Word to the Wise
Sunday, January 14, 2024 - 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - B
[1 Sam 3:3b-10, 19; 1 Cor 6:13c-15a, 17-20; John 1:35-42]"Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply, Speak Lord, for your servant is listening." [1 Samuel] John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God." The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, "What are you looking for?" They said to him, "Rabbi.....where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come and you will see." [John]
Many times in my years of campus ministry, I have had the experience of doing spiritual direction with a student who is trying to discern his or her "vocation." Although this process is often associated with discernment toward religious life or priesthood, it can easily be applied to discernment about marriage or an area of endeavor that requires a complete orientation of a person's life: e.g. law, medicine, teaching, nursing, etc.. I have often heard the wistful words, "I just want to do what God's will is for me!" The stories in the scripture about being "called" show that this can be experienced in many different ways: from a burning bush (Moses), to dreams (Samuel), to dramatic temple scenes (Isaiah), to curious inquiry (today's gospel from John), to a dramatic scene on the road to Damascus (Paul) to a verbal challenge (Peter) etc.. These can lead to one thinking this is how the decision is made - from above and from a pre-decided plan. It's not that simple in ordinary life.
A vocation is a call to "be all that you can be." A career is how one expresses it. Marriage or celibate religious life is a fundamental vocational choice but one must have the requisite skills to live that vocation. A job or career can be a temporary thing. A vocation is not a thing but a person. Those who go into law, medicine, etc. can experience these as vocation or as career. It will make a big difference in how they live.
Ultimately, Jesus' statement, "Come and you will see!" is the only real way to determine one's vocation. It is how I learned that I really belonged in the Dominican Order. I have had many "careers" in the Order - campus minister, pastor, itinerant preacher - but only one vocation! The Lord, with the cooperation of my parents, gave me certain tools and skills. I had to decide how to use them. Samuel, Andrew and other biblical figures had dramatic experiences. All I had was an idea that wouldn't leave me alone. What has been your experience? The stories of the discerning process are the stuff of amazement. AMEN