Establishing a Culture of Priestly and Religious Vocations 1

Five Star Program Parishes want to establish a “culture of vocations” The question is, “How to do it?” Serra Clubs We are the Catholic Organization that promotes priestly and religious vocations and WE NEED TO GET GOING!! 2

How Do We Start All it seems you need to do is this: Spend $22 to order a Parish Vocations kit, and receive all the written materials you need to efficiently conduct the program Conduct one gathering of your members who wish to participate to go over the simple instructions. Distribute the materials to your volunteers, and explain about finding a hidden vocation. Dispatch them with the materials on how to accomplish this. 3

First Visit to the Pastor Go two by two like Jesus sent the Apostles Ask St. Junipero Serra to help you STEP #1 Obtain the name the pastor liked to be called and the name of his secretary or administrator Take the 4 Five Star Pamphlets and 2 Crib Cards The rest of the material is for later use. 4

Step #2 Phone or go to the office to obtain an appointment(Importance of face-to-face time.) Be prepared to work with the pastor or his disignee Ask for an appointment to discuss how we could have one vocation activity in the parish NOTE: The less said the better—get the appointment. 5

Step #3 Share our joy at our recent canonization celebration of Saint Junipero Serra Compliment the pastor on something you like about the parish Give him one of the Five Star Pamphlets 6

Slowly ask these questions…. Do you think that someone we don’t know about might be being called to the priesthood or religious life in our parish? How can we help them answer that call? Would doing one of these 5 activities possibly help surface the vocation? Which one would you like to try? Who should we talk to from your staff about getting started? 7

Step #4 Thank the person for their time. Ask the secretary or administrator for the contact information for the person assigned to work with you. Make the follow-up appointment. 8

Step #5 At the follow-up appointment. Present a copy of the Five Star Pamphlet to your parish contact. Explain the program that was selected at the first appointment. Share a copy of the sheet which has the details for the program. NOTE: It is find if the parish wants to make some changes in the activity to make it their own. 9

Step #6 Stay involved until the program becomes well under way. Ask your Serra Club to help make the program work smoothly 10

Step #7 Keep your club informed on your progress Judy Cozzens to let her know the progress your club is making Contact Judy if you need more information and she will connect you with a person that has conducted the program before. 11

FIVE STAR PROGRAM Marriage, Single Life, Religious and Priestly Vocations We focus on religious and priestly vocations Priestly and religious vocations are everyone’s business. 12

We will quickly Review the Five Programs 13

SERRA will help! The Five Star Program Well organized for YOUR parish. Detailed explanations on website Information to obtain needed resources All resources free except traveling kit Let’s Get Started 14

Star One: The Traveling Chalice* Directly involves people in the parish Parishioners take the chalice home and pray. It may be the first time they pray for religious vocations It provides an opportunity to invite other Catholics to pray with you *A crucifix can be substituted for a chalice but we will use the chalice in our discussions 15

Traveling Chalice Priest presents Chalice at Mass Take home, display and pray each day Record the family’s or person’s thoughts in a journal 16

Traveling Chalice To implement Obtain support of pastor Select key person to run the program Secure traveling chalice, case and journal Encourage, publicize, schedule and remind Program should continue at least 26 weeks Program develops a rhythm 17

Components of Program A Chalice or crucifix Carrying Case Memory Book Vocation Prayers See resource material Components of Program 18

Star Two: Bulletin Announcements Bulletin Announcements Increase awareness about vocations Stimulate thoughts about life’s journey Encourage a fulfilling holy life These announcements address all vocations 19

Bulletin Announcements Announcements are on the Serraus.org website. Announcements encourage the parish to explore vocations Announcements include possible publicity announcements for items in the Five Star Program 20

Bulletin Announcements Announcements can be given to individual that prepares the bulletin Varied sizes make it easy to find one that fits the occasion and space Available to copy and paste or print from the website also. 21

Star Three: “The 31 Club” Promoting prayer for vocations is at the heart of our mission and makes parishioners aware of their role. This “no dues, no meetings club” is a great way to stimulate the “culture of vocations” 22

The “The 31 Club” Parishioners sign up to attend Mass or pray one day each month for vocations Secure or make a large poster calendar Mount on foam board with attached pencil Publicize for participants Repeat each year Display calendar 23

Star Four: Celebrate Priestly & Religious Life National Vocation Events Priesthood Sunday (Fall) World Day of Prayer for Vocations (Good Shepherd Sunday- the third Sunday after Easter) World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life National Vocation Awareness Week 24

Celebrate Priestly & Religious Life Suggest you choose one the first year Priesthood Sunday might be a good start Shows appreciation for our clergy Highlights priestly vocations Great ideas to choose from on website Holy Cards Reception Vocation homily And more 25

Star Five: Holy Hour Holy Hour for priestly and religious vocations Schedule a convenient time Publicize Gather and pray Check out suggested prayers/script on website Some parishes do this weekly or monthly 26

Five Star Program Celebration After one year Celebrate with a social time for participants Honor key person and pastor Use names gathered to form a parish vocation committee 27

Promoting vocations… The priestly vocation is a gift from God. It is undoubtedly a great good for the person who is its first recipient. But it is also a gift to the Church as a whole, a benefit to her life and mission. The Church, therefore, is called to safeguard this gift, to esteem it and love it. She is responsible for the birth and development of priestly vocations. —Pope John Paul II, APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION, PASTORES DABO VOBIS, CHAPTER IV-COME AND SEE 28

Five Star Program Pray hard Work Diligently Create a CULTURE OF VOCATIONS in your parish 29

I’m too old….. Remember St. Junipero Serra was 57 years old when he started to build missions in California He had a bad leg and walked thousands of miles He did not complain about how busy he was or how old he was YOU CAN STILL HELP OUR CHURCH!! 30

Thank you Thank you for promoting a culture of vocations in your parish Thank you for working to answer the question… WHO WILL SERVE ON YOUR ALTAR IN THE FUTURE? 31