Vocational discernment in the Catholic Church

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An illustration from a children's catechism shows a boy and a girl discerning vocations to the religious life, encouraging young readers to consider such a possibility for themselves.

Vocational discernment is the process by which men and women in the

discern, or recognize, their vocation in the church and the world. The vocations are the life of a layperson in the world, either married or single, the ordained life of bishops, priests, and deacons, and consecrated religious life
.

Process

Each

better source needed
] After the set time, many institutes have a formal discernment process which the candidate will engage in, before entering the institute as a novice, or the seminary.

Men

For men there are a number of vocations in the Catholic Church. The best known is the vocation to the

maritime apostolate
.

In addition, men may be called to religious life as a non-ordained

Benedictine monks take a vow of stability, which is a commitment to their particular community. Members of societies of apostolic life
, without taking religious vows, emphasize apostolic service and are fully active in society.

Other vocations for men in the Catholic Church include those to being permanent

Trappist
monk, was ordained a priest, and lived for a time in a hermitage on the monastery grounds.

Since the Second Vatican Council, it has become commonplace to consider committed single life, marriage, parenthood, and many other services as "lay" vocations, since each also requires a commitment to Christian faith and practice.

Women

For women, vocational discernment would consist of feeling called to

religious brothers. Nuns, in the strict sense of the word, correspond to monks
.

As with men, it has become more popular since the Second Vatican Council to consider committed single life, marriage, parenthood, and many other services as "lay" vocations, since each also requires a commitment to Christian faith and practice.

Vocation to marriage

Traditionally the term vocation was used in the Catholic Church only to refer to priestly or religious vocations, the vocation to live a life directly consecrated to God. Thomas Aquinas, e.g., only explicitly uses the term vocation to refer to vocation to grace or conversion, or to enter religious life, though it has been argued that his teaching may be logically extended to include marriage as a vocation.[2] In the 20th century there has been a growing movement to extend the use of the term widely. The Second Vatican Council taught that all Christians, whatever their state, are called "to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity".[3] The conclusion drawn from this principle is that any way of life that can be a full expression of Christian charity, and a means for growing towards the perfection of it, can be a vocation. Pope John Paul II taught that "there are two specific ways of realizing the vocation of the human person, in its entirety, to love: marriage and virginity or celibacy".[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ "XIII World Youth Day, 1998 | John Paul II". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  2. ^ Joseph Bolin. "What is a Vocation - According to St. Thomas Aquinas". www.pathsoflove.com. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  3. ^ "Lumen gentium". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  4. ^ "Familiaris Consortio (November 22, 1981) | John Paul II". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
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