Going on Vocation

Using Sacred Scripture and the writings of the saints and the Popes, this recent book provides young people with material for reflecting on the topic of vocation.

In his recent Post-Synodal exhortation Christus Vivit, Pope Francis invites young people to meditate on their calling from God, reminding us that nothing is the result of pure chance but that everything in our lives can become a way of responding to the Lord, who has a wonderful plan for us.[1]

Going on Vocation is a new publication from the author of iPray with the Gospel, in answer to the invitation of the Pope. It provides young people with material for reflecting on the topic of vocation using Sacred Scripture as a guide and seasoned with many examples from the lives of saints. These texts are designed to stimulate personal conversation with Our Lord and provide new lights to discover the purpose of our life so that, through God's grace, we may find the strength and courage we need to say 'Yes' to the complete happiness God has in store for us.

In his exhortation, Pope Francis challenges young people using the words of St Alberto Hurtado: If the helmsman of a ship becomes careless, he is fired straightaway for not taking his sacred responsibility seriously. As for our lives, are we fully aware of the course they are taking? What course is your life taking? If it is necessary to give this more thought, I would beg each one of you to give it the highest consideration, because to get it right is tantamount to success; to err is quite simply to fail.[2]

As Fr. George Boronat explains in this new publication, vocation is not recruitment; it is a gift, a plan for complete happiness offered to us by God. Our Lord is calling each of us to be a special friend to Him, to be there for Him and to 'be there for others.'[3] Our mission in life impacts on many other lives. In the words of St Josemaría, Many great things depend—don't forget it—on whether you and I live our lives as God wants.[4]

But more than inventing ourselves or creating ourselves out of nothing, Pope Francis explains in Christus Vivit that vocation consists in a discovery: finding our true selves in the light of God and letting our lives flourish and bear fruit ... Your vocation inspires you to bring out the best in yourself for the glory of God and the good of others.[5]

Jesus is walking in our midst, as he did in Galilee, writes Pope Francis. He walks through our streets, and he quietly stops and looks into our eyes. His call is attractive and intriguing. Yet today the stress and quick pace of a world constantly bombarding us with stimuli can leave no room for that interior silence in which we can perceive Jesus’ gaze and hear his call ... It is better to seek out that calm and quiet that enable you to reflect, pray, look more clearly at the world around you, and then, with Jesus, come to recognize the vocation that is yours in this world.[6]

As Fr George explains, God is waiting for each person's reply: God chose you before He decided on the colour of trees and the number of stars and the temperature at which water should boil. He thought about you before He started to build the world you see around you. He loved you then and decided to create you for a particular, exclusive, personal mission that belongs only to you. He then created the world and all that is in it to allow you to fulfil your role.

When you came to exist, everything was ready. There is nothing missing, nothing lacking -- except your decision. All you need to become a saint 'your own way', 'your exclusive way' is all set up, waiting for your resolution.

All you need to do is to find your vocation; then, everything will be in your hands…

And you in God's hands.[7]

Going on Vocationis available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Going-Vocation-Texts-meditation-vocation/dp/1097779262/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Going+on+vocation&qid=1561229745&s=gateway&sr=8-1

On iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/going-on-vocation/id1467021968


[1]Pope Francis, Christus Vivit, 248.

[2]St Alberto Hurtado, Meditación de Semana Santa para jóvenes, written aboard a cargo ship returning from the United States in 1946, quoted in Christus Vivit, 257.

[3]Pope Francis, Christus Vivit, 253

[4]St Josemaría, The Way, 755.

[5]Pope Francis, Christus Vivit, 257.

[6]Pope Francis, Christus Vivit, 277

[7]George Boronat, Going on Vocation, 27