SPEAKING OF SERRA

by Robert Raccuglia, Serra International Executive Director

A vocational decision doesn't happen in one moment, but most often unfolds over a lifetime. We decide to take a particular course over a period of time and we must reaffirm it many times in many ways. Often, it is only in retrospect that we can say, like Robert Frost, "I took that road less traveled by and that has made all the difference."

Dag Hammarskjold, Secretary General of the United Nations in the 1950s, spoke of his vocation in his journal, Markings: "I don’t know Who – or What – put the question. I don’t know when it was put, I don’t even remember answering, but at some moment I did answer YES to Someone or Something – and from that hour I was certain that existence is meaningful and that therefore my life, in self-surrender, had a goal."

Certain forms of Protestantism emphasize the decisive moment. They have altar calls in their services. They urge members to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior in a public confession of faith. These believers pinpoint a moment in which they were saved.

Catholicism, too, calls for a decision to follow Christ. But there is more emphasis on the ongoing nature of conversion. When Cardinal Pio Laghi addressed Serrans at the Great Jubilee Pilgrimage Assembly, he spoke of vocation as a life-long search for meaning. He even cautioned, "Each day, in fact, it is possible to stop saying yes, and to start saying no." The liturgical seasons, the social teachings, religious education and the various disciplines of Catholic life call us to have an ever-deepening conversion. They equip and strengthen us to say yes to Christ as we face the challenges of life.

One way I understand the value of Serra is as an instrument in this process. Serra helps Catholics that are trying to discern a possible call to priesthood or religious life. We offer essay contests to stimulate the imagination of children and adolescents. We offer discernment weekends to young adults. We offer affirmation programs to support and nurture the vocations of priests and religious… and much more. We do these things over a period of years. We hope that our efforts will be one element for individuals in the process of discerning and following their vocations.

Additionally, we see Serra as a support for each member as they undergo the lifelong discovery of their own vocational paths. The Serra club meetings and activities, the community of friendship, the retreat and prayer opportunities, and the conventions are all ways that Serra can help members to continue to say yes to God’s will in their lives.

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