My View

by Ed Verbeke, USAC Executive Director

I’d be less than honest if I told you I went to Montreal with a completely open mind. I wasn’t convinced that the “professionals” (i.e., the bishops, vocation directors, religious superiors,) would really listen to us lay people. But I came home impressed and with hope. I can’t report on what the final conclusions of the Congress will be, but I can report on what happened in my group and what I heard in conversations I had with other participants.

My group consisted of two priests, four religious women and two laymen. Three were vocation directors — one priest and two of the women. Each of the other participants brought with them a spirit of openness, prayerfulness and willingness to listen to the others. It was a group that wanted to participate in the process of the Vocation Congress and a group that was fun to be with. Each person listened attentively to each of the other participants’ ideas, opinions and suggestions. All of us were encouraged when we heard the ideas of the other groups during their reports, because of the similarity in their reports to the conclusions of our group.

Here is what I believe was the consensus of my group (and perhaps of the total group.) Now is the time for action. We need to:

 
Recognize that we are all called by God on a mission
 
Listen to the message of the Spirit and be “on fire” with the message
 
Collaborate with one another and recognize that it is all of our responsibility
 
Invite others to consider priesthood or religious life
 
Develop an outreach to youth; to make them aware of their vocation, whatever that may be
 
Educate our children, our youth, parents and grandparents

I was further encouraged when I talked to the Congress organizing committee and learned that the Bishop’s Pastoral will be produced perhaps as early as this fall. I pray that their Pastoral will have in it the same spirit as I felt at the Congress.

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