VATICAN CITY (CNS): The witness of a life lived joyfully and prayerfully is the key to attracting new vocations to the priesthood and religious life, Pope Benedict XVI said.
In his message for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, to be observed on April 25, the Pope said that while the call to priesthood and religious life came from God, “it is also helped by the quality and depth of the personal and communal witness” of priests and religious.
“God’s free and gracious initiative encounters and challenges the human responsibility of all those who accept his invitation to become, through their own witness, the instruments of his divine call,” the Pope wrote in the message released on February 16.
The Pope said that especially for priests, but also for religious brothers and sisters, there were three areas of life where a personal example was particularly important for helping others see what answering God’s call can mean:
– “Friendship with Christ” through prayer and Bible reading, which demonstrates how abiding in God’s love fills a person with the desire to share that experience with others.
– “The complete gift of oneself to God”, which makes a person able to give himself or herself completely to others as well.
– “A life of communion” and of openness to others, which means being able to draw people together, help them overcome their differences and offer each other forgiveness.
In a world often marked by materialism, self-centeredness and individualism, the Pope said, the complete fidelity of priests and religious to God and to serving others was usually a sign of contradiction, but one that showed others where true joy is found.
“If young people see priests who appear distant and sad, they will hardly feel encouraged to follow their example,” he said.
