Six Habits of Highly Effective Dioceses (Catholic Caucus)

Why are some dioceses better at attracting vocations than others? In Tim Drake’s recent story “Vocations Surge,” the Register provided some answers to that question.

Based on what we learned, here are six questions successful dioceses all answer “Yes.”

We found that the promotion of Eucharistic adoration for vocations is a decisive factor in attracting candidates. The reason is simple: It’s a vocations strategy that came from Christ himself, when he told the apostles to “ask the Lord of the harvest to send more laborers.”

Eucharistic adoration is especially effective because it draws sharp attention to the great gift that makes the priesthood so extraordinary and so needed — we have the priesthood to thank for God’s real presence in the Blessed Sacrament. And the dynamic of silent Eucharistic adoration inevitably leads to the question, “What do you want me to do, Lord?”

Anecdotal evidence bears this out. In conjunction with the U.S. bishops, Vocation.com kicked off an effort in 2005 that delivered Vatican monstrances to dioceses in order to encourage regular adoration in parishes. Program leaders like David Craig have been astounded to see parishes produce their first vocations ever after Eucharistic adoration was introduced.

Father Keith Stewart in the Diocese of Memphis, Tenn., counted this as the key to his vocations strategy. A U.S. bishops survey found that 78% of those being ordained said they were initially invited by a priest to consider the priesthood. Very few men were drawn to the priesthood by ads alone. One of our sources said that the seminarians he talks to say they only began to consider the priesthood the third or fourth time they were asked!

We’ve all heard horror stories about seminaries using theologians who try to “de-mythologize” religion, and end up denying basic truths of the faith. The Register has reported on situations where seminary instructors downplayed celibacy, offering only a sneer regarding the very sacrifices they are asking young men to make.

The seminaries that are booming, like Mount St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg, Md., St. Vincent in Latrobe, Pa., and St. Gregory the Great in Seward, Neb., are ones with a reputation for being faithful to the magisterium.

There are beautiful exceptions, but the rule is that priests come from committed Catholic families in which the father is an active player in the family’s faith.

These families are most common, we found, in places like the South and the Midwest, where the faith is relatively new and isn’t taken for granted, or is actually under attack.

In the Northeast, there are lots of Catholics — so many that the faith seems to have become part of the scenery. But wholesome families are more common in the Bible Belt, and Catholics are in a minority. They have had to endure the strange looks and the vigorous — or even vicious — arguments of those who think there’s something strange about being Catholic.

“What do priests do, pray all day?” The priest’s life is largely a mystery to young men. Unless they meet and interact with priests — at parish functions, but also at dinner with their families — it may never occur to many young men that the priesthood is a life that would appeal to them.

The Diocese of Steubenville, Ohio, is one of many dioceses involved in Project Andrew, hosting dinners with priests and young men so that they can meet — and so that the all-important invitation can take place.

For many priests, serving at the altar was the first place they first came to know men who had been called and understood what the call entailed. Parishes should make sure that boys feel welcome at the altar, and that altar serving isn’t, in effect, girls-only.

The World Youth Day factor is very real. Many men in seminary trace their enthusiasm back to a World Youth Day. These events give young people with high ideals a chance to see that the Church will allow them to have a big, positive impact on the world — one that lasts for eternity.

God has never stopped calling young men to commit their lives to him. But we have sometimes stopped listening as well as we could. As more dioceses adopt these highly effective habits, the vocations surge will only get stronger.

2005 Year of the Eucharist

2006 Year of the Priest

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In October we will end the year dedicated to Jesus Christ present in the Eucharist, which was proclaimed by the late Pope John Paul II and carried over by his successor, Pope Benedict XVI. It has been an extraordinarily grace-filled year as we have had the opportunity to reflect more profoundly on our Lord’s abiding presence in this Sacrament of the Altar.

At the end of this year, Bishop Shaheen and I, at the request of our priests, have decided to focus on Jesus Christ and his priests. Our Lord is present among us in His people – clergy, religious and laity - and in a special way, through his priests. The presence of Jesus in the Eucharist and in his ordained priests, are two sides of a profound mystery. His presence in the Eucharist is perfect and divine. His presence in the ordained priest is imperfect and human. The priesthood on earth belongs, not to angels, but to men. Therefore, the lofty and eternal priesthood of Jesus Christ is presented to the world through men who are weak and sinful, yet called by the grace of Holy Orders to serve at His altar and to minister His Mysteries (Sacraments) to the people they are called to serve. This gift, an amazing sign of God’s great trust in man, is worthy of a deeper and more profound reflection.

When participating in the ordination ceremony of a Maronite priest, who among us can remain unmoved, when the Bishop places the Eucharist on the head of the newly ordained priest and asks him to walk among the people in solemn procession? We are so moved because the human and imperfect are holding aloft, the divine and perfect Mystery of God’s love! To further reflect on this great mystery, Bishop Shaheen and I have decided to dedicate this year to our priests and to prayer, work and discernment of vocations to the priesthood. As we priests reflect on our vocation to the priesthood, we invite everyone to reflect as well, on how they live out the gift of their vocation as parents, married and single people or religious.

Recently, I was asked how I knew I was “called by God” to be a priest. Never having been completely sure I was “called,” as a young man I felt a quiet invitation from Christ to give of myself more generously to whatever He wanted of me. With the help of a priest and a friend, I decided to explore and accept the adventure of listening to this call wherever it led me. The rest is history!

In this upcoming year, dedicated to Christ and his priests, let each of us recommit to our efforts to foster and pray for vocations to the priesthood.

It is the responsibility of all of us - clergy, religious and laity - to fulfill the ministerial needs of the Church and to work for vocations. Some can pray, spend time before the Blessed Sacrament, some can invite men to consider a priestly calling, some can join the Order of Sharbel and help educate seminarians, some can serve as catechists, choir members, volunteers, NAM members, Knights of Columbus, Ladies, Men, Young Adult and Youth leaders who enable the priests to be more effective ministers.

In whatever capacity God has called us, let us focus on our own vocation and how we listen to God’s quiet voice in our lives. Let us also make a generous response to him as a starting point to foster our own calling, the true vocations of others, and the art of listening to God.

In this way, we will become even more a “listening Church” and a “generous Church”.

May the prayer of the Mother of God, Mother of priests, and Mother of all those called to witness to her son, Jesus Christ, be with us.

Sincerely yours in Christ

+ Gregory John Mansour

This year, the Maronite Voice, a monthly publication of the Maronite Catholic Church in the US, is featuring a picture and biography of a different seminarian, each month.

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Seminary opened its doors on September 24, 1961. On January 10, 1966, Archbishop Zayek became the first Maronite bishop of the United States, and took responsibility for the seminary. Under the guidance of Archbishop Zayek, his successor, Bishop Stephen Hector Doueihi, and Bishops John Chedid and Robert Shaheen, the seminary has experienced rapid growth and a steady influx of vocations and ordinations. During its forty years of existence, sixty-one men have been ordained to the priesthood. (Note that up until the establishment of this seminary, ALL Maronite priests came from Lebanon. Some of our priest, like my pastor, still come to these shores, to serve the Maronite Catholics in the US).

The Rector, alumni, and students of the Maronite Seminary have played a prominent role in the diocese by producing texts on Maronite liturgy, catechetics, theology, spirituality and history. Over the years, many Maronite and Latin Rite church officials and civil dignitaries have visited the seminary. These have in included Patriarch Khoraiche in 1981 and Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir in 1988 and 2001, a number of Maronite Bishops, several Prefects of the Sacred Congregation of the Oriental Churches and every Apostolic Delegate and Papal Pro-Nuncio to the United States.

Thanks to a generous contribution by Mr. Anthony Abraham of Miami, Florida, a new wing was added to the Seminary in 2001. Patriarch Nasrallah Peter Cardinal Sfeir, dedicated the new structure on March 6, 2001. The new wing features a library, computer area, seminar rooms, and housing for faculty and seminarians. It can also serve as a nucleus for a Maronite research center.

OUR LADY OF LEBANON MARONITE SEMINARY - Washington, DC

PS - I've got my eye on one young man in our parish (he's only 14). His uncle is a Chorbishop and his cousin is a priest. From time to time, I compliment him on his dedication as an altar server and then plant the seeded question ;-)

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