Saying
"Yes" When God Calls
Why is it so difficult for
some people to say "Yes" to Jesus in responding to
a call to priesthood or religious life? I had been
contemplating that question for quite some time when a young
man, who had just two weeks prior expressed strong interest
in the priesthood, e-mailed me to say he could not go on the
planned trip to visit the college seminary because he got a
job watching a dog that weekend.
I had to laugh a little
because I imagined Jesus calling forth a prospective
disciple to come and follow him only to have the person say,
"Not now. I have a dog to watch!" While that may
seem a little funny today, I am sure that Jesus had to face
the rejection of many invitations in his day, and he faces
many rejections of his invitations to priesthood and
religious life today.
The Scriptures tell of many
stories of those who willingly said "Yes" to the
call of discipleship despite their doubts and unworthiness.
The fishermen, Andrew and Peter, James and John, reportedly
left their nets, let go of their family relationships, and
immediately became Jesus' disciples to be fishers for the
kingdom. Matthew too immediately left his post at the
tax-collecting stand to follow Jesus. Mary, in the midst of
her uncertainty in hearing the call through the words of the
angel Gabriel, eventually trusted in the fulfillment of
God's promises and said, "Let it be done unto me as God
says." The pages of Scripture and church history are
filled with example after example of saints who said
"Yes," even in spite of some great hardships.
There are only a few stories,
however, of would-be-disciples who just could not say
"Yes." It is not surprising that we do not know
their names. Perhaps the most famous is the rich young man
(Matthew 19) who desired to be a disciple and had lived a
righteous life following all the commandments. When Jesus
instructed him to sell what he had, give to the poor and
then come and follow him, the Gospel reports the young man
went away sad because he had many possessions. Indeed money,
possessions, and worldly things do get in the way of saying
"Yes." Whether it is the temptation to have lots
of expensive things or the fact that debts to pay for
possessions have weighed a person's life down, materialism
remains a big reason why people reject the call today.
There are a series of stories
in Luke 9 that tell of another prevalent reason for not
saying "Yes". One man is invited to follow Jesus
and he responds, "Let me go first and bury my
father." A second man invited to discipleship says,
"I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell
to my family at home." Jesus sternly responds,
"Let the dead bury the dead. . . . No one who sets a
hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit
for the kingdom of God."
Perhaps Jesus seems overly
harsh with these would-be-disciples. After all, they didn't
say "No," they merely said, "Not now."
Yet Jesus was not pleased with their "Not now."
Why? Well, he was indicating that in each life there is a
critical moment when we either respond positively to Jesus'
call or we don't. There is no incident in the Gospels where
Jesus says "Come away next year to follow me," or
"Follow me when you think you're ready." There is
immediacy to the call that demands a response now, because
there is no guarantee that Jesus will be knocking on one's
door or calling one's name tomorrow or next week or next
year. One needs to say "Yes" whenever and wherever
Jesus calls.
There are large numbers of
men and women, younger and not so young, who have been
called to religious vocations, and yet they have responded
with the excuses of today that led them to say, "Not
now. Maybe later, Jesus." To some extent good Catholics
have encouraged these delay strategies. They say things
like, "Test the call. If it is authentic it will be
there after college or after a few years of work. There's
plenty of time; you're still young. What's the rush?"
While these might be
well-meaning bits of advice, they can mislead a young man or
woman into thinking that he or she should put aside a
religious call and pursue other paths because the religious
call, if authentic, will always be there. I have spoken with
more than a few men who believed this way when they were
younger. They felt called to priesthood as young men, but
instead they pursued other paths at the time. Some have
married and then tragically divorced, and now they feel a
desire for priesthood. They realized too late that the call
really never left them, but they chose to say, "Not
now." Many of them have gotten themselves into
situations where they can no longer say "Yes" in a
priestly way.
After eight years of vocation
work and helping men consider the path of priestly service,
I am convinced that, if we are to make a mistake in
interpreting the call, it is better to err on God's side. It
is far better to say "Yes" now, perhaps discover
that seminary life and priesthood or religious life are not
good fits, and move on to something different, than to say
"Not yet" now and then discover too late that
priesthood or religious life was the right thing to pursue.
Their lives would have been
so different had someone instead said to these men,
"Don't be afraid. Go now to serve Jesus. Give God the
First Chance with your life. The Lord will never disappoint
or abandon anyone who steps out in faith to serve Him."
These are the kinds of words with which we must encourage
young people. These are words that inspire them to dream big
dreams, to live with courageous spirits, and to love with
generous hearts.
In the past month I have
interviewed over 120 high school junior boys about their
faith and their futures, and I have spoken with 31 of them
who are interested in looking more carefully at priesthood.
I know that there are many more young men like these in our
schools and parishes. I have spoken the words of the call,
"Follow after Jesus. Christ has important work for you
to do. Consider being a priest. Answer the Call." What
reinforcement will they receive from family, friends, parish
priests, and fellow Catholics? I am hopeful someone will
say, "Do not be afraid," and another, "Give
God the first chance," and another, "Dream those
big dreams." How different their lives will be and how
different our Church will be if these young men can say
"Yes" now!
Sunday, May 6, Good Shepherd
Sunday, is the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Please
pray that our young Catholics will have the courage and
generosity to say "Yes" now. More importantly,
help some young person you know say "Yes." May we
help young people follow after the heart of the Good
Shepherd, Jesus Christ, as priests, brothers, and sisters.
Father
Burke Masters
Joliet Diocese Vocation Director
World Day of Prayer for Vocations
Sunday, May 6, 2001
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