The theme of Pope Benedict XVI's
message for the upcoming World Day of Prayer for Vocations points to the
important role Catholic home life plays in the promotion of vocations
to the priesthood and religious life, said Archbishop Robert J. Carlson
of St. Louis.
"The theme which the Holy Father chose places the burden on the local
church to reflect on how it develops a culture of vocations," said the
archbishop, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops'
Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations. "We know that the
vocation comes out of the home."
The papal message for the day of prayer, which will be observed May 15,
was released Feb. 10 at the Vatican. The 2011 theme is "Proposing
Vocations in the Local Church."
"Every Christian community, every member of the church needs consciously
to feel responsibility for promoting vocations," especially in an era
when God's voice "seems to be drowned out by 'other voices' and his
invitation to follow him by the gift of one's own life may seem too
difficult," the pope said.
Pope Paul VI instituted the day of prayer in 1964 as a way for Catholics to focus on and pray for vocations.
In an interview with Catholic News Service
while he was in Washington in March, Archbishop Carlson said the
majority of newly ordained priests said they were influenced by the
parish in their discernment for the priesthood.
According to results of a survey of members of the 2011 ordination
class, released April 25, 66 percent of the respondents said it was
their parish priest who encouraged them. Forty-two percent identified
their mothers as having a major influence on their decision.
The annual national survey is conducted by the Center for Applied
Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University for the USCCB's
Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations.
CARA contacted ordinands by email, phone or fax to explain the survey;
asked them to complete a brief survey online; and then followed up with
respondents by email, phone or fax. This year, CARA reported that the
response rate was 69 percent; 329 ordinands responded out of a total of
480 identified by theologates, houses of formation, religious
institutes, and archdioceses and dioceses.
Survey results also showed that the average age of ordinands in the
class of 2011 is 34. More than nine in 10, or 94 percent, reported they
had some type of full-time work experience prior to entering the
seminary, most often in education. On average, ordinands reported they
were about 16 when they first considered becoming a priest.
Archbishop Carlson said parishes need to find a way to encourage the
wider community to be more supportive of young men who choose a vocation
to the priesthood, since many of them begin the discernment process at
age 16.
Nine in 10 ordinands reported being encouraged to consider the
priesthood by someone in their life. Of those responding ordinands who
reported that they were encouraged to consider the priesthood, two in
three (66 percent) say they were encouraged by a parish priest.
The survey showed that 57 percent of ordinands in the class of 2011 said
they were discouraged from pursuing a vocation by friends and
classmates; 52 percent said they were discouraged by a parent or other
family member.
"Most young people don't understand what discernment is all about,"
Archbishop Carlson told CNS while he was in Washington to attend
bishops' committee meetings. "They have not been taught from the pulpit
or in the religion classes how to discern."
The archbishop said he was interested in the influence Catholic
education had on vocations this year. Results showed that 47 percent of
the ordinands surveyed went to a Catholic elementary school and were
somewhat more likely to attend Catholic high school. Thirty-nine percent
of them attended a Catholic university or college, compared to 7
percent of all U.S. Catholic adults.
"We are going to make sure our Newman chaplains and our campus ministers
are talking to young people about vocations," the archbishop added.
Asked if the clergy sex abuse scandal had had any effect on vocations,
Archbishop Carlson said it has not affected the interest or number of
vocations. He noted that the survey showed that amid this challenge,
more young people are responding to vocations.
"They were not involved in the scandal, and they believe that as they
live out their vocation they can make the whole community, the body of
Christ, stronger," he said.
The 2011 survey also showed a continued pattern of growing cultural
diversity in the ordination class, especially religious order priests.
Ten percent of the class are Asian/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander; 4
percent of the U.S. Catholic population are Asian.
Fifteen percent said they were Hispanic/Latino; by contrast, about 34
percent of the U.S. adult Catholics are Hispanic/Latino. The remaining
results showed 69 percent are Caucasian, 5 percent African-American and 1
percent other.
"There is a beautiful mixture of the people who make up the church in
the U.S.," said Archbishop Carlson, but added there was a need to foster
vocations in the Hispanic/Latino community to address the needs of that
growing segment of the U.S. Catholic Church.
For young men, parents and youth ministers who have questions on the
discernment process, every diocese has a local website and vocation
director's office. The USCCB also has a website www.ForYourVocation.org.
According to the 2011 survey, the majority of young people turn to such
websites for information first, said Archbishop Carlson.
The archbishop said he prays that those discerning the priesthood will have the courage to listen and respond to their vocation.
"We invite them to listen to what they are hearing deep within
themselves as to how God might want them to live their life," said the
archbishop. "And then (we) give them the support so they can have the
courage to say yes."