The document discusses the concept of vocation from a Catholic perspective. It defines vocation as a calling from God to fulfill a particular purpose or role in life, such as a job, marriage, religious life, or single life. Vocation involves using one's gifts and talents to serve God and others. The document explores how vocation applies to all people and all aspects of life, from jobs to relationships. It also discusses recognizing God's call through scripture, the sacraments, desires, emotions, conscience, life events, relationships, and silence.

1. Lesson 1:Vocation

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LessonObjectives:
1. Explain vocation and its essential
elements
2. Create personal reflection for clarity
of one‘s vocation
3. Appreciate the importance of one‘s
calling
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TheySayweallhavea
Vocation.
But WhatisVocation?
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VO-CA-TION.
(Noun)
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• It came from the Latin verb
“VOCARE” which means “to
call”
Vocation is more likely a calling to
do something
Let us try a definition:
• Option 1-A particular
occupation, business, or
profession.
• Option 2-a Divine call to God’s
service or to the Christian life.

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IsVocationlikethis?Definition1
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OrIsVocationmorelikethis?Definition2
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Whatifitwasboth?
Whatifeverythingwas
atypeofvocation?
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-WorkingyourJob
-GettingMarried
-HavingaFamily
-Stayingsingle
EverythingisawaytoserveGod
“VocationisaboutGod’sCallingtousto
becomeHoly”
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EverythingisVocation
Married Life Priesthood
Religious
Life
Nurse Fireman Teacher
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• Vocation is a life-calling that everyone
receives from God. It has many elements
such as, work, personal growth and
development, career and possibly
marriage. It‘s a function or station in life to
which one is called by God to achieve a
sense of fulfilment in life.An example of a
vocation would be a nurse.
• By being a nurse, that person would have
to have the gifts and talents of, honesty,
patience, and would love to assist people
in need. By having a vocation,God has
given us a purpose in live.
Vocation
Every member of the Church is called to
holiness (Lumen Gentium, ChV).This
means we are called to love: to love God
and to love each other.The particular
way that you live out that call to
holiness is your vocation.
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Catechism of the Catholic Church,
Part 3; Chapter 1: Man'sVocation
• 1706 By his reason, man recognizes
the voice of God which urges him
"to do what is good and avoid what
is evil."9 Everyone is obliged to
follow this law, which makes itself
heard in conscience and is fulfilled
in the love of God and of neighbor.
Living a moral life bears witness to
the dignity of the person.
(https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_
css/archive/catechism/p3s1c1a1.htm)
Man'sVocation&its
Elements
This shows that God is constantly calling
us in certain path. Before all other
callings we were called to live a moral
life, a life in the spirit of God. For us to
perform a moral duty as we respond to
what has God called us.
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7 Essential
Things about
yourVocation
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• The word vocation comes from the
Latin vocare which means to call.God
calls or invites you to a particular
vocation: single life, marriage,
priesthood or consecrated life.
Although each of us must make a
decision about our vocation, that choice
is a response to an invitation from God
1.Vocation isby
Invitation
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• God is interested in you personally and
he calls you personally. Many times in
scripture we see God calling individual
men and women such as Noah (Gen
6:8- 22), Abraham (Gen 12:1-30), Sarah
(Gen 17:15-16), Moses (Ex 3:1- 4:14),
Samuel (1 Sam 3:1-18), Mary (Lk 1:26-
38), the Samaritan woman (Jn 4:1-42)
and Peter (Mt 4:18-20).
• Pope Francis: “In calling us God says to
us: “You are important to me, I love
you, I count on you.” Jesus says this
to each one of us! Joy is born from
here, the joy of the moment in which
Jesus looked at me.To understand
and to feel this is the secret of our joy.
To feel loved by God, to feel that for
Him we are not numbers, but
persons; and to feel that it is He who
calls us” (VaticanCity, 9 July 2013).
2.God calls you
Personally
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• “Be who you are meant to be and you
will set the whole world on fire”: this is a
common paraphrase of the words of St
Catherine of Siena. It’s tempting to
think of your vocation as something
you do. But St Catherine of Siena
speaks of vocation in terms of being,
not doing.Vocation is not simply
something that you do but it is an
authentic expression of who you are, of
your very identity.
3.YourVocation
isan expression
of whoYou are
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• “Which of us knows what will make us
happy?” asks Fr Jacques Philippe inThe
Way ofTrust and Love.We have all had
that experience of getting exactly what
we thought we wanted, only to find
ourselves still unsatisfied. But God
knows us better than we know
ourselves; He understands what will
bring us real fulfillment, not just
fleeting happiness.
• St Irenaeus had this great insight into
vocation when he said (to paraphrase):
God did not call me for any service I
might render him; God called me
because he knew that in his service, I
would be happy. (Against Heresies,
IV, 14)
4.Godknows us
best
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• When we speak of Christian vocations,
we don’t mean a job or a career.Your
vocation is the way God invites you to
love and give yourself to others. It is not
simply the giving of your skills, services
and expertise, but the giving of your
whole self as a path to holiness.
5.Vocation is
different from a
career
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• On the surface the vocations of
priesthood, religious life, married life,
and single life seem quite different,
don’t they? Although there is a
beautiful diversity among these
vocations, at their heart each shares a
common commitment to love.As St
John Paul II explained it, “Love is the
fundamental and innate vocation of
every human being” (Familiaris
Consortio, 11).
6. Every
Vocation isacall
to Love
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• God created us with the “dignity of a
person who can initiate and control his
own actions”; we have the freedom to
choose and be responsible. (CCC
1730). God does not want to force you
to choose a certain path, but to listen
to His invitation and respond freely,
and so “God does not shout but
whispers” (Fulton Sheen).
• We see this take place in 1 Kings when
Elijah was waiting for God to come to
visit him. Elijah experienced “a great
and strong wind…but the Lord was not
in the wind; and after the wind an
earthquake, but the Lord was not in the
earthquake; and after the earthquake a
fire, but the Lord was not in the fire;
and after the fire a still small voice.” (1
Kgs 19:11-12). In order to hear the “still,
small voice” like Elijah, we must create
a place where we can be quiet, still
and attentive.
7.God respects
your Freedom
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GodCalls
Everyone
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• The SecondVaticanCouncil spoke of the
―universal call to holiness‖ (Lumen
Gentium,V). Being called to holiness
means being called to love God and
others. The universal call to holiness
means God doesn‘t call some people to be
saints, but all people.You may be thinking,
“I’m not perfect, how could I ever be a
saint?” But saints come from diverse
backgrounds and some were far away
from God at one point in their lives.
Because they were open to God‘s call, His
grace was able to enter their lives and
transform them. “God’s grace is not for
an elite class, it’s for all people including
you and me.”
GodCallsEveryone
"The only real sadness, the only real
failure, the only great tragedy in life, is
not to become a saint." Léon Bloy
(1846-1917)
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Recognizing
theVoice of
Jesus
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• ―The voice of Jesus is unique! If we learn
to distinguish it, He guides us on the path
of life‖, Pope Francis tells us.The question
is: how do we learn to recognize the voice
of Jesus calling to us?
Recognizingthevoice
ofJesus
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• The word of God is ―living and active‖
(Heb 4:12). Although Jesus spoke in a
particular place and time, His words are
also meant for you and I to listen to and
receive right now and have just the same
power to transform us.There are many
ways of praying with scripture including
Lectio Divina, imaginative prayer and the
prayer of the Church (DivineOffice).
1.Scripture
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• We encounter Jesus personally in
the Sacraments. In the
Sacraments, God gives himself to
us, invites us to a new way of living,
and gives us His grace to help us
respond to that invitation.
2.TheSacraments
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• God speaks to us by placing desires
deeply in our hearts that are
oriented towards love and life.The
contrast to the shallow desires
often promoted by our
contemporary culture (for
example, materialism etc.).
3.Desires
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• God speaks to us through our emotions.
Some have a natural cause; others are
spiritual. Examples of natural emotions
include our response when we listen to a
beautiful piece of music or witness a
glorious sunset. It‘s important to learn
how to ‗read‘ your emotions.
• You might like also read a book on the
emotions, such asThe Emotions God Gave
You by Art and Lorraine Bennett.
4.Emotions
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• The Church teaches that our
conscience is our ―most secret
core and… sanctuary‖ (Gaudium et
Spes). It is in this place where we
are alone with God and hear his
voice.This voice guides us to do
what is good, true and beautiful.
5.Conscience
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• God speaks to us in our life events.
This is called providence.Through
reflecting back on our life
experiences, it‘s easy to notice the
hand of God leading us to a certain
place, relationship, job or other
opportunity.To read more about
God‘s providence,
6.Events
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• God speaks to us through other people.
Friends can draw us closer to God and
encourage us on our faith journey. Our
parish community reveals the love of God
through the warmth and acceptance we
experience through fellowship.The
witness of others can inspire us to follow
their example. A person in need can call us
to show compassion. Even a random
stranger can say: ―You would make a
good priest!‖ (Believe it or not, this
actually does happen).
7.Relationships
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• Discovering silence is vital
especially in today‘s world where
we are constantly saturated with
words, images and various forms of
technology. In silence, we are
confronted with our true self and
allow the still, small voice of the
Holy Spirit to speak to us (1 Kings
19:12)
8.Silence
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