Called, chosen, and loved!

The word vocation comes from the Latin vocare, meaning "to call." In this sense, each calling is an inner voice—personal and unique. A caring voice and a loving gaze that recognize and welcome who we are. As written in Mark's Gospel: “Jesus looked steadily at him and he was filled with love for him” (Mk 10:21a). This loving gaze reminds us that God loves each of us personally above all. Like the young man in the Gospel, we are looked upon with affection and invited to go further. Yet, in today's society, that love can sometimes be difficult to recognize, obscured by indifference, pain, or the distractions of modern life.

Still, Christ's voice continues to resonate gently and persistently: “Come, follow me” (Mk 10:21b). This is the first step. God chooses us because He recognizes the potential for love and service in each of us, not because we are without fault. This may surprise us, as expressed by the prophet Jeremiah: “You have seduced me, Yahweh, and I have let myself be seduced” (Jer 20:7). Yet, when we respond to this divine invitation, our lives take on deeper meaning.

Jesus also reminds us: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest” (Mt 9:37). We are called to pray deeply for vocations and to create an atmosphere where people feel encouraged to ask, "Lord, what do you want from my life?" We are invited to encourage and support personal discernment.

The Quebec Foreign Mission Society (QFMS) provides us with examples of individuals—friends, associates, and members of the QFMS—who have responded to this call with generosity and faith. As a priest of Bunong descent in Cambodia, Fr. Juan Bautista Prak Bunhong combines his Catholic faith with his ancestral customs in living out his vocation. His testimony demonstrates that responding to the call means becoming more fully ourselves in Christ without losing our identity.

(https://www.smelaval.org/temoignage-missionnaire-du-pere-juan-bautista-prak-bunhong.html)

Laypeople, too, are vital to the mission. Irma Porma worked alongside Fr. Frank Bélec, PMÉ, in Chile, accompanying the Mapuche people with compassion and humility. Her story affirms that vocation is not limited to the ordained; it is rooted in the desire to love and serve.

 (https://www.smelaval.org/temoignage-irma-porma.html).

We are all called, chosen, and loved. Let us pray, support one another, and walk together so that many may hear the call and dare to respond generously.