, from
a world that is just too difficult or scary or lifeless, from yourself who just couldn’t
cut it in anything else… we don’t need you.
We already have plenty of priests like that.
What we need are men who are so in love with all that God has created that they want to
use their gifts and talents to make it better.
Being a priest is not about hiding from the world, about being a safe-haven for people
with no talents for anything else, but rather a vocation in which gifted men are equipped
to go out into it.
Finally, if you think that you know more than the pope, your local bishop, or the 2000 year
tradition of the Church, so much so that you are going to make up your own rules and live
by your own standard without obedience to anyone else… we don’t need to you.
We have more priests like this than we know what to do with.
What we need are men who think critically and grapple with their own consciences, but
also know that they are public representatives of something more than themselves.
As ministers of the needs of others, standing in a role of authority, personal opinions,
preferences, or dissents must take a backseat lest they do damage to the ones they serve.
Because, really, at the heart of each of these non-negotiables is the same thing: being a
priest is about humble service before our Lord.
We do not operate on our own power or authority.
We are neither judges nor kings.
We do not get to choose who or when or how we serve.
As a priest, we leave behind our own wants and desires to take on Christ’s, becoming
his hands and feet on earth.
Unless that is what you want with all your heart, to be a servant in the image of Christ—teaching
and leading, yes, but also suffering and dying for his people—then the priesthood may not
be for you.
Please, for the sake of Christ, for the sake of the people of God, find another profession.
But if it is, if you do feel called to lay down your life for others, to devote your
entire existence here on earth to making Christ known to the farthest ends of the earth through
your generosity, patience, hope, love, and humility… then you are just what we’re looking for.
We have some extraordinary men like this already, and we have for centuries,
but the next generation doesn’t.
That is, at least not yet.
God has sent out his call, he’s no doubt speaking to someone watching right now.
Will you answer?

The Purpose of Life is to Know God, to Love Him and Serve Him
Laura Kazlas
“All men were by nature foolish who were in ignorance of God, and who from the good things
seen did not succeed in knowing him who is.” The first reading from the book of wisdom muses
on how men can gaze upon the beauty of the created world on earth and the universe itself and
still not know God. The moon and the stars in the night sky are beautiful. The sunshine, the
warmth of a fire, the many different kinds of plants and animals on earth and in the sea, and the
billions of uniquely different human beings on the earth all bear God’s fingerprints.
Creation is like a love letter that God wrote for all of mankind to discover. How could anyone
gaze upon the intricate designs in nature, and how perfectly everything on the earth and in the
heavens fit together, without understanding that an intelligent being is behind it all? The
vastness and complexity of the universe and the amazingly beautiful designs found in a single
atom, or a cell in the human body, shows that God exists in all things. Scientists recently
discovered a set of gears that are located deep within the nucleus of a single human cell, that is
almost an exact replica of the gears in an automobile engine. This microscopic set of gears
operate much like a car’s engine to propel the nucleus around inside a single human cell. The
complexity of human DNA is just now only beginning to be discovered and understood, but if the
human DNA in your body were to be uncoiled, it would reach from the sun to the planet Pluto
and back 17 times.
Scientists have studied the natural world for thousands of years, but in recent times the
knowledge of the created world has been greatly accelerated, and yet many scientists still do
not recognize the artist behind the masterpiece of the universe. Today’s reading from the book
of Wisdom still applies in our world today. There is really nothing new under the sun. Mankind
can still refuse to recognize God even after admiring the beauty and complexity found in nature.
The words from the first reading from the book of Wisdom says, “For if they so far succeeded in
knowledge that they could speculate about the world, how did they not more quickly find it’s
Lord?” And that is a very good question.
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The purpose of life is to know God and to love Him and serve Him. (cc: 1, 68) Atheists and
agnostics have not yet come to understand this most elemental fact of human life. (cc: 2123-
2128) They have really missed the boat, no matter how intelligent they may be. And that is
exactly what Jesus is talking about in today’s gospel. Lk 17: 26-27
“As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man; they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood
came and destroyed them all.” He went on to explain that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah
were carrying on with life as usual when the cities were utterly destroyed by fire and brimstone.
Jesus warns us to remember Lot’s wife and not look back or try to retrieve anything when it
happens. Honestly, we need to pay attention to this even though most people think the end of
the world could not possibly happen in their lifetime, you never know.
At the very end of the gospel Christ tells us that two people will be in bed asleep and one will be
taken and the other will not, or two women will be grinding flour and one will be taken and one
will be left. This may not sound fair, or loving but Christ himself makes it clear that not everyone
will be found worthy to go with him.
His last remark is puzzling when the disciples asked, “Where, Lord?” He replied, “Where the
body is, there also the vultures will gather.” Doesn’t that sound just like the attacks that the
Catholic church is currently under throughout the world? Especially in the United States where
our religious freedom is being attacked by federal law. The vultures in the federal courts have
gathered around the church that contains and protects the body of Jesus Christ. However, the
church is also under attack in many other places throughout the world, but Christ assures us
that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Called by God.

God speaks to us.

1. Sacred Scripture

2. Church Teachings whether Written or Tradition (st paul message)

3. Prayer (Elijah)

4. Church Community

5. Eucharist

Called to Proclaim the Gospel

- Anu ngang Tawag sa Atin? LCM.

- Why Gospel? Di ba sa Pari yun nakalaan?

- Gospel Definition. Broadly and Narrowly

- By Virtue of Baptism. We are called to proclaim the Gospel.

Called to Promote the Culture of Encounter

- Pope Francis Meditation on the Gospel regarding the widow in Nain.

- Culture of Indifference even at our family.

- not just seeing, but looking; not just hearing, but listening; not just passing people by, but stopping with
them; not just saying “what a shame, poor people!”, but allowing yourself to be moved with
compassion;

- Story of Our Father Your Father

Vocation

- Our calling boils down to a single word. Vocation.

- Vocare – Latin – To call

- What comes to your mind when you hear the word Vocation.

- 4 types of Vocation - marriage, single life, priesthood and religious life

- Vocation grows over time a gradual process

- All vocations is unique. No two paths to holiness are the same because None of us are the same.

Difference Profession and Vocation

- Vocation is free service.

- Profession and Vocation is the same- we have work to do.

- Baptismal Mission. Priest, Prophet and King.

Vocation as a Gift

- Choosing God every single day.

- Universal call to holiness. Lumen gentium.

- Doctor story forgiving.

Our Intention for being LCM.

- Fr Casey don’t be a Priest.

Fundamentals of Vocation

- To Know God – Learning the Faith, the Truth ( St Augustine and St Ambrose), It is the Truth that finds
man, not man the Truth. That Truth is Jesus Christ, Son of God, our loving Saviour, Redeemer,
Brother and Friend (pwedeng bang magpalit palit ang to know, to love and to serve.

- To Love God – Relationship nurtured by Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation

- To Serve God – Action, applying what we learned, know + love = service.

 No true love for the Truth that will not lead to service.

Christian Service

- “When you have done all you have been commanded, say, “We are unprofitable servants; we
have done what we were obliged to do.” Luke 17:10b

- 10
Ganoon din naman kayo; kapag nagawa na ninyo ang lahat ng iniuutos sa inyo, sabihin ninyo,
‘Kami'y mga aliping walang kabuluhan; tumutupad lamang kami sa aming tungkulin.’”

- Do you serve so as to be thanked? Or do you provide service because it is good and right to serve?

- We called serve God Thru the Church – Liturgy

- To serve God thru the Community. Encounter.

Video of Fr Casey Is God Calling You?

- Conclusion.

- Are willing to serve God?

- I hope to hear your Joyfull YES.