On Vocations

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The following are from a series of vocation post by the Suffering with Joy blog:

1. What is Vocation?

2. Distinct Vocations

3. Vocations are not...

4. Discerning One's Vocation

Thank you Barbara!

Thoughts on Priesthood and Adoration

by Francisco de Zurbarán

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A Priest's One Necessary Sermon

The Lamb who is adored in the glory of heaven is present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar here on earth. If a priest were to preach but one sermon from the day of his Ordination until his death, that one sermon could be this: Ecce Agnus Dei, ecce qui tollit peccata mundi; Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who taketh away the sins of the world (John 1:29).

Disappear Into Adoration

The priest is but a herald. He announces the presence of the Immolated Lamb, and then annihilates himself in humble adoration. Adoration leads inexorably to self-effacement. The Lamb is exalted; the herald of the Lamb disappears. The Bridegroom shines forth in all His beauty; the friend of the Bridegroom withdraws, content to listen to the sound of his voice.

You can read Father Mark Daniel Kirby's entire post here.

Priests

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O Unspeakable Mystery!

Oh sublime divinity of priests

To whom is given that which

is not granted to angels.

From an old holy card.

PRIESTS: COMMITMENT TO GOD, SERVICE, EXEMPLARY LIFE

"...The Pope then went on to identify three preconditions for a priest's life to ensure its conformity to Christ: "the aspiration to collaborate with Jesus in spreading the Kingdom of God, the gratuitousness of pastoral commitment, and an attitude of service"..." Read the entire article here

Farewell and RIP, Msgr. Daniel J. Dever

November 2nd is a special day for priests and those who have been a part of the Catholic educational system in Hawai'i. Because it is All Souls Day, it makes it more special to celebrate the life of a good priest and a good man, Fr. Daniel Dever. On that day also, he would have celebrated in person his 86th birthday. The gathering of the faithful at the 6 p.m. funeral Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace celebrated -- as he probably looked on and was among those present -- his very life, a life well lived.

I didn't know Fr. Dever, but the homily of Fr. Gary Secor gave a wonderful image of what a beautiful priest he was. In a gist, Fr. Dever lived his life not for himself, but truly and wonderfully, for Christ.

About Fr. Daniel Dever by Patrick Downes, Editor of the Hawaii Catholic Herald.

EWTN Live - 11-02-2011 - Praying for the Holy Souls in Purgatory

Please remember to pray for the souls of our deceased priests. One of the priests in our diocese continuously asks that we not forget them after they die.

Catholic Church Teachings on Communion of Saints

Catechism of the Catholic Church
Communion of Saints

957
Communion with the saints. "It is not merely by the title of example that we cherish the memory of those in heaven; we seek, rather, that by this devotion to the exercise of fraternal charity the union of the whole Church in the Spirit may be strengthened. Exactly as Christian communion among our fellow pilgrims brings us closer to Christ, so our communion with the saints joins us to Christ, from whom as from its fountain and head issues all grace, and the life of the People of God itself"498:

We worship Christ as God's Son; we love the martyrs as the Lord's disciples and imitators, and rightly so because of their matchless devotion towards their king and master. May we also be their companions and fellow disciples!499


958
Communion with the dead. "In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and ‘because it is a holy and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins' she offers her suffrages for them."500 Our prayer for them is capable not only of helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.

959
In the one family of God. "For if we continue to love one another and to join in praising the Most Holy Trinity—all of us who are sons of God and form one family in Christ—we will be faithful to the deepest vocation of the Church."501

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Let us, therefore, love one another in the spirit of prayer by continuing to pray for one another.

We pray for our priests: the deceased, the living who continue to minister to God's people, those in formation or sabbatical leave, and those who are sick or dying.