Amplify The Voice Of God: Call By Name

When I speak to large groups about vocations, there is a little exercise I like to do. I choose the two people farthest from each other in the room and ask one of them to relay a message to the other.  Of course, it’s not difficult to do. He or she stands up and shouts the message across the room and is easily heard by the other.

Then, I tell the whole crowd to stand up start talking loudly. After about 30 seconds, the quiet room is filled with a deafening roar. Then I ask the person to relay another message to their furthest counterpart across the room. But this time, it’s impossible to hear over the noise that surrounds them.

This second scenario describes life as most of us live it: surrounded by noise, unaware that Someone is speaking to us. As if discerning a call from the Infinite God were not difficult enough, to be surrounded by distractions and the constant commotion of life only adds to the confusion.

I would suggest that two things are especially needed in our lives today.

The first is silence. Here I don’t mean just the absence of noise, but the intentional focusing of our minds and hearts on God’s presence.

Without taking the time to listen, it is all but impossible to become more familiar with the voice of the Good Shepherd who desires to lead us to green pastures. For all of us, even if we’ve already discovered our vocation and are living it, we need silence to be sustained in the work of living it well.

Secondly, we need voices that can echo the voice of God calling women and men today. For this reason, the Vocation Office is launching a Called by Name program. Called by Name is an opportunity for the people of our diocese to identify women and men whom they think would serve well in the priesthood or religious life. The hope is to amplify the voice of God speaking in our world today.

It’s no surprise that studies have shown that individuals who are asked to consider a religious vocation are twice as likely to take that consideration seriously. That number grows exponentially the more encouragement they are given. So, we intend to ask and encourage!

This is your chance to amplify the voice of God. If you know of an individual from age 15-45 whom you think would serve well in the priesthood or religious life, please let us know. You can go to our website, www.stationforvocations.org, and follow the Called by Name link to submit his or her name and why you think he or she would serve well in this capacity. You can also send us an email at vocations@evdio.org or call us at (812) 424-5536. 

This campaign will run from April through June, but please don’t hesitate to pass on names past the June time frame.

It is clear that God calls individuals from within in the way that He inspires them. And it is also clear that God calls from the outside, reaffirming that internal call, which often gets pushed below the surface.

 If we believe that following God’s will moves us toward a life of fulfillment and fruitfulness, then why should we not help each other to better listen to God’s voice? So please, do that young person you know a favor; do your fellow parishioner a favor; do your family member a favor; encourage them to recognize that God is calling them by name!

Father Zenthoefer is pastor of Christ the King parish, Evansville, diocesan vocations director and chaplain of Memorial High School, Evansville