Choosing a lifetime vocation, whether single life, married life, the diaconate, the priesthood or consecrated life, is often a challenging and unclear process. The week of Jan. 13-19 marked National Vocation Awareness Week within the Diocese of Joliet. To observe this annual tradition, Providence Catholic invited guest speakers from St. Thomas University in St. Paul, Minn., to share their experiences of choosing the vocation of the priesthood. Seminarians Darrell Kempf, Sam Patet, Andrew Stueve and Bill Vagenas visited Providence Jan. 25 and spoke to theology classes about the struggles and fulfillment of responding to God’s call.

The speakers addressed a variety of issues regarding religious vocations and highlighted their personal journeys through finding and responding to their common calling. Stueve, who is working toward a major in Catholic studies and a minor in philosophy, asserted that he was more surprised than anybody upon entering the seminary at the age of 31. Stueve became aware of his calling to the priesthood after high school and, despite his fears, his last three years at the seminary have been, “…the greatest time of my life.” Stueve revealed that although he was not always sure of God’s plan for him, “God knew what he wanted for me, to give my heart to him.” Stueve confessed that answering God’s call required sacrifices. However, he insisted that the value he found in giving up his fears was greater. Later in the discussion, Patet stated, “God has a calling for us that he has known for eternity… It is God’s will, not mine.”

The speakers encouraged their student listeners to confront their fears about faith and calling through prayer. “Apart from God, we are nothing. Take time to pray,” Stueve said. Questions from the students initiated a discussion on remaining faithful to the calling of the priesthood. The speakers emphasized the importance of staying focused and eliminating possible distractions. “Being a priest is a lifestyle; you are a priest all of the time,” Vagenas said.

The seminarian guest speakers hoped to help students who are questioning their vocations while presenting some characteristics of choosing the priesthood. “This is something that really helped me think about what my calling is,” junior Joseph Clarizio said. The speakers stressed that we can only achieve true fulfillment when we live out our God-given vocation. As summarized by Stueve, “Christ calls us to surrender to him, the Prince of Peace. He alone can bring peace to our hearts.”

“We encourage priestly and religious vocations here at Providence Catholic High School and always want our students to be aware of the beautiful gift of church vocations,” said John J. Hamilton, Theology Department chairperson.

In the words of Providence theology teacher Moira Olivetti, “We must be mindful of the different vocations and pray for all of them.”