World Priest Day

    World Priest Day – June 8, 2018

    This Friday, June 8th is World Priest Day (AKA World Day for the Sanctification of Priests). It is appropriate that this is the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus! This day is set aside to pray for the priests in your life. Pray for their holiness even in their human weaknesses. We live in a time that calls for priests who are, as Saint John Fisher prayed, “strong and mighty pillars that may suffer and endure great labors” in Church. Below is my favorite prayer for priests from one of our favorite saints:

    The Daily Prayer For Priests by St. Therese of the Child Jesus

    O Jesus, I pray for your faithful and fervent priests;

    for your unfaithful and tepid priests;

    for your priests laboring at home or abroad in distant mission fields.

    for your tempted priests;

    for your lonely and desolate priests;

    For your young priests;

    for your dying priests;

    for the souls of your priests in Purgatory.

    But above all, I recommend to you the priests dearest to me:

    the priest who baptized me;

    the priests who absolved me from my sins;

    the priests at whose Masses I assisted and who gave me Your Body and Blood in Holy Communion;

    the priests who taught and instructed me;

    all the priests to whom I am indebted in any other way (especially …).

    O Jesus, keep them all close to your heart,

    and bless them abundantly in time and in eternity.

    Amen.

    Prayer cards with this prayer are available from Vianney Vocations.

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    GOOD NEWS!

      Here are some first reports of ordinations around the country that signal a healthy growth in priestly vocations:

      • The Diocese of Wichita ordained TEN more priests this year, after ordaining TEN last year, a 20% increase in the number of active priests! Fr. Chad Arnold of the Office of Vocations said that (ordaining these men) means, "We can look to the future with a certain boldness and hope that we can continue to fulfill the mission of Christ." With only 130,000 Catholics in this diocese, these numbers are HUGE!
      • The Diocese of Little Rock ordained EIGHT, which encompasses the entire state of Arkansas with a Catholic Population of 155,911 people registered in parishes (56,479 households). This is a HUGE # for a diocese of this size! That would be like 100 men being ordained for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston or Chicago. Something BIG is happening in Arkansas!!!
      • The Diocese of Joliet in Illinois ordained SEVEN men. This is coming from a Diocese with an amazing Vocation Director and Serra Club working together to do everything possible to promote vocations!
      • The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend in Indiana ordains FIVE men — the largest group in 43 years! Interesting fact: Four of the newly ordained: Frs. Hake, Huneck, Maskal, and Zehr graduated in 2009 from Bishop Dwenger High School in Fort Wayne. That High School has created a culture of vocations! Another smaller diocese is leading the way for vocations!

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      They Don't Grow on Trees

        Priests come from families! When a man decides to go to the seminary, his family’s reaction matters. In this episode, two bishops (Bishop Caggiano, Bishop Rassas), 2 priests (Fr. Al Baca, Fr. Luke Ballman), and 1 seminarian (Brendan Glasgow) share their parents’ reaction to their discernment.

        Click Here to Listen

        Ninja Priest

          Did you see THIS! First priest to ever compete on American Ninja Warrior!! Fr. Stephen’s promo package before he started down the obstacle course was awesome evangelization! He said, “I get all my ninja powers from Jesus!” Great job, Fr. Stephen! 

          Keep in Touch!

            Don’t forget to email me back with your stories of triumph or struggle. If you have questions, know that I am here to support you in this mission of Building a Culture of Vocations One Parish at a Time! Email me!

            As always, know that you are in my prayers. If you think of it, please pray for me, too.

            God bless you!

            Rhonda Gruenewald
            Vocation Ministry
            Cell: 281-352-4005
            rhonda@vocationministry.com
            www.vocationministry.com

            St. Alphonsus Liguori, Pray For Us!

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