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Many lay groups encourage,
pray for vocations
Kristin Lukowski of The Michigan Catholic
Published January 13, 2006
Detroit — "Jesus, Good Shepherd, raise up in all parishes, communities, priests, deacons, religious, consecrated lay people and missionaries according to the needs of the whole world which you love and want to save," begins the prayer on the back of the holy card, created by Parents for Vocations at St. Hugo of the Hills Parish in Bloomfield Hills.
The card, with a picture of the Blessed Mother and the baby Jesus on the front, is one tool used by the a lay parent group for planting the idea of answering the call for religious life and other vocations into people's minds. Through prayer, activities and literature, the group works to get people thinking about vocations and to get parents thinking that it's OK if their children choose religious life.
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Joseph Skoney and John Bonema are two of the faces behind Parents for Vocations, a lay group at St. Hugo of the Hills in Bloomfield Hills that works to educate parents and families about various vocations. | "(We want to get people) to recognize that this is one of the greatest things you could ever do, so when you hear the word 'vocation' you don't run from it," said John Bonema, who co-organizes the group with Joseph Skoney.
Vocation Awareness Week is Jan. 8-13 this year, but plenty of work is done all year by lay groups who work to promote, support and pray for vocations.
Fr. Jim Bilot, the Archdiocese of Detroit's vocations director, said it's important for laypeople to be involved in vocations because the Church belongs to everyone. Plus, it's part of our roles as baptized Christians to work for having spiritual leadership.
"The people make up the Church," Fr. Bilot said. "It's up to the people to call for ministers to serve."
Another group that promotes vocations, The Serra Club, named after missionary Blessed Junipero Serra, supports and affirms vocations while increasing members' own spirituality and understanding of the Catholic faith, explained Tom Scholler, the Detroit-Oakland chapter's vice-president of membership. The Detroit-Oakland group meets twice a month in the evening with Mass, dinner and, usually, a speaker talking about his or her vocation.
The Serra Club's principal project is to establish a vocations committee or contact at each of the Archdiocese of Detroit's parishes for receiving and distributing vocations literature and information. So far, members are about a third of the way complete, Scholler said.
The Serra Club members also put together articles parishes can use in their bulletins, send greeting cards to seminary students and organize activities to support a pilgrimage to the Holy Land of first-year theology students.
Scholler said it's important for lay people to be involved in vocations.
Fr. Bilot explained that a vocation is a call from God, not a career. Marriage is a vocation because it's a sacrament and a committed lifestyle and it brings people together. Plus, marriage doesn't stop at 5 p.m. like work does, he said.
Even single people have a vocation as a baptized Christian to follow the role of Christ and proclaim the life of Christ, Fr. Bilot explained.
Scholler pointed out that with some parochial schools closing, and with the culture's focus and monetary success and material goods, children are losing interaction with nuns and priests – which could influence their decisions to pursue a religious life. "We have to have some other vehicle," he said.
Serra members have been especially involved with a monstrance blessed by Pope John Paul II, for the purpose of encouraging prayer for vocations, coming through the Detroit area this week and weekend.
Fr. Gerry LeBoeuf, state chaplain of the Knights of Columbus and pastor of Guardian Angels Parish in Clawson, pointed out that the culture of wealth and possessions is contrary to the Bible's message and is a factor in the current priest shortage.
"We need vocations," he said. "Without vocations, there's no Eucharist."
Much of the support of the Knights of Columbus, a men's lay fraternal organization, is financial. Michigan chapters donated about $180,000 to support seminarians, postulants and novices, said Knights of Columbus state vocations director Tom Parsch, of Washington Township.
One idea of the financial support is to give everyone the chance to pursue his or her call to religious life without lack of funds being a factor.
"Knights of Columbus have always been involved in the promotion and support of vocations," Fr. LeBoeuf said. "I don't think there is a seminarian at Sacred Heart (Major Seminary in Detroit) that is not supported in some way by the Knights of Columbus."
Parsch said K of C members pray for vocations, host memorial Masses and even host a fundraising annual golf outing.
"There's always something going on to support vocations," he said. "There's a lot that we do for the Church."
The group asks seminarians to visit and speak of their experiences, and tries to support the men and women who have already entered religious life. Fr. LeBoeuf said it was a good feeling to have prayer and assistance behind him.
"It's a great comfort and support to us who are already in the field," he said.
 FYI
For more information on vocations, visit:
• Archdiocese of Detroit's vocations Web site at www.vocationsdetroit.org.
• St. Hugo of the Hills' vocation page, including information about Parents for Vocations, at www.sthugo.org/vocations.htm.
• Knights of Columbus at www.mikofc.org or www.kofc.org.
• To learn more about the Detroit-Oakland Serra Club to attend the Feb. 21 orientation or to start a chapter, call Tom Scholler at (313) 883-8771. | As the monstrance travels through the Detroit area, Knights of Columbus members will transport and guard it.
In the Parents for Vocation group at St. Hugo, members focus on educating parents to accept a child's decision for religious life. The group, which formed about a year and a half ago, publishes articles in the parish bulletin, keeps religious life information cards in the church, and prays for vocations.
Also, the group has planned events for priests and students, such as a bowling outing, so young people can see priests and nuns are regular people.
The group shares ideas for promoting holiness in the family, such as going to church together, praying at meals and having a crucifix in a central point of the home.
"The parent is the vocation director of the family," Skoney said.
And the group also wants to emphasize that if a child mentions he or she wants to enter religious life, parents should support and not discourage them. More literature discusses how religious life is a beautiful way to live, Bonema said.
"This is an honor," he said.
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