OUR BAPTISMAL VOCATION

Dear Friends in Christ:

At the end of the 2000-2001 school year, I attended the Baccalaureate Mass for Cardinal O'Hara High School. In his homily the chaplain singled out one student for particular mention, a young man who was exploring a possible call to the priesthood. While the chaplain probably didn't intend to do so, he sent the clear message that the only vocation that really matters is the priesthood. Having taught all the graduating seniors, I knew that the vocations of those who were going to be pharmacists and teachers and truck drivers and parents were just as important as the priesthood.

The Church has undergone something of a revolution in the past fifty years. We have come to see that the ministry of the Church is to be shared by all of its members. This doesn't mean that there are to be no distinctions between different roles within the Church. But it does mean that all of us are called and empowered to share in the ministry of Christ. As one of the priests of this parish, I have particular gifts and responsibilities, but my gifts are no substitute for yours and I cannot take your responsibilities away from you without doing damage to the Body of Christ.

Saint Paul's use of that image is a great gift to us. When we don't encourage one another to exercise our gifts for ministry or when we work to block one another's use of those gifts, it is as if my feet wouldn't let my fingers type this message and insisted on doing it themselves. As bad a typist as I am, I would be far worse if I tried doing it with my feet or my nose or my elbow.  But Paul's use of the image is a gift in another way. Just as infants and small children have to learn to use the various parts of their bodies, so the Church has to discern and develop the gifts of its members. I sometimes imagine that as we look at one another, we are like babies looking at feet or hands and not even knowing what they can do with them.

Interim periods in a parish's life are ideal times for discerning spiritual gifts, gifts for ministry. Things are no longer done the way they were a year or two ago and this opens up opportunities for members to explore new ways to work in ministry. Not all of that exploration will lead to obvious new work in ministry, but all of it can lead to a deepening of our sense of giftedness and of our faith in the One who is the giver of all good gifts. On several Sundays in Eastertide, we will have an opportunity to explore our gifts for ministry during the 9 o'clock Christian Education hour. While all the details for this haven't been worked out, I ask that you plan to take part. As we move through the next year we have a wonderful opportunity to grow as a community in ministry. Together with the profile and search process, our discernment and development of our gifts is essential preparation for the welcoming of a new rector.

Your brother and priest,

Daniel