We report to you...

We need your help!

If you know anyone who has the qualities we are looking in a vocation to the priesthood, religious life or professional ministry, it wouldn’t hurt to take a moment to jot down their names for us. We will send them some information about vocations. We won’t tell them how we got their name.

We need your help! If you know anyone who has the qualities we are looking in a vocation to the priesthood, religious life or professional ministry, it wouldn’t hurt to take a moment to jot down their names for us. We will send them some information about vocations. We won’t tell them how we got their name.

Continental Congress on Vocations: Youth to be made "A Clear Pastoral Priority…"

Conversion, Discernment, Mission: Fostering a Vocation Culture in North America."

This is the title of the official document of the Continental Congress on Vocations that was held last April in Montreal. At this conference, over 1000 delegates from various backgrounds in vocation ministry gathered to address the vocation situation in North America. Here is what they recommended:

- Deeper prayer and Church Renewal; - Making outreach to youth a priority - Catechesis that clearly communicates the Gospel - Formation of vibrant parishes - Pastoral care of families - Explicit invitations to vocations - Direct follow up from the congress in parishes

If you would like to buy a copy of the 133 page document, please contact the vocation office at the Vocations Office.

Diocesan Application Procedure Improved

How does one enter a seminary these days? The application process to the seminary is, and should be, quite stringent. It involves a the filling out of application forms; formal interviews from faculty; medical check-ups; psychological assessments and letters of reference.

What has been missing from this process, however, is any objective application procedure to our diocese. Instead, applicants are informally interviewed by the Vocation Director and the Bishop and invited to apply to the seminary.

The seminary application is thorough enough, but the problem is, we as a diocese don’t get to know the candidate well enough. In a short while, he’s whisked away to a seminary, never to be seen again (it seems) until his internship.

To fill this gap, we have added two steps to the formal admission process: The candidate fills out a formal application to our diocese, complete with letters of reference. Then, after an initial screening, he is interviewed by members of our newly created interview board.

The candidate is interviewed a number of times throughout his career in the seminary. This gives us ample opportunity to get to know him and encourage him in his vocation.

Vocation.ca — check out our national website!

Vocation.ca is our Canadian Website devoted to vocation ministry and information, and it is to receive a significant upgrade from TAVDA (Toronto Area Vocation Director’s Association)

Sr. Susan Kidd, co-chair of Tavda, says "This site will be national, reflecting the diversity of our Canadian heritage. Congregations, dioceses and eparchies large and small are being invited to collaborate in this venture. What an exciting project for us at this time!"

Local and regional events will be posted on the site giving it a lively and relevant source of current information for all interested in vocations. The diocese of St. Catharines has it’s own website with a vocation page (romancatholic.niagara.on.ca) which will be linked to vocation.ca. Also, check out our American counterpart at Vocation.com.