Answering God's Call
The Meaning of the Word Vocation
Vocation comes from the Latin word "VOCARE" which means "TO CALL"
Who is Calling?
God the Father
Jesus the Son
The Holy Spirit
The Church is the place where God’s call becomes visible
The Mission is the aim and the reason for the calling
Who is Answering this Call?
A particular human being with a name, a family and a set of circumstances around that person
A person does not “have” a calling, rather “experiences” a calling, welcomes a calling
The call is imbedded from the mother’s womb and becomes the reason for one’s life
This calling echoes down deep in a person’s life
It is perceived as an inclination
It is experienced as a seduction
Often times the person feels unable to follow the call…
I don’t know how to speak (Jeremiah 1,6)
I do not know a man (Mary [Luke 1,34])
Send someone else (Moses [Exodus 4,13])
God is waiting for a gracious response
Here I am (Isaiah 6,8)
Magnificat (Mary [Luke 1:46–55])
Why is God Calling?
To give witness of God’s presence in the world
To become an instrument of God’s saving actions
To foster communion with God and with one another
The beneficiary of the call is not the person being called, but the people to whom that person is being sent to.
Much has to do with the circumstances of the people.
The background of any vocation is our relationship with God: this is the heart of the Covenant.
How does one hear God's Call?
Jesus is the first mediator between God and man
The Church appears also as mediator by way of the sacraments
God also uses other persons to call: For example Andrew calls Peter and Paul calls Timothy
History itself speaks to a person’s heart
The needs of the people also speak to a person’s heart
In order to fullfil God’s calling we need the example of other disciples to help us discover this voice of God speaking to us
Summary
We will always discover that God is the fountain of all vocations. It is always His initiative, His decision, His choice.
The theology of vocation is not a theory or cheap speculation but a deep reflection upon the saving events that will always have God as their true author.
The theology of vocation is based upon the economy of salvation.