On May 8, 1898, a 20-year-old young man joined law undergraduates at the University of Malta to pay homage to Our Lady of Pompeii, venerated in the Jesuit church directly opposite the old university in Valletta. This man, Joseph de Piro, the son of a Maltese aristocrat, felt in his moment of prayer that he needed to respond to a deeper calling and do something different with his life. He left his law course to become a priest and later became the founder of St. Paul’s Missionary Society. Each year, MSSP celebrates this moment of its founder’s mission as the foundational moment that ultimately led to his 1910 birth of the Society.
It’s one thing to celebrate someone’s great mission; it’s another to actually reflect on yourself. What is your calling? We live in a particular moment in history where meaninglessness and disillusionment are prevalent. Whether it’s through a breakdown in faith in the major institutions that gave us a sense of belonging, from politics to the church, or through a more personal sense of anxiety and loss, we struggle today to name our calling. , I seem to be having trouble finding it.
Add to this a deeper fear of vocations that imply long-term commitments such as marriage or the priesthood, and many people end up with a bunch of ideas drifting aimlessly, driven only by the immediate appeal. That’s how we get there.
A recent article highlighting the low numbers of seminarians in Malta and Gozo put a spotlight on religious vocations and how these vocations appear to be becoming more difficult. Regarding this phenomenon in the context of marriage, Pope Francis pointed out that today there are those who say that marriage is outdated. Because you never know what will happen tomorrow. Instead, I ask you to be revolutionaries and swim against the tide. Yes, I am asking you to rebel against this culture that sees everything as temporary, that ultimately believes that you are not responsible, that believes that you are incapable of true love. Masu. ”
The fear of taking on a cause and responding to a mission is not limited to young people. In the Gospels, people like Nicodemus represent all people who continue to search for their true calling. This also applies to the elderly in our society. Pope Francis similarly provides a scathing analysis of a culture that views both young and old as unnecessary, as people without purpose or meaning. And the community as a whole. ”
What do I feel called to, regardless of age? De Piro, a servant of God, made the words of the Gospel his own: “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” His sense of purpose, mission, and activism gave meaning to his life and his followers. Even in this age of influencers and multiple voices online, the question of what it is that we truly feel called to is becoming more demanding. What am I really, really passionate about in life? The answer to that question may point to a deeper calling that is still unfolding like a spring flower.
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