Feast of the
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
(1 Micah 5:1-4a or Romans 8:28-30; Matthew 1:1-16.18-23)
Today’s celebration of the birth of the Blessed Virgin
Mary underscores an important principle of faith. Each of us is born for a purpose. We share with Mary the vocation to know,
love, and serve God. But also like Mary,
each of us has a singular call in life.
Hers was to be the mother of the Savior.
Ours is something else.
We should think of our vocation as dynamic. We are to discern God’s call through our
imagination, experience, and abilities as well as prayer. What is more, we will usually find that it is
a complex calling. We are likely to be a
salesman–father or a teacher-mother. In
my case, I am a priest-teacher. Again,
we have to find our purpose by probing and seeing, questioning and listening, asking
and thinking.
It’s important as well that once we decide on our purpose,
we stick to it. If we discern a vocation
to be a nurse, then we are to take the appropriate classes and do the necessary
study. Although there may be the
possibility of a change of careers, some determinations we make are permanent. Those who see themselves as married should
realize that this vocation lasts until death.
So as always we need to make the best discernments possible.
