LUKE ARREDONDO:
Most vocation stories
begin with a young man living his life his own way, doing what he wants to, trying to set his own path in life. Mine certainly
falls under that category.
Growing up, my parents
always took me to Mass and Religious Education classes. I went willingly most of the time, and sometimes just because
I had to. Eventually I began to like the idea of church, but not in the way of a career or a lifestyle, just as a place to
go on the weekends.
In school, I seemed to have found something
that I was called to do. I was a musician and, just like my father and mother, chose the trumpet as my instrument. By the
time I was in high school, I was sitting high in all of the all-state bands. I took lessons from a symphony player and even
made some high-profile contacts in the trumpet world. It seemed like everything was going great and I decided to pursue trumpet
studies in college. After earning a full-scholarship and out-of-state waiver, I embarked on a journey that has taken me places
I never thought I’d go. I entered college at Florida State University in the fall semester of 2002.
Before I went to college, I overheard a speaker at my home parish saying "when
you go to college, you know, you’ll loose your faith and fall away from the Church for a while, but most people do,
you’ll come back…" Now, I never confronted this speaker, and it’s entirely possible that I heard an
out-of-context statement, but since this was all I heard as I walked through the parish hall, I was shocked. I couldn’t
believe somebody saying that it’s regular and even expected to "lose the faith" while in college. I made a
decision that instant that I would, at all costs, avoid this "common" phenomenon. I was blessed to find a terrific
Catholic Student Union (CSU) at Florida State University. There were 15 on-campus Bible studies throughout the week, a weekly
conference with a religious or priest, retreats every semester, football game barbeques, etc. Being three states away from
anybody I had ever met in my life, it was a good place to set a foundation. I found myself growing in the faith, rather than
losing it.
As time went on and I met more people at school,
I began having friends of my own and didn’t feel the absolute necessity to hang out with people from the church. The
academic career of a music major isn’t much, but the time constraints of rehearsals, recital attendance, and practicing
(3 hours a day!) can be quite draining. By my junior year I wasn’t as involved in the CSU, but I still went on the retreats
and played for Mass every week. It was this time that God chose to speak to me, though I had Him tuned out for quite a while.
My trumpet playing, the only thing I was really concerned with
in the long-term, began to disappear. It’s hard to describe what happened, and I still haven’t really figured
it out. The best way to describe it would be to use a sports analogy. Imagine feeling like you could be the next Tiger Woods,
provided that you kept progressing at a constant level. Then, you realize one day that you’re in a slump. And somehow,
this slump spirals out of control, and you can’t seem to find any of that talent you thought you had. Well,
this is what was going on with me. I was at school on a huge scholarship because an area about the size of a quarter on my
face used to work really well for playing trumpet. When this stopped working, I felt completely lost.
I searched for answers and changed trumpet teachers at school. I tried a summer
program where I studied with one of the world’s best trumpet players. From time to time, I’d think I was getting
better. But, the bottom line was that I was not making progress. Eventually, the professor at school told me I needed to reconsider
my future. This was an all-time low.
During Christmas break
of my senior year at FSU, I had some down time to reflect and realized something. I asked myself "Whatever happened to
all that time I used to spend at CSU? And that goal I had of never losing my faith? What happened to the peace that I had
in my life?"
I was asking big questions, and knew that
the only answer was in my Catholic faith. I decided that, no matter what, I would return to all the CSU activities I’d
been "too busy" for. Three weeks into the spring semester, I wasn’t so concerned with my trumpet playing;
at least I didn’t see it as an immanent disaster. I had peace. Then, at a conference, one of the Brothers from the Brotherhood
of Hope did a talk on discernment. In a room with 200 people, it’s pretty easy to shrink into the crowd. But this night,
it seemed like he was talking directly and only to me. I walked away and was shaken; it seemed like God was trying to get
a message to me. I poured myself even more into the CSU events, going to Mass on Saturday mornings, praying at an abortion
clinic, going to adoration, listening to EWTN radio, etc. I was reading Pope Benedict’s encyclical and doing Google
searches on "seminary" "priest requirements," etc.
Well, I sat down and talked with a Brother at FSU and he explained to me the typical formation process. I had decided
that I needed to talk with somebody in the Diocese once I got out of school for the year. During my spring break, I visited
Fr. Don Derivaux, who shared his own story with me. My parents began to suspect that I was up to something. After my fourth
year at FSU was done, my scholarships expired. I was without a degree because I had changed majors late into my time there,
but I wasn’t worried. I set up a meeting with the vocation director, Fr. Kent Bowlds, and from there, things moved swiftly.
My time in seminary has been a blessing and I’m thankful
for all those who have supported me; particularly, my parents, Fr. P.J. Curley, Knights of Columbus Council 898, Vicksburg,
Fr. Don Derivaux, and Fr. Kent Bowlds.
If you find yourself
looking for peace in your life and don’t know where to find it, slow down and listen: God may be calling you.
Fr. LINCOLN DALL:
(Fr. Dall graduated from Sacred Heart Seminary
& was ordained on May 31, 2008.)
Tracing back my call to the priesthood to specific
events can be a very daunting task, since there have been so many people and experiences that have influenced me in a significant
way. Yet, I am able to recognize that the most significant people and events that have influenced my call to the priesthood
relate to my experiences as a social justice volunteer and a lay missionary. After I spent time in West Africa as a Peace
Corps volunteer, I realized that God was calling me to work with the poor. As a lay missionary volunteer, I spent three years
working in Canada at a soup kitchen, a food bank, and a healing center serving the indigenous people. I then spent three years
in the rainforest jungles of Ecuador as a lay missionary
with the Comboni Missionaries and a year teaching at a missionary school in Texas. I changed in so many ways through each
of those experiences, knowing that somehow I wanted to devote the rest of my life to doing God’s work. As a lay missionary,
it really touched my heart to see how the homeless people survived on the streets during the brutal Canadian winters and how
some of my students in Ecuador spent hours paddling a canoe just to make it to school. Through my missionary work, I became
familiar with liberation theology and God’s "preferential option for the poor." It seemed like a whole new
world had opened up for me.
One event sticks out in my mind from my missionary experiences. I was spending the Christmas
holidays in a small village deep in the rainforest of Ecuador named San Francisco de Onzole. During my three years in Ecuador
as a missionary, I traveled several hours by canoe to this village every weekend from our missionary base in order to administer
and teach at a high school there and to teach religious education to the children. On Christmas Eve, we were all gathered
in the church, singing Christmas hymns in Spanish to the beats of drums and maracas. The darkness of the rainforest jungle
was all around us, barely pierced by the light emitting from the few candles we had in the church. Having grown up in an urban
environment in Chicago and southern California, this experience of Christmas in the rainforest seemed like a dream. But, as
I was surrounded by the people of the missions that I knew and loved so well, it made me realize how global and diverse the
kingdom of God really is. It was such a humbling experience to feel like a part of this faith community. I came to Mississippi in 2000 in order to work on a graduate degree in education and to
teach at the public high school in Greenville as a member of the Mississippi Teacher Corps. Even though I was teaching
at a public school, I still approached this calling of teaching the children and youth with the heart of a missionary. I became
an active member of Sacred Heart Parish in Greenville; through their encouragement, I began to realize how strongly I was
being called to the priesthood. Looking back, I would never have guessed the different places I would be called to during
my lifetime. Having started my professional career as a CPA in a large auditing firm, I never imagined that I would end up
traveling to different mission sites in a canoe through the South American rainforests or singing in the Gospel choir at Sacred
Heart Parish in the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Nevertheless, I cannot even begin to convey the thanks and gratitude I
have in my heart for the beautiful experiences I have had and the loving people I have met.
My experiences at the seminary were another wonderful part of this journey. Not only was it is a blessing to
study the Sacred Scriptures and theology in the classroom, but I had many other hands-on and practical experiences throughout
my four years there. The seminary community was very much a nurturing family; I consider myself very fortunate to have such
a solid foundation in my formation for the priesthood.
GREG DAVIDSON:
The call to a priestly vocation is unique to
each man who experiences it and also, in a way, common to all who share it. I was raised Methodist, not Catholic. While in
my early 20’s during my time in college as a student at Ole Miss, I felt drawn to the Catholic Church. During my years
there, I attended Sunday morning services regularly at the United Methodist Church.
Over the course of my four-and-a-half years there as a business student, although attending
services at the Methodist church regularly, I also attended services other churches. Although I was quite ecumenical
in my approach/views concerning Christianity and felt more or less
at home at each of these churches, I felt a much stronger pull towards Catholicism, not just a mere attraction to Catholic
liturgical/sacramental tradition (small "t"), but to the greater Catholic Tradition (capital "T") and
theology. I found myself reading, quite extensively, concerning such Tradition/theology and attending Mass (not receiving
the Eucharist yet, of course)--so much so that by the time I earned my B.B.A. degree and began working on my M.B.A., I was
attending Mass at St.John’s Catholic Parish much more often than services at the Methodist site.
Upon graduating in December of 1985, I returned home to Corinth, where I attended
the church of my youth, Corinth’s First United Methodist Church. During the next four years, I lived and worked both
in Corinth and Tupelo. In both cities, although still attending Methodist and Baptist services regularly, I still found myself
attending Mass in both cities. Finally, near the end of 1989, I asked my parents about their feelings concerning the
possibility of my becoming Catholic. I had just turned 27 at the time, and had been hesitant (since the age of 21 or
22) to approach them.
Their answer, support, and love
surprised me. Needless to say, if I’d known they felt this way, I’d have converted years earlier.
Thus, the following Easter Vigil (1990) I was confirmed Catholic.
I immediately became a lector, commentator, Eucharistic minister, and CYO advisor. Before a year had passed, several parishioners approached me concerning priesthood. I laughingly dismissed them,
saying that I was a "new" Catholic. Over the next five years, from 1990 to 1995, four or five of these same parishioners
persisted in their attempts to get me to consider the priesthood. My answer was always that I was not "cut out"
to be a priest.
In the summer 1995 I moved to Starkville
and lived there until the end of 1999. Again, I actively served that parish each year as lector, Eucharistic minister, and
RCIA sponsor and session instructor. Again, before I had lived there
a year, a few parishioners asked me if I had ever considered the priesthood.
Just as I did in Corinth, I gently dismissed their queries, again not able to see/identify myself as a priest. However, that
"whispering voice" was beginning to whisper a little more loudly.
At the end of 1999 I returned to Corinth and to St. James Parish. The "voice," instead of whispering, was
beginning to talk out loud in the words/actions of fellow parishioners, my own reflections, in my readings, homilies I heard,
etc. Still, over the next three or four years, I resisted.
When
I quit resisting, started listening to this "voice" and responded to its push/pull by contacting the Diocese in
February 2006 concerning discernment and formation, I began to feel that I was doing what Christ desired of me. I can not
adequately explain it, except to say that I am now content.
When I came home over the Christmas Holiday after my first semester in seminary, several parishioners commented how
they could see a change in me, that I somehow seemed "happier and more content." This past summer, after
having completed my first year in seminary, even more parishioners made the same comment. I can honestly say that their observations
are accurate: I am much more content. I have surrendered, (no easy thing), to ‘the call’ and feel that I am doing
as Our Lord wishes. I can also honestly say that I have not regretted, not for one split-second, my response. I feel that
I am being formed into the servant Our Lord wishes me to be and hope and pray that I will continue to be formed as such and
form others and be their servant for the rest of my earthly life.
PATRICK JONES:
A vocation to discern the priesthood is a precious gift. I now pursue the exploration of this gift through the will
of God, the support of the Diocese of Jackson, the Knights of Columbus Council 1251 and my parents, Beauchamp and Rosy Jones,
at Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana. This vocation did not happen over night. It has taken most of my adult life
and two intensive years of discernment before realizing Notre Dame Seminary is where God has called me to be. Reflecting on
the life that God has given me, this vocation began when I was a young man. As a young man, for year’s, I loved participating
in Mass as an altar boy. The memories of that experience are some of the happiest times of my youth.
At the
time, I did not realize the gift with which I was being presented. I vaguely pursued exploration into discernment by attending
a vocations meeting with the Diocese of Jackson during my high school years but quickly dismissed discerning the priesthood.
At that time, I believed there was only one way to live life--go to college, find a spouse and make money. It never occurred
to me that God might be speaking to me and asking me to consider a life that is counter–cultural: a life focused on
serving others and not myself. When I left for college I did the opposite of what my parents and the Church had taught; I
began to live life "my way". My "desires" were the main focus of life and I thought I knew what was best
for me. I would listen to no one and was determined to live life on my terms. What I was really looking for was happiness
but these selfish actions slowly led me to a life of rationalism and materialism. This self–enslavement, which began
in college, lasted most of my twenties until I was about twenty-eight.
At the age of twenty-eight I really began to wonder why I existed and what my purpose
in this world was. Instead of looking for the next relationship or good time I began searching for a truth in life and in
the world. My life until now was wasted on myself. I had helped no one and had hurt the people who had dedicated their lives
to my success and happiness. This is also the first time I really fell in love with the foundation that is now my life, our
Triune God. This was the truth and I knew it when He found me. In retrospect, God had been whispering softly to me throughout
my whole adult life and now again offering me the same gift of vocation He presented to me a decade ago. During this time
my interior life grew immensely. I wanted to attend Mass everyday in the morning before work and spend time contemplating
in front of the Blessed Sacrament about what God’s will was for me.
I eventually contacted Father Kent Bowlds,
Vocation Director for the Diocese of Jackson. When I met with Father Bowlds we discussed my prayer life and feelings about
discerning a vocation. He was encouraging but asked me to wait six months to see if I still had the same feelings, later as
I did at that meeting. Over the next year, I prayed, my feelings grew stronger; I visited religious orders but Father Bowlds
and I discerned that God was calling me to discern priesthood for the Diocese of Jackson.
My life now is focused on the Eucharist and Jesus Christ crucified. Our Blessed
Mother is essential in my discernment. I constantly seek her intercession to help me understand to what God is calling me.
Life in the seminary was a huge adjustment but is wonderful. For the first time in my life I am truly happy. At the present
time I am a second year philosophy student and next year, God willing, I will be a first year theologian.
While
there are a lot of activities with which one can involve himself, a seminarian’s time largely consists of studying and
praying. With the guidance of our formation directors we also focus on our own development as human beings and understanding
ourselves so that we can develop into the best human beings that God intends us to be. We also learn how to develop our interior
spiritual lives so that, if God chooses us for priesthood, we can, while living for others, maintain a strong-intimate relationship
with God. This relationship allows us to remember that, because a priest acts in Persona Christi, a priest is called to serve
others through the Sacraments. This is not a right but a gift of which no one is worthy.
I trust and pray that
through our formation at Notre Dame Seminary we will develop the tools to serve the people of the Diocese of Jackson in ways
that are compassionate, loving and true to the teachings of the Church. Humbly I would like to thank Bishop Latino, Vicar
General Elvin Sunds and Father Kent Bowlds for the opportunity to study for the Diocese of Jackson. In addition, a special
thank you to the Knights of Columbus Council 1251 and to my parents for their support. Please pray for Pope Benedict XVI,
Bishop Latino, all the priests of the Diocese of Jackson, the seminarians and for an increase of vocations in the diocese.
CHARLES MACKO:
The dust said yes to the rain and they embraced. The clay was created.
The clay was picked up by the Potter
and was taken to his barn. In the barn were dishes that the Potter had made from the pieces of clay he had gathered. There
were many plates and cups and a few big bowls. The clay had seen these beautiful things that were made by the Potter’s
hand. He thought how wonderful it would be if the Potter could make him into a plate so that he could hold the food that fed
the Potter. The clay also thought that it would be wonderful to be a cup so that he could hold the water that quenches the
Potter’s thirst.
The Potter picked up
the clay, put him on his molding table and began spinning him. He added water, loosening the piece of clay. The clay began
being formed by the Potters hand. After the spinning stopped the clay was dizzy, but he felt different. He had taken on a
new life; but it did not feel like a plate or a cup. He was formed into something that the Potter needed more importantly
than a plate or a cup. The clay was formed into a big bowl.
The bowl was confused because it did not want to be a bowl and asked the Potter why he formed him this way. The Potter
answered, "When I embraced the dust and you were brought into this world I had one thing in mind. I needed a dish that
could hold both food and water; one that could feed the hungry and quench the thirsty. You are just that dish; and I made
you big enough so that you could feed the many."
I was born on September 3rd,
1969, in Atlanta, GA. My family and I moved to Brandon, Mississippi in 1977 and I became a member of St. Jude’s parish
in Pearl. (St. Paul in Brandon had not yet been built.) I graduated from Brandon High School in 1988, and I attended Hinds
Community College for two years. During most of my schooling I worked at the local Brandon/Pearl Kroger and Wal-Mart. In 1993
I graduated from The University of Southern Mississippi with a B.S. in Public Communication.
After college I moved to Orlando, FL, and for two years worked for the Walt Disney
World Co. I was a training coordinator for one of the Disney resort hotels. I moved back to Brandon in 1995 and joined the
management team at Wal-Mart. I had been working there for seven years, when, at the age of 33, I resigned to attend Notre
Dame Seminary.
God had been
calling me since he "knit me in my mother’s womb" (Psalm 139:13). He is always calling us to follow his will.
That call is our vocation. It is a vocation to the married life, single life, or religious life. I had my own plans for my
vocation in life, which were different than what God had in mind for me. Today I am confident God’s plan was to form
me to be a priest.
He did
have a little help in my formation. I was adopted and raised by loving and caring parents. I grew up along side my other adopted
brother and sisters. My family, life long friends, teachers in school, bosses at work, the priest and parishioners at St.
Jude, all taught me the importance of the Commandments, the Beatitudes, and the Virtues. I learned these important teachings
through their words and actions.
In
1999 I finally opened my heart to God’s personal call. To confirm this calling, I went to talk to a couple of priests
at St. Jude. Fr. Martin Ruane and Fr. Bill Cullen suggested that I go talk to the Vocation Director at that time, Fr. Joe
Tonos. Fr. Joe knew that I was not quite ready or fully open to live a religious vocation, and he suggested that I give it
more consideration. Instead, I began to close myself again to God’s call
Two years later, in 2001, I seriously
thought about going back to school and pursuing a degree in counseling or teaching. It wasn’t until
I saw an article on the front page of the Clarion Ledger that I got to thinking about the priesthood again. It was about a
priest, and the title of the article was written in big bold print: PRIEST, TEACHER, COUNSELOR. Not much
later, I returned to the Vocation office where Fr. Joe sensed that I was more open to God’s call. He then sent me to
a Spiritual Director to confirm the call. The following September, I enrolled at N.D.S.
I am currently in my final year of academics. I have learned a lot about Jesus,
my Catholic faith, the Church and her teachings. I have learned how universal our Church is by knowing my fellow seminarians
and their many different cultural and spiritual backgrounds.
There were times when I thought the spinning from the Potter’s molding table would not stop. I admit that getting
back to school after a ten year hiatus, moving away from home, and changing my life style, has all been challenging. When
I am hit with these challenges, I think of the Latin words that are written above the front door of the seminary: Deus
providebit (God Will Provide). I have learned to put my full faith in the Potter’s hands.
I pray that all of you will discern in prayer the vocation God is calling
you to live and that you will also seek spiritual guidance to help discern that call. "Be not afraid", have courage
and faith to answer that call. I thank you for your continued prayers and support. May God bless you and may Christ’s
peace be with you.
SCOTT THOMAS:
Born in Jackson, I am a cradle Catholic, and,
by the grace of God, attended Catholic schools until college. On top of this, my parents always made sure I went to Mass.
So I have been surrounded with our wonderful beliefs and privileges as Catholics. In fact, at a young age, I would dress up
and play priest with my brothers, saying Mass for my family. My mom made us vestments and we put together all of the books
ourselves! Two priests who were at Saint
Richard for all of the seven years I attended its elementary school definitely stand out in my memory. Father Richard Sommers,
as my pastor, always had a smile on his face and was ready to shake my hand after Mass. Also, Monsignor Michael Glynn would
always walk the halls. He always had the love of Christ on his face and a stack of prayer cards in his hand. Another figure
in my life has been Father Brian Kaskie, who was chaplain of Saint Joseph Catholic School in Madison. He was there from before
my seventh grade year through my junior year. Father Brian has always been good to me, offering much guidance throughout my
time of discernment.
I could go on forever
about every priest I have encountered in my life and the impact they have had on my life. But in the many different ways that
they have influenced me, one thing draws them all together—a desire to conform themselves to Christ so that they could
bring him to life in our diocese. So many wonderful men over the years have given their lives so that Christ may be seen in
real life around our wonderful state. And in following their lead, we seminarians have chosen to do the same with our own
lives.
I first started to seriously recognize
my call to the priesthood at 17 years old while I was preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation during my junior year of
high school. I was learning how to become a mature Catholic Christian and was noticing the need to discern just how I was
to live out my Catholic faith, especially as a resident of mostly-Protestant Mississippi. Of course I had dreamed of making
it big in the business world, partially because business seems to be in my blood, especially coming from the family of Jackson’s
S.N. Thomas & Sons. But at the same time, doing work for the Church also runs in my family. Along with his brothers,
my grandfather Leon was extremely active in St. Mary Parish and later St Richard Parish, both in Jackson. He was also very
active in the founding of St Dominic Hospital. So one can see just how many influences were coming into my life and how many
possible directions I had to steer my life.
After
graduating high school, my parents and I decided that it would be best for me to spend time at a major university first, before
entering seminary. So I went off to Mississippi State University, joined Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity, and entered the International
Business program. But after two years, none of my classes were really appealing to me as a possible future. The best time
I was having seemed to be as the sacristan for a weekday and a Sunday Mass at St Joseph Parish in Starkville, as well as the
time I spent with the Catholic Student Association. I was also meeting with Fr. Jeffrey Waldrep either personally or through
the discernment group he led for MSU students. So after two years at MSU, after applying to the Diocese, I transfered
to St. Joseph Seminary College ("St. Ben’s") in Covington, LA, beginning my time as a seminarian.
I do not know for sure if I will be ordained a priest in
2010. Only God knows what can happen between now and then. But what I do know is that ever since beginning at St. Joseph
and then moving to Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans for theology, I have loved all of the classes I am taking and truly
feel that I am finally working toward a profession in which I can spend the rest of my life.
But we all know that the priesthood is more than just a profession. It is a life!
The priest is not just asked to give a portion of his day to make sure that everything in the parish is running smoothly.
Rather, he is called to give himself entirely to bring to life Christ for the people of God. He is to guide Christ’s
flock 24/7, offering the food they need to fill their spiritual hunger. And this is what makes me so fired up about being
in seminary and the idea of becoming a priest for the people of Mississippi. God has been so great to me and my family. He
has filled me with so much joy over the years that I cannot help but wish to spread this joy to as many people as possible,
bringing more people back into the pews of our parishes or even into those pews for the first time!
Brother Knights of Columbus, I ask for all of your prayers and truly thank you
for all of your support! Ever since joining the Knights of Columbus while at MSU, and after experiencing all four degrees
of our extraordinary brotherhood, I have considered myself fortunate to know such an amazing group of men and their families!
I pray for our brotherhood constantly so that it may grow, and that its members may always actively support the priesthood
of our diocese and strive to find more young men willing to serve Christ and his Church!
RUSTY VINCENT:
"The
two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, ‘What
are you looking for?’ They said to him, ‘Rabbi where are you staying?’ He said to them, ‘Come, and
you will see.’" (John 1:37-39). My life, though not long, has taken me along a path which Christ has called me.
I spent so much time looking in places for things I really did not want and enduring the hardships that come with that road,
but the road less traveled can make all the difference.
I
really never felt a call throughout high school. My involvement at my parish was really held to a minimum in that I never
had a desire to serve at Mass, participate in CYO activities, or really be involved in the activities of the church. I was
happy just going to Mass every Sunday and living my simple life, but little did I know that just around the corner was a wakeup
call. Once I graduated from high school, I was beginning to hear the question "What are you looking for?" and had
no answer. I thought I wanted to go to a big school that I loved like LSU, but that left me lonely. I thought I had a desire
to be successful, but that just left me empty. I thought I had everything I wanted, and then I began to feel that I really
had nothing. I left LSU after two days of classes and came back home feeling like a failure, and all the depression and anger
about the way my life was heading was began to take over.
Then
the day came that my parish priest, Fr. Martin Ruane, asked me to consider the priesthood. I did not really consider it before
that day, and it really got me to think about it. Initially, I said no, and I really did not feel ready to make that kind
of decision, but just being asked allowed me to stop feeling sorry for myself and ask the Lord what way he was calling me.
About a year later, Pope John Paul II died, and the same emotions that overwhelmed me the previous year came over me again.
During this whole year of time, I found myself asking Jesus "Where are you staying" so I could discover my own call
in life. Christ began to flow into all aspects of my life, but I still was not ready to answer the calling; I was not quite
ready to go and see.
Towards the end of my schooling at Hinds
Community College through prayer and guidance, I began to see Christ leading me towards the seminary, but I did not know what
that was and I wanted to see. I began to speak with my parish priest and the vocation director about seminary, but something
was still holding me back. Now looking back on it, I think fear was holding me back--fear that I was not ready or I was hearing
the call wrongly. Finally I went and saw the seminary for myself, and thanks to one of our seminarians, I got to see for myself
what seminary was all about. The visit was as if I finally reached the place where Christ was staying. I knew then I was ready
to take the next step of my vocation.
Christ continues calling
me to come and see every day. I continue to learn more things about my faith and myself, and the learning strengthens my drive
towards the priesthood. I am thankful that the journey was hard, for if it was easy, I would not have been ready to embrace
Christ and become an image of Him. The biggest thing was that I just needed to finally learn to listen to where the Lord was
taking me and not worry about where I thought I should go. Though this journey is scary, I must always remember that I am
not alone as well. Even in John’s Gospel, there were two disciples following him to go and see. My journey is not any
different than theirs. I could not be at the point that I am at today without the support of my whole family, especially my
parents who gave me so much support during both the good and bad times, and all of my friends who gave me the strength to
allow me to take the trip. I would like to thank everyone at my home parish particularly Knights of Columbus Council 8038,
of which I am a member. I would also like to thank Knights of Columbus Gluckstadt Council 11934 for all the support they have
given me. Any journey can be aided with the help of some friends. I will continue to keep everyone in my prayer, and I hope
everyone will continue to keep me and my fellow seminarians in theirs.
