Pope Francis: "Listen and follow Jesus" for Day of Prayer for Vocations
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis invites young people to “listen to and follow Jesus,
and to allow yourselves to be transformed interiorly by his words” in his Message
for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, which is marked on May 11.
“A vocation
is a fruit that ripens in a well cultivated field of mutual love that becomes mutual
service, in the context of an authentic ecclesial life,” writes Pope Francis. “No
vocation is born of itself or lives for itself. A vocation flows from the heart of
God and blossoms in the good soil of faithful people, in the experience of fraternal
love.”
The full text of the Message is below
Vocations,
Witness to the Truth
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
1. The Gospel says
that “Jesus went about all the cities and villages... When he saw the crowds, he had
compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a
shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers
are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest’”
(Mt 9:35-38). These words surprise us, because we all know that it is necessary first
to plow, sow and cultivate to then, in due time, reap an abundant harvest. Jesus says
instead that “the harvest is plentiful”. But who did the work to bring about these
results? There is only one answer: God. Clearly the field of which Jesus is speaking
is humanity, us. And the efficacious action which has borne “much fruit” is the grace
of God, that is, communion with Him (cf. Jn 15:5). The prayer which Jesus asks of
the Church therefore concerns the need to increase the number of those who serve his
Kingdom. Saint Paul, who was one of “God’s fellow workers”, tirelessly dedicated himself
to the cause of the Gospel and the Church. The Apostle, with the awareness of one
who has personally experienced how mysterious God’s saving will is, and how the initiative
of grace is the origin of every vocation, reminds the Christians of Corinth: “You
are God’s field” (1 Cor 3:9). That is why wonder first arises in our hearts over the
plentiful harvest which God alone can bestow; then gratitude for a love that always
goes before us; and lastly, adoration for the work that he has accomplished, which
requires our free consent in acting with him and for him.
2. Many times we
have prayed with the words of the Psalmist: “It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture” (Ps 100:3); or: “The Lord has chosen
Jacob for himself, Israel as his own possession” (Ps 135:4). And yet we are God’s
“possession” not in the sense of a possession that renders us slaves, but rather of
a strong bond that unites us to God and one another, in accord with a covenant that
is eternal, “for his steadfast love endures for ever” (Ps 136). In the account of
the calling of the prophet Jeremiah, for example, God reminds us that he continually
watches over each one of us in order that his word may be accomplished in us. The
image is of an almond branch which is the first tree to flower, thus announcing life’s
rebirth in the springtime (cf Jer 1:11-12). Everything comes from him and is his gift:
the world, life, death, the present, the future, but — the Apostle assures us — “you
are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s” (1 Cor 3:23). Hence the way of belonging to God
is explained: it comes about through a unique and personal relationship with Jesus,
which Baptism confers on us from the beginning of our rebirth to new life. It is Christ,
therefore, who continually summons us by his word to place our trust in him, loving
him “with all the heart, with all the understanding, and with all the strength” (Mk
12:33). Therefore every vocation, even within the variety of paths, always requires
an exodus from oneself in order to centre one’s life on Christ and on his Gospel.
Both in married life and in the forms of religious consecration, as well as in priestly
life, we must surmount the ways of thinking and acting that do not conform to the
will of God. It is an “exodus that leads us on a journey of adoration of the Lord
and of service to him in our brothers and sisters” (Address to the International Union
of Superiors General, 8 May 2013). Therefore, we are all called to adore Christ in
our hearts (1 Pet 3:15) in order to allow ourselves to be touched by the impulse of
grace contained in the seed of the word, which must grow in us and be transformed
into concrete service to our neighbour. We need not be afraid: God follows the work
of his hands with passion and skill in every phase of life. He never abandons us!
He has the fulfilment of his plan for us at heart, and yet he wishes to achieve it
with our consent and cooperation.
3. Today too, Jesus lives and walks along
the paths of ordinary life in order to draw near to everyone, beginning with the least,
and to heal us of our infirmities and illnesses. I turn now to those who are well
disposed to listen to the voice of Christ that rings out in the Church and to understand
what their own vocation is. I invite you to listen to and follow Jesus, and to allow
yourselves to be transformed interiorly by his words, which “are spirit and life”
(Jn 6:62). Mary, the Mother of Jesus and ours, also says to us: “Do whatever he tells
you” (Jn 2:5). It will help you to participate in a communal journey that is able
to release the best energies in you and around you. A vocation is a fruit that ripens
in a well cultivated field of mutual love that becomes mutual service, in the context
of an authentic ecclesial life. No vocation is born of itself or lives for itself.
A vocation flows from the heart of God and blossoms in the good soil of faithful people,
in the experience of fraternal love. Did not Jesus say: “By this all men will know
that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:35)?
4.
Dear brothers and sisters, this “high standard of ordinary Christian living” (cf John
Paul II, Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio Ineunte, 31) means sometimes going against
the tide and also encountering obstacles, outside ourselves and within ourselves.
Jesus himself warns us: the good seed of God’s word is often snatched away by the
Evil one, blocked by tribulation, and choked by worldly cares and temptation (cf Mt
13:19-22). All of these difficulties could discourage us, making us fall back on seemingly
more comfortable paths. However, the true joy of those who are called consists in
believing and experiencing that he, the Lord, is faithful, and that with him we can
walk, be disciples and witnesses of God’s love, open our hearts to great ideals, to
great things. “We Christians were not chosen by the Lord for small things; push onwards
toward the highest principles. Stake your lives on noble ideals!” (Homily at Holy
Mass and the Conferral of the Sacrament of Confirmation, 28 April 2013). I ask you
bishops, priests, religious, Christian communities and families to orient vocational
pastoral planning in this direction, by accompanying young people on pathways of holiness
which, because they are personal, “call for a genuine ‘training in holiness’ capable
of being adapted to every person’s need. This training must integrate the resources
offered to everyone with both the traditional forms of individual and group assistance,
as well as the more recent forms of support offered in associations and movements
recognized by the Church” (Novo Millennio Ineunte, 31).
Let us dispose our
hearts therefore to being “good soil”, by listening, receiving and living out the
word, and thus bearing fruit. The more we unite ourselves to Jesus through prayer,
Sacred Scripture, the Eucharist, the Sacraments celebrated and lived in the Church
and in fraternity, the more there will grow in us the joy of cooperating with God
in the service of the Kingdom of mercy and truth, of justice and peace. And the harvest
will be plentiful, proportionate to the grace we have meekly welcomed into our lives.
With this wish, and asking you to pray for me, I cordially impart to you all my Apostolic
Blessing.