Lord Make Me An Instrument of your Peace!

Each of us has a life dream, which helps us answer the question: "What shall I do with my life?" We may believe that this dream emerges as a concrete vision until we witness life’s transforming obstacles. Times of change and turmoil often provide fertile ground for understanding and evaluating the interpretation of our dream. How do I get in touch with that dream? Our Seraphic Father, St. Francis was certain he wanted to become a warrior-knight. When physical illness made it nearly impossible for him to consider continuing in that pursuit, God inspired him in a dream to return home, where he would discover his true vocation. So Francis returned home, and began fervently praying for God's guidance through the Holy Spirit, and eventually, the Lord revealed St. Francis' true vocation to him. Saint Francis’s discovery of Christ over 800 years ago, marked the beginning of one of the greatest love stories of all time.

At Baptism, we become part of a way of life called Christian. Christians don't simply "choose" what they want to do with their lives. We are called to listen to the "still small voice" inside us, so that we can respond to God's call. All Christians have a 'vocation' in life. In baptism each person is called by God to follow Jesus in the way that He lived, loved and prayed. The word 'vocation' comes from the Latin word 'vocare' which means "to call". This call may be lived out indifferent vocations: in marriage, as a single person, or as a priest, brother or sister. There is the same mystery about religious life as there is about falling in love. It is something in our hearts that we cannot explain. As we grow in our Christian identity, we begin to pay attention to God, to the creation, to the people and to wonder how it is that we are called to be responsive, and generous witnesses to the faith we profess. We can not expect God to tap us on the shoulder and say,” Come …Be a Sister"!

God's call is often incarnated through the words, example, and support of others. The realization of this call may come at different times in life and in different ways. The call from God can only be heard when you are in tune with God, it's a growing realization that to spend your life as a Sister dedicated to Christ and serving His people is what brings you joy A religious vocation is a special grace that God gives to certain persons, calling them to a life of the evangelical counsels. God, of course, gives the grace. "You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you” (In. 15: 16).Not everyone will be drawn to Religious Life. If you feel the desire to follow God’s invitation to a vocation, a particular ministry, and if you further desire become the person that God has envisioned from the beginning said the LORD.  

Behold, as the clay [is] in the potter's hand, so [are] ye in mine hand, O house of Israel ."—Jeremiah 18:1-6.

As the master Potter stands at your door and knocks allow us to help you open that door as you place yourself into the potter's hand.

Remembering that Christ calls all of his followers to be missionaries and as Franciscan Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart following in the Spirit and footsteps and of Francis and Clare of Assisi we invite you to join us in our journey as we “Go out into the whole world: proclaim the Good News to all creation." (Mk 16:15)

If you think that God may be calling you to a life as a Franciscan Sister we invite you to follow our footprints that will lead you to our online vocation form.

          

 VOCATION DISCERNMENT

 

We invite you to ponder the words of Clare of Assisi , the first Franciscan woman,
as you discern God's Franciscan call to you!

"What you hold, may you always hold.
What you do may you always do
and never abandon.
But with swift pace,
light step, and unswerving feet
so that even your steps stir up no dust,
Go forward securely, joyfully, swiftly
on the path of prudent happiness,
believing nothing, agreeing with nothing
which would dissuade you from this resolution,
or which would place
a stumbling block for you on the way,
so that you may offer your vows
to the Most High
in the pursuit of that perfection
to which the Spirit of the Lord has called you."

The Discernment process:

 

An applicant must be at least 18 years (to 60 years) of age,
a high school graduate and in good physical and mental health.

An applicant will meet with the Vocation Minister for approximately a year.

An applicant meets with other Sisters of Saint Francis, sharing their lifestyle.

Attends get-acquainted activities; retreats, workshops, social gatherings and
celebrations with other interested women.

Continues to live independently; prayerfully considering God's invitation while
in dialogue with the sisters.

F.M.S.C.  

VOCATION DICTIONARY

ACCOMPANIMENT - Accompaniment is a process of discerning the vocation in life to which God is calling a person. It brings a person to a free choice of saying yes or no to a vocation to which they have experienced a sense of being called by God. It is a formal arrangement with a diocese or religious community in which the person is accompanied in their discernment by a priest, sister or brother.

CAREER - One meaning of vocation is career, a life-work chosen by a person to use personal talent, provide some service or goods, earn money, and contribute to society.

CELIBATE CHASTITY - All baptized persons are called to chastity. Married persons are called to live chastity in faithful love of their spouse. Single persons are called to live chastity in continence. Men and women who vow or promise celibate chastity chooses not to marry and to refrain from genital sexual activity. In doing so they give witness to God's faithful and unconditional love for all people.

CHARISM - A charism is a gift freely given by God to a person or community, for the good and service of others in bringing about the Kingdom of God . Religious communities seek to live the charism which is received through their founders as God's gift to the Church.

CONTEMPLATIVE - A contemplative is a person whose life is shaped by constant prayerful awareness of the presence and action of God in their lives and in the world. Contemplative religious communities are primarily directed to a life of prayer rather than active ministry, and in this way serve God and God's people.

CONVENT - Convent is the name customarily given to the home of a community of sisters.

COVENANT - A covenant is a sacred and binding agreement made in love between persons or between persons and God.

DISCERNMENT - Discernment is a process of prayerful reflection which leads a person or community to understanding of God's call at a given time or in particular circumstances of life. It involves listening to God in all the ways God communicates with us: in prayer, in the scriptures, through the Church and the world, in personal experience, and in other people.

FORMATION - Formation is the process by which baptised persons grow in the likeness of Jesus Christ. It begins with baptism and continues through the whole of life. Formation for vocation refers to the time and process in the life of a person who is preparing for ordination as a deacon or priest, or for profession of vows in a religious community. During this formation a person is initiated into the ordained life and ministry or into the life and mission of a religious community.

HOLY ORDERS - Holy orders, sometimes called sacred orders, is the sacrament conferred on those members of the Catholic community who have been called by God and chosen by the Church for service as deacon, priest or bishop.

LAITY - The laity is all who have been baptized and who have not been ordained a deacon, priest or bishop. Through baptism, the laity shares in the mission of Jesus and the Church, of proclaiming the Kingdom of God . Sister and brother members of religious communities are laity or lay people.

MINISTRY - Ministry is the use of a person's gifts and talents, time and energy, in the service of others. It involves the exercise of roles designated by the Church to fulfil its mission in different works of service, such as in worship, teaching, leadership, the sacraments, welfare, and stewardship.

MISSION - Mission means being sent. The mission of the Church is to proclaim and witness to the Kingdom of God , as Jesus did. It does this by spreading the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ, by serving others, and by building up the community of the Church. More particularly, the mission of religious communities refers to the purpose for which the community exists within the Church. especially as this finds expression in living the charism of the community and its founder.

MISSIONARY - A missionary is a person who chooses to participate in the mission of the Church by serving peoples of other cultures, often in a foreign country. A missionary may be ordained, or a vowed religious, or a lay person.

MONASTERY - A monastery is the home of a community of vowed men or women religious who live according to the monastic tradition of the Church

NOVICE - A novice is a new member of a religious community of vowed women or men, who has commenced formation and is in a process of initiation into the life and mission of the community. This process is called the novitiate. It introduces a novice to prayer, to the vowed life, to the spirit and charism of the religious community, and leads the novice through discernment to commitment as a member of the community. Some communities have a one-year novitiate, others two years.

NUN - A nun is a woman who is a vowed member of a monastic community of women. As well as professing the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, nuns often also take a fourth vow of stability, that is, to remain for life in one monastery.

OBEDIENCE - All baptized persons are called to listen to God so as to know God's call and God's will in their lives. Men and women who vow or promise obedience commit themselves to listening to God's call as it is heard through their leaders and communities, and to responding faithfully to this call.

POSTULANT - A postulant, sometimes also known as a pre-novice, is a person preparing to be admitted as a novice into a religious community.

POVERTY - All baptised persons are called to a reverent appreciation of the resources available to them. Women and men who vow poverty commit themselves to living simply, to sharing all things in common and not exercising ownership over things, for the good of their religious community and its mission in the Church.

PROFESSION - Profession is the act through which men and women consecrate themselves to God by making vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in a religious community. Profession is normally made initially for a certain time, and then later for life. Profession may also be understood in the sense of a career or occupation, that is, a life-work chosen by a person to use personal talent, provide some service or goods, earn money, and contribute to society. For example, teaching, law and medicine are regarded as professions.

PROMISE - A promise is a sacred commitment made by a person. A diocesan priest promises celibacy, for the sake of the Kingdom of God , and obedience to the bishop of his diocese. In marriage a husband and wife promise love and fidelity, to each other.

RELIGIOUS - Religious may refer to a disposition or way of life that is open and responsive to God. It may also refer to a sister, brother or priest who is a vowed member of a religious community.

RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY / ORDER / INSTITUTE / SOCIETY -Brothers, priests and sisters make profession in a chosen religious order/ institute / society, and commit themselves to sharing fully in its life and mission, according to the charism of its founder. Religious community may refer to a local community of vowed women or men who belong to a religious order/institute/congregation or it may refer to the whole vowed membership of a religious order/institute/ society.

RELIGIOUS LIFE - Religious or consecrated life refers to the vocation of those men and women who choose to dedicate themselves to God through profession in a religious community. Religious life usually involves these women or men joining a religious community and sharing in a common life of prayer and service, according to the spirit and charism of their founder and their mission in the Church.

SECULAR INSTITUTE - A secular institute is an institute of consecrated life in the Church, in which members profess vows and commit themselves to witnessing to the Good News through their service and ministry. Its members, who may be lay or ordained, live in the ordinary circumstances of the world, either alone, in families or in communities.

SISTER - A sister is a vowed member of a religious community of women within the Church. She shares in the life and mission of her community.

VOCATION - In baptism each person is called by God to follow Jesus in a life of holiness and service. This call may be lived out in different vocations: in marriage, as a single person, or as a priest, brother or sister.

VOW - A vow is a free and deliberate commitment and an act of devotion made by a person to God. Men and women who make profession in religious communities do so by making vows, usually, of poverty, chastity and obedience.

SOURCES: Catechism of the Catholic Church (Official Edition for Australia and New Zealand ), 1994, St Pauls, Homebush NSW.I Can Find My Way (Teacher's Handbook), 1995, NCCV, Chicago. The Code of Canon Law,1983, Collins, Sydney . The Collins Dove Dictionary for Young Catholics, Laurie Woods,1990, Collins Dove, Burwood Vic. The Word Dwells Among Us, Education Committee of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, 1990, Collins Dove, Melbourne .

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Please contact me as soon as possible regarding this matter.

My Vocation Prayer

Dear Father,

Shine your light upon me so that I may see my true vocation. Give me the grace to hear your word and be an example to others of your love for us.

I pray for all in Priesthood, Consecrated life, Marriage and Single life, and for all who are listening to your call, that they may answer you in their vocation.

Thank you for sending your son Jesus - Lord of the Harvest - help me to follow His example. May I freely, courageously and lovingly respond!

Amen. Text Box:


 Questions the Holy Father posed to the laity in making personal examinations: 

"What have I done with my baptism and confirmation?
Is Christ really at the center of my life?
Do I have time for prayer in my life?
Do I live my life as a vocation and mission?" 

"The vocation and mission of the faithful can only be understood
in light of a renewed awareness of the Church as sacrament or sign and
instrument of intimate union with God, of the unity of the whole of mankind,
and of the personal duty to adhere more closely to her."
 

LAITY URGED TO DO "SERIOUS EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE"
Papal Message to World Congress of Catholic Laity
VATICAN CITY , NOV. 26, 2000 (ZENIT.org)

 

"Jesus is living next to you, in the brothers and sisters with whom you share your daily existence."

---John Paul II

 

In Christ,

Sr. Anne Mathew Carlone, F.M.S.C.

Vocation Director

Franciscan Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart

Mount Saint Francis

250 South Street

Peekskill , NY 10566

Tel: (914) 737-3373

E-Mail: srannemcarlone@optonline.net