Rick Sarkisian
From the Jan/Feb 2006 Issue of Lay Witness Magazine
“Jobs with a future.” This message was proclaimed on a huge sign stretched across the front of a Catholic high school in an effort to promote the priesthood and religious life. I’m sure there were well-meaning folks behind the idea, but sadly, it reflects what persists in the minds of many: that being a priest or consecrated religious is a “job” akin to a career choice, not much different than choosing to fry burgers or fly airplanes. With that kind of marketing mind-set, we try to persuade others to come aboard.
Yet marketing vocations does not work. You can’t market the priesthood or market the religious life any more than you can market marriage. These are not job choices or career decisions. These are fundamental states of life that entail permanent commitments, unlike the fluid nature of occupations and college majors. I’m talking about radical states of life that involve radical decisions to embrace Christ. This can only occur by first understanding that vocations are all about grace.
In essence, vocations are the fruit of grace, and grace is the fruit of prayer. In particular, a culture of vocations entails a culture of prayer and evangelization within the family. Why? Because as the “domestic Church” and the basic unit of society, the family is the main source of vocations. Parents carry with them the primary mission of Christian witness: to reflect the presence of God in their actions, words, and behavior.
As a vocational rehabilitation consultant, I’ve spent more than 30 years helping people make occupational choices and changes. In that time, I’ve found that it’s just about impossible to “sell” someone on a particular career path, even though there may be very attractive reasons for choosing a certain occupation. Instead, the people I’ve seen over the years seem to have a built-in like/dislike filter, established through experience, attitude, and motivation, that helps them make decisions. And if marketing fails with career choice, how much more will it fail if directed toward states of life?
Your Calling
There is also the notion that “vocation” refers only to the ordained ministry and consecrated life. However, the Church teaches that God calls each of us to holiness in Baptism—our general vocation—and to a specific state of life—like marriage, priesthood, or religious life. But God’s call doesn’t stop there. His divine will includes our general mission for Christian witness (see Mt. 28:19) and a specialized purpose uniquely designed for each of us—our specific mission or “lifework.”
It is in this context of personal call that I see an urgent need to form a culture of vocations in our parishes, schools, and families. In Novo Millennio Ineunte, Pope John Paul II encourages implementation of “an extensive plan of vocational promotion based on personal contact and involving parishes, schools and families” (no.46). This means creating an awareness of personal vocation and mission, of God’s unrepeatable plan for each of us; and discovery of this plan is the only way to find true meaning and purpose in life. It’s how we remain focused on ultimate union with the Father in heaven.
John Paul continues:
It is in this perspective that we see the value of all other vocations, rooted as they are in the new life received in the Sacrament of Baptism. In a special way it will be necessary to discover ever more fully the specific vocation of laity, called “to seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and by ordering them according to the plan of God;” they “have their own role to play in the mission of the whole people of God in the Church and in the world . . . by their work for the evangelization and the sanctification of people.”
In my writings, I have often used the term “lifework,” which refers to use of all the talents, gifts, and skills that have been provided to us in all the settings we find ourselves (e.g., home, parish, workplace) as we live out the particular vocation and mission to which we are called, bringing glory to God in everything. This lifework principle is meant to encourage others to listen, pray, and seek the signs that reveal God’s will and purpose. And it applies to the diversity of vocations that make up the Church. Our lifework is the sum total of all we’ve done in service to Christ. It’s not a career, it’s a calling.
“What Do You Do?”
We live in a society where we are often reduced to a function. It is all about what we do in a utilitarian sense. When we meet someone new, it is common to have an early exchange where we ask, “What do you do?” We desperately need a change in our mindset to place the focus on “being,” to understand who we are and whose we are as part of God’s creation and the story of salvation. We need to fully understand ourselves as members of a community, as part of the universal Church, as devout Catholics committed to Christian witness and to the daily discovery of God’s divine will.
If we persist in a “function mentality,” we are no different than a black and white television that can’t receive a color signal. We can only see a black and white image, even though the broadcast might be in living color. When we cross the threshold from the worldview of function to that of personal call, then we can fully and completely surrender our lives to Christ and let Him work in us and through us as living witnesses to His presence in our homes, parishes, and communities.
Fulfilling Our Purpose
Our life takes on an eternal perspective where everything we do relates to our ultimate destination: eternal life with the Father. Pope John Paul II wrote about our “earthly pilgrimage” to the Father and that is precisely the journey we are taking. He encouraged consecrated persons to have no fear. Indeed, all believers should proceed unafraid, for our vocation is the path over which the Redeemer keeps constant watch (cf. Vita Consecrata, no. 40).
Imagine the conversation between two bricklayers and a passerby who is asking about the nature of the building project. The first bricklayer says he is “building a wall,” but the second bricklayer says he is “building a cathedral.” The second bricklayer gets it. He understands that, brick by brick, he is accomplishing a grand project. In our Christian walk, day by day, we are fulfilling the plan and purpose for our life. As we do so, we complete the unique, irreplaceable role that is part of God’s story.
We need to show others the process of discovering God’s plan as revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. In this way, we will be who God wants us to be—our vocation— and do what God wants us to do—our mission. It’s like a recipe for the world’s best chocolate cake. All the ingredients, put together properly, result in a great cake—one you can taste and experience.
Rick Sarkisian is founder and president of Valley Rehabilitation Services, Inc., which has specialized in vocational and career guidance since 1976. He is author of a number of books, including LifeWork: Finding Your Purpose in Life, and Not Your Average Joe. He and his wife, Cheryl, have been married 26 years and have five children. This column is the basis for a future series of vocation- and lifepurpose- themed booklets from LifeWork
Press as part of the LifeWork Essentials miniseries. For further information, please call LifeWork Press at (888) 297-4300 or visit www.lifeworkpress.com.
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