Vocation and Commitment.

Lesson 1

 Commitment to life

Make a list of all the jobs that require commitment - how many can you think of?

Make a list of how different people show commitment.  Are there any risks involved? How do we measure commitment? Do some people show more commitment than others?

Write a litany or praise and thanksgiving for these people.

E.g.

Thank you for the firefighters who risk their lives,
Thank you for those who clean our streets,
Thank you for doctors who help to heal us...

Lesson 2

 Being called through baptism 

Through the Sacrament of Baptism, all Christians are called to share in the mission of Jesus. Jesus’ mission was to make known God’s love for everyone and show people that living in God’s way brings love, justice and peace for all the world. There are many different ways of carrying out this mission. God calls each of us to a particular vocation in life. The word ‘vocation’ means ‘calling’ - that is responding to the call of Jesus. Last lesson, we saw how people show commitment in everyday life. The special call of Jesus requires a lifelong commitment.

This reassurance from God his heavenly Father, gave Jesus the courage to begin his mission. In order to help him spread the Good News of God’s love he called people to be his apostles. Read the story of Jesus calling Andrew and Simon that we read in John’s Gospel together and then discuss these questions:

Q?How do you think Jesus felt at his baptism and how did it help him?
Q?How do you feel when people reassure and praise you?Why is it important?
Q?How do you think Andrew felt when Jesus invited him to ‘come and see’?
Q?What was Andrew’s response to Jesus’ call?
Q?What do you think they did for ‘the rest of the day’?
Q?What commitment would this need?

Task :

Prepare some questions to ask Andrew in a hot-seat activity, which will explore the difference the call of Jesus made to his life. Ask him about incidents which happened in his life and what his response was and why. 

Lesson 3

The vocation of a priest

Some people’s vocation is to marriage or the single life or to the religious life. Some people’s vocation is to become a priest. A priest chooses to follow Jesus in the service of others in the Church. This is his response to God’s call to a life lived with love for God’s people. The apostles were called by Jesus to follow him and, in response, they left everything to be with him. This is also true of every Christian and is especially true of the call to be a priest.

When a man feels that God is calling him to be a priest, he will need to pray about this and to seek advice from the Vocation’s Director of his diocese. The Vocation’s Director is an experienced priest who helps men discern (recognise) what God’s call is for them. He will assess the man to see if he is serious about the choice and suitable for taking on such a responsibility.

Make a list of the roles and responsibilities required of a priest.

For example prepares and delivers Hold Communion.

SOME KEY QUESTIONS

QWhat qualities do you think the Vocations Director should look for in someone wanting to be a priest?
QWhy do you think that training to be a priest takes many years?
QWhy do you think that priests do not marry?
QHow do you think a person knows that God wants them to be a priest?

Look at the PDF below about St John Vianney.  Then create a poster about Saint John Mary Vianney showing the qualities he had that made him a priest, the special gifts he had and the words you would use to describe him.