Caption Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan of Waterford and Lismore and chair of the Bishops’ Council for Vocations, speaking to seminarians in the College Chapel of Saint Patrick’s College, Maynooth, at the launch of the 2023/24 Year of Vocations to the Priesthood, (l to r) Anthony Hartnett of the Diocese of Raphoe, Lukáš Němeček of the Czeck Republic, Bishop Cullinan, and Killian Heney of the Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly (Catholic Communications Office archive).
- RTÉ One televised Mass live from Saint Canice’s Catholic Church, Kilkenny
Introduction by John Shorthall, chairperson of Saint Canice’s Parish Pastoral Council
Good morning, and welcome to our celebration of Good Shepherd Sunday, Vocations Sunday. Our Parish community here in Saint Canice’s Parish, Kilkenny, welcomes all of you who join us on RTÉ and the world wide web as we gather with parishes and communities across the country and across the world in praying for vocations to the Diocesan priesthood, diaconate, and religious life. Wherever you are this morning, at home, in a hospital, nursing home, or religious community, you are welcome. We gather in faith and gratitude, recognising the many ways God continues to call people to serve. Whether that call is to ordained ministry, consecrated life, marriage, single life, or generous service within the community, each vocation strengthens the life of the Church. We welcome Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan, our celebrant, together with Father Willie Purcell, our concelebrant. We also welcome those taking part in today’s liturgy – seminarians, members of religious communities, and members of our vocations community – who represent the living witness of God’s call in our world.
Homily delivered by Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan
I was in Medjugorje last week with a group of transition year students. It was wonderful. Central to the whole life of Medjugorje, where Our Lady gathers us around her Son, is the Eucharist, Confession, Adoration. For all of these a priest is needed. I was struck by the beautiful relationship the young people have with their priest. Some of these youngsters will, I am sure, get married. Maybe some will be chosen for religious life or priesthood or the single life.
Today, on this Vocations Sunday, we pray especially for vocations to the priesthood. I make no apology for this whatsoever. We need priests.
We need to promote all vocations of course – how we need good holy and happy marriages. But this day we pray for an increase in vocations to the ordained priesthood. We pray that God will raise up many men young, and not so young, to follow Jesus Christ in this particular path.
I put before you today a short meditation on the Psalm we have for today’s Mass – Psalm 23 – you know it well I am sure: The Lord is my Shepherd.
For anyone with a call to priesthood, he has to pray and learn to trust. He has to be convinced that Jesus is his shepherd and with the Lord there is nothing he will lose out on. Since people do think that, if I give my life to God, then I will miss out on life’s pleasures and adventures.
From personal experience I can say that there are many wonderful things and many adventures in store for every priest – serving God’s people brings many blessings, though it can also be tough. However there are, as we say in the psalm, many fresh and green pastures where the Lord gives joy and repose, and the Lord will fill your cup to overflowing. And when you feel down and disappointed that life is not going as it should, He will find you restful waters to revive your spirit. That has been my experience too.
If you can trust Him, He will guide you along the right path; for He is always true to His promises and, even if you should walk in the valley of darkness, you need fear nothing for He is there and He will give you comfort.
On the altar at Mass you will celebrate as a priest the Lord’s Mass for the people and for the priest too. On the altar He prepares a banquet in the sight of all, where the Lord’s people are fed and where we encounter Jesus in a most intimate way.
On the day of your ordination, He will anoint your head and your hands with oil so that you can be set apart for God’s special work of celebrating Mass, of forgiving sins, of anointing the sick, of breaking open the Word of God in preaching, of guiding your people to follow together in the way God has planned out.
And, with your people, I can see in the lives of so many priests how goodness and kindness follow them all the days of their lives, and all together the hope of all is that we shall dwell in Lord’s own house for ever and ever.
Let us be confident that God is still calling and let us pray that many will rise up to the challenge and follow the Shepherd in the priesthood.
ENDS
- Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan is Bishop of Waterford and Lismore, and chair of the Council for Vocations of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference.