​The Gospel for this Sunday, the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B, is taken from St Mark Chapter 10 and tells us what happened when Jesus was interrupted with a man’s nagging question.

Jesus had just been to the man’s locality and had presumably done His normal preaching, teaching, and healing in the public gathering areas of that locality. Whatever Jesus said has caused a stirring within the man.

We might ask, why didn’t he ask this question earlier?

It is a real interruption to the schedule Jesus had, and we aren’t told what the consequences of setting out then and there actually were, eg not getting to the next place before night fall; having to stay an extra day where they were, missing a meal or celebration, maybe spending the night on the ground instead of under a roof. But Jesus doesn’t complain, He patiently listens to the man, and gives him His full attention.

Unlike the question the Pharisees put last week, this question is real and authentic, and we’ve all heard someone ask a version of it.

He asks, ‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’

In other words, What’s the minimum I have to do to get a dead-cert entry pass for heaven?
Or, ‘If there a one-stop, fix, set-and-forget way to obtain eternal life?’

This man is thinking in terms of a transaction, like buying a plane ticket or a car.

But this question must have been niggling at him for a while.

I can imagine an internal battle going on inside him:
Do I really want this question answered?
How much do I want this question answered?
What if I don’t like the answer?
This Jesus person is the only person I’ve come across who could really answer this question.
So are you going to approach Him or not?
Does my desire for the answer outweigh the possible public notoriety for asking it?

He’s possibly been wrestling with himself for days, ever since Jesus showed up; and it is only the thought of missing out on ever getting the answer - because Jesus is leaving and unlikely to ever return - that eventually pushes him into action but at the last possible moment.

Jesus now seeks a bit more background before He answers. It isn’t quite like answering a question with a question as He did with the Pharisees, but it is similar.

From the 10 commandments, Jesus selects only those that are about our relationships with each other, and not in our memorized order either, No 6 You shall not kill; No 7 You shall not commit adultery; No 8 You shall not steal; No 9 You shall not give false witness, an interesting spin on No 10 You shall not defraud; and No.5 Honour your father and your mother.

The man replies, ‘Teacher, I have kept all these since my earliest days’; in other words: ‘I know these are not enough, otherwise I would not have come to You, I sense much more is required, but I don’t know what that ‘much more’ is, and I do want to know’. To be capable of desiring the ‘much more’, the man would have to be feeling restlessness and dissatisfaction with his current life.

Aha! It is God Himself who has been stirring within this man if he is able to verbalize this truth.

Jesus gazed at him with ‘agape’ love and gave him the momentous answer; ‘Go and sell what you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have wealth in heaven; then, come, follow Me’.

‘Come follow me’ is what Jesus said when He invited each of the apostles into special relationship with Him.

Later on, when the man has left, Jesus speaks to His own, and He gazes at them with the same ‘agape’ love.

Answering like this, Jesus tells the man (and us), that heaven isn’t an object to be purchased, but a relationship with Him that requires 100% ongoing commitment.

For this man, used to purchasing all he desires through material wealth, the price of eternal life is far too high. Purchasing objects needs zero emotional involvement; entering an apostolic relationship with Jesus needs total emotional commitment, and total commitment from every other area of his life.

High calling, high reward, requiring high personal cost.

Who can make and keep such an audacious commitment to the person of Jesus?
Only those called and empowered to do so by God.

This is what sets the vocational call to consecrated, religious, or priestly life beyond the regular baptismal call to holiness.

As Jesus promises, it is this 100% giving of themselves to Him, the leaving everything and following Him, which gets rewarded a hundred-fold in this life, and in eternal life.

Notice that Jesus leaves the man completely free to decide, He neither badgers, coerces nor entices. He just offers an invitation.

We know that the man walked away sad. He was offered the Great Treasure, an apostolic calling, yet he rejected it.

It is reasonable to assume that Jesus was saddened as well. Who knows? If this chap had said ‘Yes’ maybe today he would be a household name of the same magnitude as Peter or Paul, instead of a nameless cautionary tale.

Where does that leave us?

Firstly it leaves us praying for those whom Jesus is calling into an apostolic commitment to Him, that they may be given the heavenly help to say their total Yes to Jesus.

Secondly it makes us take a good hard look at our own commitment to Jesus, and the things that we are, and aren’t, willing to give up for His sake.
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Finally if you have been experiencing that same restlessness, dissatisfaction, and sense that there must be ‘much more’, and that you want ‘much more’, then put the terms ‘Vocation Director’ and the name of your nearest regional or capital city into an internet search, and give that person a call.

Workshop 1B – Discerning Charisms, Discovering how the Holy Spirit enters our lives, our community and our world.

This workshop was led by Clara Geoghegan, co-director of the Catherine of Siena Institute . More information about her is available through LinkedIn and she is active on Twitter.

(NB. These notes are only rough.)

By discerning charisms we work out how the Holy Spirit is active in our lives. Our purpose and mission as Church is to preach the Good News. How do lay people take part? The laity, present and operative, make the Church present in those places where only they can go. Being on a parish roster is derivative of the mission of the clergy. The role of the laity is to go where the clergy can't go: shopping, workplaces, clubs.

Lumen Gentium 33b : The lay apostolate, however, is a participation in the salvific mission of the Church itself. Through their baptism and confirmation all are commissioned to that apostolate by the Lord Himself. Moreover, by the sacraments, especially holy Eucharist, that charity toward God and man which is the soul of the apostolate is communicated and nourished. Now the laity are called in a special way to make the Church present and operative in those places and circumstances where only through them can it become the salt of the earth. Thus every layman, in virtue of the very gifts bestowed upon him, is at the same time a witness and a living instrument of the mission of the Church itself "according to the measure of Christ's bestowal".

Where is God calling me? What is my mission? Do you know that God has a plan for you? Do you have the road map? The sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation give us the equipment: gifts of sanctifying grace for us to keep; and charisms for us to give away. The charisms are a clue to our vocation in life. Once we know them it is easier to know what we are meant to do.

1 Corinthians 12:7-12 gives us a list of charisms, but it is not the only list.

'The particular manifestation of the Spirit granted to each one is to be used for the general good. To one is given from the Spirit the gift of utterance expressing wisdom; to another the gift of utterance expressing knowledge, in accordance with the same Spirit;  to another, faith, from the same Spirit; and to another, the gifts of healing, through this one Spirit; to another, the working of miracles; to another, prophecy; to another, the power of distinguishing spirits; to one, the gift of different tongues and to another, the interpretation of tongues. But at work in all these is one and the same Spirit, distributing them at will to each individual. For as with the human body which is a unity although it has many parts -- all the parts of the body, though many, still making up one single body -- so it is with Christ.'

Other lists are found in the bible at 1 Peter 4:10-11, Romans 12:6-8, Ephesians 4:1-12, 1 Corinthians 12:28 and even they are not exhaustive - lacking celibacy, redemptive suffering, intercession and many other ways the Holy Spirit bestows charisms.

Supernatural gifts are meant to have supernatural results.

We read in the life of Caroline Chisholm how she prayed and fasted for the whole of Lent one year, begging God to bestow on her at Easter all the gifts needed for the task to which God was calling her. (More good information is available at https://mrschisholm.com/ )

“On Easter Sunday 1841, I was enabled, at the altar of our Lord, (at St Mary’s Cathedral) to make an offering of my talents to the God Who gave them. I promised to know neither country nor creed, but to try to serve all justly and impartially. I asked only to be enabled to keep these poor girls from being tempted, by their need, to mortal sin; I resolved that to accomplish this, I would in every way sacrifice my feelings – surrender all comfort – nor in fact consider my own wishes or feelings but wholly devote myself to the work I had in hand. I felt my offering was accepted and God’s blessing was on my work: but it was His will to permit many serious difficulties to be thrown my way, and to conduct me through a rugged path of deep humiliation.”

Faith is both capacity and choice
Virtus fidei – is the power or capacity to believe
Actus fidei – is the personal choice to respond to God's grace
It is that personal act of faith which transforms a person from 'can be a believer' to be a believer. By some estimates around 5% of the people in our pews are intentional disciples of Jesus.

Your charisms are a major indication of God's call.
If you are called, you will be gifted. If you are gifted, you are called.

Knowing your gifts helps you avoid ineffectiveness, frustration, failure and burn out. They are all caused by trying too hard to do things you are not gifted for. Knowing the gifts the Holy Spirit has given you makes it easier to make decisions, to avoid judging others and to reduce conflicts.

Different people are called to do different things in different ways. In the same parish there were 2 women who both had a charism of music. However they didn't appreciate each other's music. One of them used upbeat music, the other went for soothing music. It turned out that the first one had a gift of evangelisation with her gift of music, and the other had a gift of healing with her gift of music.

Charisms are the means by which God's provision will reach your neighbour and the means through which Christ will be revealed to your neighbour.

St Vincent Ferrer lived in Spain between 1350 and 1419. He became a priest of the Dominican Order. He had a special God-given gift of preaching. Many people were converted to God just by listening to him preach. St Vincent counted on God. He also asked for the prayers and penance of many people for the success of his sermons. He knew it was not his words or his talents that won people over. That is why he prayed before every sermon. But one day, when he knew that a very important person was going to listen to him, he worked harder than usual on his sermon. He ran out of time to pray. This sermon which he had prepared so carefully did not affect the nobleman much at all. God let that happen to teach Vincent not to count on himself. Another time, this same important person came to listen to Fr Ferrer preach. But this time the priest did not know it. He prayed and counted on God as usual. The nobleman listened to the sermon and was greatly impressed by what he heard. Vincent explained it like this: ‘In the first sermon it was Vincent who preached. In the second sermon, it was Jesus Christ.’ From 'Saints for Young Readers' Volume 1, April 5

From the Concluding document, 5th general conference of the bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean, Section 1.2, paragraph 29 (a.k.a, the Aparecida Document):

'We want the joy that we have received in the encounter with Jesus Christ, whom we recognize as Son of God incarnate and redeemer, to reach all men and women wounded by adversities; we want the good news of the Kingdom of God, of Jesus Christ victorious over sin and death, to reach all who lie along the roadside, asking for alms and compassion (cf. Lk 10: 29-37; 18:25-43). The disciple’s joy serves as remedy for a world fearful of the future and overwhelmed by violence and hatred. The disciple’s joy is not a feeling of selfish well-being, but a certainty that springs from faith, that soothes the heart and provides the ability to proclaim the good news of God’s love. Knowing Jesus is the best gift that any person can receive; that we have encountered Him is the best thing that has happened in our lives, and making him known by our word and deeds is our joy.'

Discovering our vocation helps others to meet Jesus. There is no crisis in vocations, but there is a crisis in discerning vocations. We need to provide vocational discernment for every baptized Catholic.

When we are living out our vocation, and helping others to meet Jesus it becomes easier to share our story and to talk about Jesus. Sadly He is often 'He who must not be named' in our conversations even at parish level. This is what God wants: for us to be using our charisms and gifts to bring Christ's grace into ours and others' lives.

Gary Chapman's 'The Five Languages of Love' was recommended reading. http://www.5lovelanguages.com/

We then had an activity to do in small groups. We were given 2 sheets, one entitled 'Types of Charism' and the other had a list of extraordinary men and women together with the questions:
What methods did these people use to preach the Gospel?
Where did they preach their message?
What might their charism/s be?

It was our task to match the charisms to each extraordinary person. Start with the charism grouping they match with, then go deeper to individual charisms.

Types of Charisms
•Pastoral charisms:
Focus-nurture of individuals and community
Encouragement, Helps, Hospitality, Mercy, Pastoring
•Communication charisms:
Focus-communicating truth to change lives
Evangelism, Prophecy, Teaching
•Organizational charisms:
Focus-structuring an organization or group
Administration, Giving, Leadership, Service
•Lifestyle charisms:
Focus-a lifestyle and freedom for unusual ministry
Celibacy, Faith, Missionary, Voluntary Poverty
•Healing charisms:
Focus-channelling God's healing and restoration
Healing, Intercessory Prayer
•Insight charisms:
Focus-Understanding the ways of God and humanity
Discernment of Spirits, Knowledge, Wisdom
•Creative charisms:
Focus-creative activity that orders and beautifies
Craftsmanship, Music, Writing

Extraordinary People
St Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa) http://www.biography.com/people/mother-teresa-9504160#death-and-legacy
Ven Caroline Chisholm https://mrschisholm.com/history-2/
St Damien of Molokai https://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/DAMIEN.HTM
St Francis of Assisi https://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/FRANCIS.htm
St Catherine of Siena https://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/CATSIENA.HTM
St Therese of Lisieux http://www.littleflower.org/therese/
Dorothy Day http://www.catholicworker.org/dorothyday/life-and-spirituality.html
J R R Tolkien http://www.tolkiensociety.org/author/biography/
Marjorie Liddy http://www.acountrypriest.com/marjorie-liddy-rip/
Bl Pier Giorgio Frassati http://www.bettnet.com/frassati/ https://www.ewtn.com/saintsHoly/saints/P/blpiergiorgiofrassati.asp
St John Paul II http://www.jp2shrine.org/en/bio/index.html
Eric Liddell http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/12/heroic-death-chariots-fires-eric-liddell/

An example of someone with the charism of administration would be Florence Nightingale. It was her diligent keeping of medical records that enabled improvements in hospital care to happen. She was a channel of God's wisdom providing the planning and co-ordination necessary for good things to be accomplished. Part of that is getting resources where they need to be.

An example of someone with the charism of wisdom would be Caroline Chisholm. She came up with creative solutions to specific problems, and made good decisions. She was a channel of God's goodness to many. She had remarkable insight. When she arranged immigration ships from England to Australia, they were the first ships to arrive without a death on board because there was no overcrowding. During the Victorian gold rush Caroline organised shelter sheds at a day's walk apart to help people get to and from the gold fields safely.

An example of someone with the charism of mercy is St Pier Giorgio Frassati. His life was filled with practical deeds of compassion, so that the distress of those who suffer would be alleviated – helping them to experience God's love. Mercy is always practical. If a visitor came to see Mother Teresa she was more likely to tell them to 'go help mix the curry' than anything else.

An example of someone with the charism of teaching is St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. She was a channel of God's truth and wisdom, enabling others to learn skills.

An example of someone with the charism of Helps is Brother Leo, who helped St Francis of Assisi and was called by him 'the perfect friar'. People with this charism serve in the background and not in the limelight. They use their talents and charisms to enable other people to be more effective in the roles and ministries to which God has allotted them. Thus they serve God and help God's people by being like the Brother Leo to St Francis and like the Bl Anne of St Bartholomew to St Teresa of Avila.

How to discern a charism
•How does it feel?
•Is it effective?
•Is it affirmed by others?

If people keep coming to you for something (eg encouragement), then that could be a charism.
If people keep asking you to do something, then they might be seeing a charism operate in you when you do that something.

Discovering how to use our gifts to make the love of Jesus present to our neighbour leads to growth in faith and in effectiveness – and helps us develop our personal evangelising style.

How does it feel? Eric Liddell (Chariots of Fire) said, 'When I run I feel His pleasure'. Hugh Jackman, the actor, dedicates his performances to God, and knows a pleasure when he acts that is both frightening and exciting – like falling in love. His prayer becomes 'allow me to surrender'.

Parish is where we are in the business of making disciples and equipping apostles. Parish is the place to form lay apostles.

Some of the best material on the lay vocation is found in St John Paul II's Christifideles Laici, and in particular sections 37-44 which have the headings Promoting the Dignity of the Person, Respecting the Inviolable Right to Life, Free to Call upon the Name of the Lord, The Family: where the Duty to Society begins, Charity: the Soul and Sustenance of Solidarity, Public Life: for Everyone and by Everyone, Placing the Individual at the Centre of Socio-Economic Life, Evangelising Culture and the Cultures of Humanity.

How come we have this 'Don't ask, Don't tell' culture about Jesus that exerts negative pressure? Is it a fear of appearing intrusive and judgmental? Is it a fear of imposing faith and implying a possible judgement on a person's spiritual condition? What is 'normative' in your parish? How do you treat your Daniel's? .Daniel has experienced a major conversion to Jesus. Is he odd or weird? Or is he merely on fire and excited about Jesus? Many disciples are not effective because they are trying to fit into a parish culture of non-discipleship.

The aim is to produce intentional disciples, where priorities change from action not out of guilt but out of relationship with God. There are several stages to this process, from seeker to disciple, and from disciple to apostle. In the Apostle stage, a person takes on responsibility for the mission of the Church, and becomes as Pope Benedict XVI put it, 'co-responsible, not just collaborators'.

From Pope Benedict XVI's 26 May 2009 Address to the Pastoral Convention of the Diocese of Rome:

'There is still a long way to go. Too many of the baptized do not feel part of the ecclesial community and live on its margins, only coming to parishes in certain circumstances to receive religious services. Compared to the number of inhabitants in each parish, the lay people who are ready to work in the various apostolic fields, although they profess to be Catholic, are still few and far between. Of course, social and cultural difficulties abound but faithful to the Lord's mandate, we cannot resign ourselves to preserving what exists. Trusting in the grace of the Spirit which the Risen Christ guaranteed to us, we must continue on our way with renewed energy. What paths can we take? In the first place we must renew our efforts for a formation which is more attentive and focused on the vision of the Church, of which I spoke and this should be both on the part of priests as well as of religious and lay people to understand ever better what this Church is, this People of God in the Body of Christ. At the same time, it is necessary to improve pastoral structures in such a way that the co-responsibility of all the members of the People of God in their entirety is gradually promoted, with respect for vocations and for the respective roles of the consecrated and of lay people. This demands a change in mindset, particularly concerning lay people. They must no longer be viewed as "collaborators" of the clergy but truly recognized as "co-responsible", for the Church's being and action, thereby fostering the consolidation of a mature and committed laity. This common awareness of being Church of all the baptized in no way diminishes the responsibility of parish priests. It is precisely your task, dear parish priests, to nurture the spiritual and apostolic growth of those who are already committed to working hard in the parishes. They form the core of the community that will act as a leaven for the others.'

Discernment of gifts/charisms is best done in the latter part of the discipleship stage. Discernment of vocation is best done in the latter part of the apostleship stage. Discerning gifts comes naturally after doing something like an Alpha course, or after going through RCIA. (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) We need multiple, overlapping and diverse ways of encountering Jesus at parish level.

If the discernment of gifts and charisms is done at the right place on the faith development journey it will have the impact it should. If it is done too early – in the still seeking stage – it won't have that impact. That is another reason why we need multiple events during each year so that as people become ready, there is path to help them discern God's specific calling in their lives.

Where these things converge: church teaching, your uniqueness, your time, your place, the things you are passionate about – that is where you will find your vocational call.

'If you are what you should be, you will set the world on fire.'
St Catherine of Siena

The Catherine of Siena Institute offers a three part Called & Gifted discernment process. The first part is a 10 hour workshop. The second part is a Spiritual Gifts inventory and interview. The third part is Discernment in Depth with 5 small group sessions. Specialized versions are available.
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​My response

It was refreshing to hear that lay vocations outside the church walls are important. Why is it so easy for us to fall into the mentality that only those roles with direct links to the parish's operation matter (counters, lectors, catechists, wardens, sacramental preparation, altar servers, church cleaning, musicians, choir, parish council etc)? Faith filled nurses, doctors, teachers, accountants, politicians, business owners, carpenters, lawyers, and front line customer service people do untold good in our communities and often bring many souls back to Jesus. (Don’t you just breathe a huge sigh of thanks when you discover that your surgeon prays as he operates?!) Why don't we celebrate and acknowledge them more?

Does your parish have pathways for parishioners to discern their gifts with? It can't be seen as an 'optional extra' any longer. If we are serious about doing God's will in our lives, then discovering what He has given us to serve Him with becomes essential. Some gifts will be for building up the body of Christ, and some will be for external outreach. All of us are called to both ministry (internal) and mission (external).

With regard to the groupings of charisms, anyone I have known with a more than ordinary gift of prophecy has also had the gift of intercession. They are like two halves of a whole. Think of the story in Genesis 18 where God tells Abraham what He wants to do to Sodom and Gomorrah (prophecy) inviting Abraham to bargain with Himself (intercession).

Earlier this year a copy of the Spiritual Gifts inventory was made available to me, and I answered the questions. Some gifts have a more wide ranging group of questions than others. For example the gift of music questions seemed to focus exclusively on those who wrote original music and not on other ways a charism of music might manifest itself. For me the inventory results were not as useful as those that came from doing the transferable skills exercise in 'What Colour Is Your Parachute?' and the Clifton StrengthsFinder questionnaire.

Let me explain that better. The results from Parachute and StrengthsFinder confirmed each other. The results from the inventory were all over the place. But that's only for me, it could be different for you. If we believe what St Thomas Aquinas taught, ie 'Grace does not destroy but perfects nature' then charisms should take some of our natural talents to supernatural levels when we co-operate with the Holy Spirit. Knowing what our nature level gifts are (from both nature and nurture) will be the best road map to discovering where our charisms can be found.

Here are the one liners that stood out for me, and that I'd like to see become mainstream ideas in parish life:
The charisms are a clue to our vocation in life.
Supernatural gifts are meant to have supernatural results.
If you are called, you will be gifted. If you are gifted, you are called.
Discovering our vocation helps others to meet Jesus.
We need to provide vocational discernment for every baptised Catholic.
​
As much as I loved remembering the lives of the Saints in the workshop activity, it was the story of Daniel that cut to my heart. So often we forget that the lives of the Saints show us what ordinary Christian living looks like. Over the years I have seen many Daniels come and go. By and large we have done a poor job of helping them ground the life-changing spiritual experiences they have had with community, catechesis, sacraments and prayer. Without that grounding, it is hard for anyone to persevere when the well of spiritual experiences starts drying up and God starts inviting them to love Him for Himself rather than for His gifts. All too often we have a successful RCIA, Alpha or parish mission and then haven't planned any follow-up bible studies or small group activities to assist in the 'grounding' process. Instead of seeing our Daniels as disrupters, let us see them as God's gifts sent to help shake us out of our mediocrity of response to His love.
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In the next issue will be notes from the very good Workshop on Evangelising Parishes through the Family and the Couple with Francine and Byron Pirola.

​Recent days have been full of rare treats, an Ordination Mass for two Dominican priests and a Dominican deacon, and one of the first Masses of Fr Matthew Boland O.P.
 
Treats like that deserve to be shared, so here are some of my amateur photos and some notes from the homilies:

​The Ordinations took place at St Benedict's Broadway on 9 July 2016. It is a beautiful church, with a lot of history and currently part of Notre Dame University campus. Some of the WYD Sydney events took place here (for anyone who thinks it looks familiar).
 
Ordained Priest were Matthew Boland and James Baxter, and ordained Deacon was Robert Krishna.

​The readings were from Jeremiah 1:4-9 Do not say 'I am a child', go to those whom I send you ; Psalm 89 I will sing forever of the goodness of the Lord / I have chosen David my servant and with oil anointed him ; 2 Corinthians 5:14-20 The love of Christ overwhelms us. He gave us the work of handing on the news of reconciliation ; Luke 22:14-20, 24-30 The Last Supper narrative, Here am I among you as One who serves.
 
The homily was given by Archbishop Anthony Fisher O.P. and this is a rough transcript:
 
'What does it mean to be a priest of Jesus Christ? If we look at some of the great Hollywood movies from the 1950s onward, the priestly characters are depicted in a romantic and heroic light. A bit too far from reality in places, but they did manage to capture the spirit of sacrifice with some accuracy. Jesus turns our notions of leadership and greatness up-side-down when He reveals that He is among us as one who serves. Every priest is called to serve after the example of Jesus. If this is how Jesus acts, then we must do the same; we must empty ourselves and empty ourselves for others. Thus we may preach Him as His ambassadors. We are members of the Dominican order, called to preach Him, an order that is essentially clerical, but hopefully not clericalist. This year we mark the 800th anniversary of the Dominican order, and see these three as a special gift to us. Dominicans made their mark in the colonial period of Australia, even before the Benedictines. There is a patch of land nearby that is still called Blackfriars Estate. By the 1880s much of the original land was taken by the education office and acts of parliament. Those school buildings and the former teachers college now form part of the UTS campus (University of Technology Sydney). A Dominican is currently chaplain at UTS and our newly ordained Fr Baxter will be chaplain to Notre Dame campus. There is a story about how St Dominic spent all night in a pub conversing with a heretic, in order to convert him. Who knows, perhaps Matthew's experiences of working in a pub might prove advantageous as well. James had an experience in Year 2 of primary school of the truth and reality of the resurrection of Jesus. Time spent in his Year 11 days with an elderly priest caused James to ponder on the worthwhile life this priest had lived. He went off to Uni to study law, and it was only then that he started questioning whether law was the right path. An end of year retreat in 2003 started him thinking more seriously about the mission of the Church and what his own role in that might be. Matthew studied Maths and Physics and walked the Camino. The influence of Fr Dom Murphy began his attraction to the Dominicans. We know that Matthew has a particular passion for introducing others to the thought of St Thomas Aquinas. Robert has had a long journey too. At various times he has been a Hindu, an agnostic, an atheist, Anglican and finally a Catholic after a long intellectual search. For him, too, that end of year retreat in 2003 was a turning point in his vocational journey. Aquinas said that we should be awestruck that God should grant such graces in sacraments through human agency. No one can fully express the sweetness of this Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist. It is the Sacrament of Sacraments. It is not just a sign of Christ's love, but Christ Himself, present body and soul, humanity and divinity to bring about communion with us. The hour has come for the three of you to take your place in a new way at the altar of the Lord. You are called to be heroes, to self-sacrifice, to put others first. You are called to serve, for that will prove your true greatness.'

​One of Fr Matthew Boland's first Masses as principal celebrant was at St John the Baptist, Woy Woy, on 11 July 2016. This parish was home base for him during his early adult years and the long process of discerning God's vocational call. He was often at morning Mass at Woy Woy when visiting his parents on study breaks.

​11 July was the memorial of St Benedict, and the readings were from Monday Week 15 of Ordinary Time Year II : Isaiah 1:10-17 God desires worthy sacrifice from hands clean of evil deeds : Matthew 10:34-11:1 Turn away from things not worthy of Me.

Again, this is only a rough transcript of Fr Matthew Boland's homily:

​'Some may think of St Benedict as a remote and distant figure from 6th century Norcia, but his story still resonates today. As a young man Benedict went to Rome to study, and saw the dissolute life of the city. His response to that was to begin a search for silence and a search for God. After a while a dying monastery asked for his help in getting it healthy again. The monks there were living a rather loose monastic life, and Benedict came to them bringing added strictness to their lives. Unhappy some of the monks tried to poison Benedict. However as he said the blessing, the cup containing the poison broke. That's a good reminder to pray grace before meals – just in case – isn't it? St Benedict is not without his influence in Australia. We have the monastic town of New Norcia near Perth together with the AFL Oval at Subiaco. The first archbishop in Australia was Bede Polding, a Benedictine. What can St Benedict teach us today? That we need silence in our lives in order to hear the Word of God and His message to us. That we need time to be with Him in silence, to listen. The prophet Elijah had his own search for God, going up a mountain (whenever the scriptures talk about going up a mountain, that's code for 'something really important is going to happen – pay attention'). It was in the gentle breeze that Elijah met God. If we don't give time to God, it is very hard to hear what He has to say. God has to be number 1 – even above family – and then everything else will fall into place. Take advantage of the silent moments at Mass, at adoration and at other times of prayer. Lectio Divina is a good way of meeting God in His Word. We ask that through the intercession of St Benedict before God, that His peace may come into our lives. Let us imitate St Benedict and include a bit more silence in our lives.'
 
St Benedict, pray for us.
St Dominic, pray for us.

A version of the homily of Bishop Peter A Comensoli at the 5pm Vigil Mass for the 4th Sunday of Easter Year C at St John the Baptist, Woy Woy, 16 April 2016.

This is not a literal transcript, but it will give you the gist of his message.

Bishop Comensoli was at Woy Woy as part of a parish visitation, and presided at all the Masses that weekend.
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The Gospel reading was the John 10 passage where Jesus speaks of Himself as the Good Shepherd, including the verse, 'The sheep that belong to Me listen to My voice; I know them and they follow Me.'

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter. It gets this name because each Gospel in the 3 year cycle for the 4th Sunday of Easter speaks of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. It is also traditionally a day to raise vocational awareness. As a successor of the apostles it is a good day to exercise my vocational call and echo the voice of the Good Shepherd to you.

What is a vocation? The dictionary says that it is a strong feeling of suitability for a particular career or occupation. I don't think that is enough of a description. A vocation has to be more than a combination of interest and ability. The biblical notion of vocation is that it is something to be received and lived.

Today's Gospel helps us understand that notion. 'The sheep who belong to Me listen to My voice and follow Me'. So a vocation involves being willing to listen. There needs to be something worth receiving, someone willing to listen, and willing to tune into the one making the offering/doing the giving.

Listening then becomes an essential part of vocation. We need a readiness to hear the something good that is offered to us.

At the core of all vocational calls is God's gift of Himself to us. We call this gift 'grace'. It is a true gift to receive, and very good. Accepting God's gift of Himself to us is the real beginning of a vocation.

Any vocational call is always about more than me and my life, it is a calling that involves others. Jesus always has our good in mind, which includes eternal life.

There are two words associated with the call of every disciple, 'Come' and 'Go'. Even the stained glass doors of your church mention them, 'The Lord will guard your going and coming both now and for ever'.

'Come' means to share in the life of Jesus. We do that in a special way each time we gather in this temple to share in the Eucharist.

'Go' means to be sent out as a disciple with the life of Jesus. At the end of Mass you hear, 'Go in the peace of Christ'. We take Him whom we have received out to others.

A vocation has to have both, receiving and living, coming and going. It is not just finding an interest and pursuing it. First and foremost it is the loving concern of God for you, and for us.

In the business world of corporate ladder climbing, very few are ever concerned for us and our well-being, for our good and for our lives. God is very different. He is concerned.

Tuning into this gift of God and what He has in mind for our flourishing, is what He is about, and what a vocation is about.

​So tune in, and find out what He has for you.