Extract from St. Anne's Church Bulletin on 5th & 6th August:
To follow Jesus is not, as some seem to fear, to live a half life, a life filled with endlessly dire warnings of "Don't!” It is to live life, our human life, to the greatest possible fullness.
True evangelisation consists in making this clear by the way we speak and live. It is absolutely basic for us to ask ourselves at all times, "What does God want me to be? What are my particular gifts? How can I offer these gifts in service to the wider community and to my own Christian community?"
Unless we Christians see that 'vocation' as something that we are all called to respond to, it is not likely that there will be enough people to respond to the service needs of our Christian communities and, by extension, the needs of the wider community. There is still among many, one fears, what can be called a 'supermarket mentality' where our Christian practice is concerned. The Church is there to provide me with 'spiritual' or 'religious' 'goods' as I need them.
Today we are asked to "pray" for vocations. There is a danger that, although many will fervently do so, they are praying for other people's vocations and not their own. To say this prayer with sincerity involves my reflecting on how God is asking me to make a meaningful contribution of myself (not just money) to the building up of our community, our parish.
Let us be challenged to reflect on how we personally are responding to the call that Jesus is making to each of us right now. As a group or community, we respond to that call by seeing that all that is needed for the maintenance and growth of our community is being generously provided .
When all are giving, all will be receiving in abundance, the abundance that Jesus speaks about in the Gospel.
We invite you to our orientation night and sign up as a Friend of the Serra Club. All that is requested of you is one hour of your time once a month to pray with your fellow Catholics for vocations.
Come, find out more on Monday 21 August at 7.45 p.m. You will be glad you came!
