Office of Priestly and Religious Vocations
Diocese of Wilmington
www.cdow.org/vocations
View “Discerning God’s Will with the College Seminarians of the Diocese of Wilmington” at https://www.cdow.org/catholic-diocese-of-wilmington-offices-and-ministries/vocations/
Very Reverend Norman P. Carroll, V.F.
Vocation Director
(302) 573 – 3113
vocations@cdow.org
Reverend John A. Grasing
Director of Deacons
(302) 573 – 2390
jgrasing@cdow.org
Sister Ann David Strohminger, o.s.f.
Delegate for Religious
(302) 573 – 3124
astrohminger@cdow.org
Parents, are you nurturing the call to Church ministry?
In talking with your children, have you neglected to raise the call to Church ministry? The process of answering God’s call begins in childhood. Throughout adolescence and adulthood, the attitudes assumed in childhood begin to influence the course of one’s life. A vocation or a talent will not grow to fruition unless it is nurtured in childhood and adolescence by a parent.
Often children talk about what they want to be “when they grow up”: doctors, lawyers, athletes, nurses, movie stars, teachers, carpenters. They may talk about these roles, but do they ever talk about being a priest, sister, or brother? You are the hand of God — encourage your children to consider Church ministry.
Serra for priestly and religious vocations
What kinds of people become priests, sisters, or brothers? Are you that kind of person?
Are they uncommonly holy, unusually saint-like? No. They are people who make mistakes, people who are not afraid to be human while in God’s service. Are they people who can not face the competition and cruelty of the “real” world? No. They are people who believe that through ministry they can immerse themselves in the world and make positive changes. Are they people who do not relate well with other people? No. They are people who love others — people who find real satisfaction chatting with a 93-year-old parishioner, holding the hand of a cancer patient, listening to the troubles of a streetwise teen. They are people with the courage to touch lives, hearts and souls in a high-tech, unchurched world.
Serra for priestly and religious vocations
A study commissioned by the Knights of Columbus revealed that 75% of Catholic young people who had seriously considered religious life felt they were never encouraged to pursue that goal. Do you know someone who would make a good priest? Why not tell him so? Your encouragement may be all he needs.
Serra for priestly and religious vocations