A mother’s idea

Forthcoming April 13, will be a Sunday dedicated to vocations in England, Wales and Ireland. The English and Welsh Church is currently divulging thousands of leaflets and posters encouraging young people to reflect on what God wants of them and on the possibility of a calling to religious and priestly life. The initiative is all the more significant considering that the English Church can currently count on 160 seminarists, the highest number registered in recent years, with an increasing trend in the past four years. At the same time the Irish Church will launch, on the same Sunday, “The Year of Vocations”, devoted to priesthood, marriage and single life, which will conclude on May 3rd 2009. Silvia Guzzetti interviewed for SIR Europe the initiative’s coordinator Brenda Drumm.How did the idea of devoting a ‘year’ to vocation come into being? “A mother suggested the initiative during a spiritual retreat with a group of priests. It immediately received warm enthusiasm by the Church”. You mention “vocation in the singular form”. Why? “We use the singular in place of the plural form because we want to raise awareness of a common vocation although it is declined according to the personal life of each one of us. According to the data collected in the past year, there is a gradual decrease in priestly vocations and it’s gradually becoming a dramatic problem. There were 171 priestly ordinations in 1984 – including monks, nuns and non-diocesan priests . These numbers dropped to 22 in 2006, while the priestly mean age is older than the rest of the population’s. In 2001 3% of the priests were between 25 and 29 years of age, in 2006 these figures dropped to 0.9%. This is a consistent problem for the Church”. What are the reasons for this crisis?“There are several reasons. The aggressive secularism of our era, the decrease in the number of children per family. Until the 1950s couples normally had four to five children. Today they have one or two at the most and the consequences are starting to be felt. There’s also a commitment crisis affecting Western societies. Indeed, the Irish Government launched an initiative in favour of active citizenship aimed at involving more citizens in volunteer work. This was a normal commitment in the past while today it must be encouraged. Even the fact that both parents are employed doesn’t benefit family life. We were never as rich, we no longer need to emigrate. This is something totally new for Irish culture. Nonetheless we’re not happier or generous than we were in the past. Youth suicide increases. This is a sign that something is missing and that people are seeking the meaning of life”. How was this initiative set up?“We created a Commission in charge of planning initiatives. The Year will be inaugurated on April 13 by the archbishop of Dublin Msgr. Diarmuid Martin with a Mass in Dublin’s Procathedral, co-celebrated by bishop Donald McKeown who is in charge of vocations. Special blessed candles will be distributed throughout the Country, and the program of activities for the rest of the year will be handed out”.Could you anticipate some highlights?“The calendar is rich with initiatives reported on the website http://www.yourvocation.ie which will be constantly updated. In May the following prayer will be said for each high-school student: “Lord, I know you have great plans for me. Even though I’m very confused, please give me the strength to implement all the decisions I will be taking”. In June we will be focusing on marriage, in July the vigil Mass for the youth who were unable to attend the WYD will be broadcast live from Sydney in the open. Another initiative is aimed at reaching out to the youth who go to Church only for Christmas. ‘Open days’ will be occasions for coming together and distribute informative leaflets. We will be present in various fairs like ‘The Opportunities’, a fair held each year in Dublin where will have our own stand providing specific information. We will have a stand and a space to pray also at the ‘Ploughing championship’, the most important agricultural exhibition. We will also encourage pastoral counsel formation since many parishes in Ireland are still not provided with pastoral counsel. The laity is the new power of the Church. We hope this Year will serve to bravely develop our spiritual life”.