St Francis Institution Vocation Roadshow

May 22, 2015

By Percy D’ Cruz
Representatives of local religious communities were enthusiastically ready to animate, facilitate and render personal sharings at a resounding and successful Religious Awareness Roadshow at the St Francis Institution (SFI) school hall in Banda Hilir on April 19.

Present were Brother Micheal Kum and SFI Brother Director Ambrose Loke (LaSallian), Peter Kolandasamy and Robin Devasagayam (Montfort Brothers of St. Gabriel) Srs M.Reeta and Savari Arokiam (Canossian), Andrea Tan (Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Mary) and Mariam Lim (Salvatorian) to cater to seventy upper secondary students and several parents of the Sunday School of the Banda Kaba parish of St. Francis Xavier.

Following the ice breaker routines supervised by Sr Reeta, a 20-minute video clip was screened. Entitled GIFT, the message was: “Being Happy Is Not About How Much You Have, But How Much You Give.”

The question: Why do some young people not join the religious life? Why are they afraid to try? drew interesting comments followed by group discussions.

Generally speaking, the participants felt that if someone hears the Lord’s call, then it is up to the individual concerned to respond accordingly.

One participant said, “Yes in this secular world, where the young are involved in school, tuition, exams, extra curricular activities, personal development, sports and games, preparing for college and universities,and professional working lives, the call of the Lord is easily dismissed, sidestepped or even overlooked completely. That’s why it is up to the individual to discuss spiritual matters with parents and members of religious communities and also priests, to further discern and seriously look into possibilities of wanting to join “the Lord in His Vineyard.”

Another remarked, “Many of us young people fear responding to the Lord’s call or to be interested in religious vocations. It is alright to try out by staying within a religious community or parish to get the ‘feel of things’ to better understand the needs, wants and pre-requisites. In this manner, people will respect us more if we ‘tried things out’ and discovered that matters were not favourable. We have at least given ourselves a chance to see whether the Lord’s call is genuine.”

mother of two secondary school sons said, “Yes, the declining number of young people not wanting to embark on religious vocations and the priesthood is a cause for concern as it reflects the community’s reluctance to sacrifice or faithfully pray for vocations.”

Also, families these days tend to be smaller in number compared to previous years. A father of only one daughter admitted encouraging religious vocations would be the last thing parents think of as they prefer to send their children for further education when they finish school and pursue professional working careers. Ironically, our excuse is that “God will provide” but where will He source for priests or religious, if we parents do not subscribe to vocations in general.

In conclusion, Brother Ambrose remarked, “Apart from praying for more vocations, the session also enhanced journeying as a community towards God. As for discerning God’s call in one’s life, whether single, married, religious or the priesthood, the provision of support from the Catholic and Church communities at large should always be there.