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4th Sunday of Easter A, “Vocations Sunday"

Our vocation leads us ‘to a share in the joys of heaven’ and on earth the ‘universal call to holiness’ calls us to serve others as we help build up God’s Kingdom.

We start in the ‘single life’; not a ‘bachelor life’, but a joyful virginity for the sake of the kingdom, an image of our relationships in heaven. An overly sexualised and selfish world which has abandoned the gospel, makes the other vocations seem counter-cultural, but our ‘consecration’ to God is integral to the Christian’s life and shapes our interactions with others.

Holy Matrimony (Marriage) is a calling to be an image of Christ the Bridegroom and His Bride the Church. A Catholic enters this covenant before the Altar, the couple being for each other a living expression of the Eucharist: ‘this is my body which is given up for you’. As such, a properly formed bond of marriage is indissoluble, ‘until death do us part’.

The Religious Life, with the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, is a commitment to a ‘rule of life’ under a particular charism and usually in a community. The habit is a radical expression of their identity in Christ and communities which have a clear understanding of their charism, flourish and provide us with hope, knowing that these ‘powerhouses of prayer’ are supporting us on our own pilgrimages.

Holy Orders (Bishops, Priests and Deacons) express Christ’s Priesthood, particularly His sacrifice. Our priests act in ‘persona Christi’, making Jesus present who feeds us with his body and blood, providing our viaticum (our food for the journey) home. They absolve us of our sins and anoint us to unite our sufferings to the Cross, helping us pass-over into eternal life.

Reminder: Fr. Simon is away on 6th Sun. of Easter, as such there is no 5pm Mass on Sun. 10th May but the other Masses will be celebrated as normal by Fr. Denys of the Rosminians.

Fr. Simon.