Inspiring call to the priesthood

H/T to The Deacon's Bench for this inspiring tale of a priest called in the midst of the misery of his uncle's murder.

From suburban Maryland comes this story of how the murder of a priest inspired his nephew to pursue his own vocation.

The chalice Thomas Wells used in mass for 29 years will go with his nephew on Sunday when David Wells takes over as priest of his own parish. The chalice was passed down to David by his family who thought his uncle would want him to have it.

In a Father's Day Mass on Sunday, David Wells said, he will speak of the lessons he learned from his uncle, who was a father figure to many people.

"My uncle was definitely a spiritual father and he led many people to a spiritual maturity through his words and scripture," he said. "My own dad, who has the same passion for the Catholic faith, raised me and prepared me for the day when I would become a priest."

Are you called to be a priest?

This video, coming from the Congregation for the Clergy, is most inspiring. Give them a watch, or direct someone you know who may be called to the priesthood to check them out. I suspect many young men will find this video not only inspiring, but perhaps even compelling.







HM Television, who have produced the video, are saying:

HM Television, together with the Holy Sees Congregation for the Clergy, presents Alter Christus, a fast-paced film on the many aspects of the priesthood in the life of the Church. Centered on the life of St. John Vianney, the topics covered range from the Priestly Identity to the Sacraments, from Celibacy to the Mission.

My own comment is simply this - perhaps there is an over emphasis on the priest as Alter Christus and perhaps more should be made of the priest in persona Christi but it's a minor-ish point given the quality and reach of the video. It's excellent on the supernatural aspects of priesthood.

Oscott and its life.

Just yesterday my email contained a great link to a new video about life in seminary. Oscott, or at least some of her students and staff, star in a short video put together by the Birmingham Vocations Team. It is accessible on the Year for Priests website, here. My limited technology knowledge prevented me form pasting it here on the blog, but you can click on to the actual website easily enough.

Don't forget the informative blog, eastangliaseminarians, who have this to say about the new video:

http://www.yearforpriests.org/Virtual.html

Click on the link above for a short video produced by the Birmingham vocations office about life in Oscott. It's been quite well put together I think, and provides parts of conversations with several seminarians, as well as film clips of liturgy and community activities which take place on a day to day basis. (Look out for the Fishers of Men hat-tip after the words, 'We live in a world that is very noisy...')

Now, mention of the blog leads me to remember the students of the Diocese of East Anglia, and I ask you to join with me in prayer for both the Bishop of East Anglia and his students for the priesthood: Michael, Luke, Padraig, Henry, Simon and Ben.

Vocations Mass

This evening we had the great honour, in our parish, of hosting the deanery Vocations Mass. I was particularly struck by someone who said, after the Mass, just how uplifting the experience of being present had been. It is easy, from time to time, to forget just how awesome the experience of Mass can be. The coming together of both the pilgrim Church on earth and the eternal Church of heaven. When were you last aware of that yourself?

It was, indeed, a most uplifting Mass. There were many who had been involved in the preparation of the liturgy, including a rather fetching chasuble designed, and I think made, by Cardinal Newman secondary school. Fr Paul Moss, our diocesan Vocations Director, preached very well and encouraged those present to consider a calling to the priesthood or to the consecrated religious life. All too often, I think, we forget that God uses our voices to talk. The next time you are thinking, "should I suggest priesthood to such and such" don't think about it, do it.

So, thank you to everyone present at Mass, and for those who continue to hold vocations in your prayers. May God bless you all the days of your life.

Praying for Vocations

I was heartened to read, today, of the Vocation Directors meeting in Rome last week. It is reported: In a speech to the English and Welsh Vocations Directors' Conference held at the Palazzola near Rome, Mgr Francis Bonnici, Director of the Pontifical Pastoral Ministry for Priestly Vocations, said England and Wales were among those countries that is seeing an increase in priestly vocations. Provisional statistics indicate that the number of men commencing seminary formation in September 2009 for the dioceses of England and Wales was in the forties (these statistics will be published in the Spring of 2010).

Great news which gives cheer to our hearts!

Let me also plug a Vocations Mass at Christ the King in Coventry this coming Monday at 7pm. All are very welcome. You can find out more here.

Now, if you've pressed on the 'here' link you will have been taken to the Birmingham Vocations website and it may be you didn't find details about the forthcoming Mass. Well that is okay as you have the details on this blog, but perhaps, like me, you stumbled across this wonderfully uplifting story about jubilarians to the priesthood. Between 175 priests they have clocked up almost 8,000 years of ministry! What an amazing feat. I also see that they are currently out in Rome and I hope they're having a jolly uplifting and well deserved break. It's almost impossible to count the number of people's lives they have enriched just through their priestly ministry.

Truly inspiring.

Priesthood, Communion and St Therese

This evening I needed to have a look at the website for the Archdiocese of Birmingham Vocations Team and was really pleased to see that it has been updated. Not that it wasn't already impressive, but it's great to see it very user friendly and, most importantly, I found the information which I needed very quickly. Go have a look for yourself, here.

www.vocations.org.uk

Please remember, this weekend, in your prayers, all of the children from Christ the King Junior School and St Augustine's Primary School; especially those in year three who are to make their first confession and first communion next year. All of the children will be presented, this Sunday, with a rosary to enable their year of preparation to begin with prayer. What better prayer that a decade of the rosary during October?

Finally, h/t to Jackie Parkes for the total number of pilgrims to visit the relics of St. Therese...

Portsmouth 4,500, Plymouth 3,000, Taunton 1,800, Birmingham 11,000, Coleshill 3,000, Cardiff 4,400, Filton 6,000, Liverpool 17,000, Salford 30,000, Manchester University Catholic Chaplaincy 2,000, Preston Carmel 2,000, Lancaster 8,000, Newcastle 5,000, Darlington Carmel, York Minster 10,000, Middlesbrough 15,000, Leeds 14,000, Kirk Edge Carmel (Sheffield) 3,000, Nottingham 8,000, Walsingham 5,000, Oxford 6,200, Gerrards Cross 2,000, Aylesford 17,000, Kensington Carmelite Church 10,000, Notting Hill Carmel 3,500, Wormwood Scrubs 250, Westminster Cathedral 95,000

286,650 pilgrims

Vocations Retreat: Holy Week 2009

Time for some shameless advertising, I think.

Oscott Seminary in Birmingham is offering a retreat to men over 18 who are interested in becoming priests. The Retreat runs from Midday on Maundy Thursday until after Lunch on Easter Sunday.

There are many, many good things about this opportunity, but not least is the chance to live the dream as it were. Guys will be living with us in seminary and thus have a chance to experience the reality of seminary life in all its manifestations. Much of the liturgy is, of course, at St. Chad's Cathedral and so those joining us on the retreat will be warmly welcomed along with us.

Perhaps you know someone to whom this would be a welcome chance to spend time with the Lord. If so, they should get in touch with the Rector:

Mgr Mark Crisp,

Oscott College,

Chester Road,

Sutton Coldfield

B73 5AA

0121 321 5000