Is the church a well-structured pyramid or a loving, caring, family? What counts more—who holds which post, or how to create a world of love? What is more crucial—theological precision or eagerness to reach out, help and heal?
There was a time when the “Pyramid image of the church” was the standard: The Pope on top, below him the bishops, below them the priests, and then? Most priests would see sisters and brothers as inferior to them—and all these “special groups” saw themselves as above the laity!
In this way of thinking, “vocation” meant something a few special people had. “Peter comes to serve Mass; I think he has a vocation”; “Mary is a pious girl; she has a vocation.” The much-used expression, “vocation promotion” meant trying to get new members for one’s religious order or diocese.
This is still largely our vocabulary (and thinking and praxis) in India, isn’t it?
Vatican II—over fifty years ago—asked us to see the Church differently, more in line with Jesus’ teaching. The Church is the “People of God.” Everyone belongs to God and is part of God’s family. There are no higher or lower states. Every believer has the same vocation—to holiness. And holiness means to live as Jesus lived and taught. There are no first grade or third grade Christians. The Pope and his cook, the bishop and his driver, the mother general and the girl sweeping the corridors—all are equal before God, and have the same vocation to holiness.
Leaving religious life is not “losing one’s vocation.” Perseverance is not the same as fidelity (as Father Pascual Chavez, former superior general of the Salesians, used to insist). Just staying in is not the same as being faithful to God’s call.
This issue has vocation as its focus. It starts with Pope Francis’s message on Vocation Day (25 April). He presents St Joseph as a model for people from all walks of life. Next come seven vocation stories—four women religious, a priest, a religious brother, and someone who was once a happy priest and is now a happy married man.
The Couplespeak column presents the matchless impact of a mother’s vocation.
Other challenging examples: A footballer’s commitment to feed the poor; a book about finding strength in the midst of atrocious suffering; another book about “dying empty”; touching lessons learnt from feeding the poor; stories of three women—one who moved from rejection to acceptance, a second who was brutalized, and a third who became a beacon of hope; great movies about two heroic witnesses; and more. All these are true “vocation stories.” Tell us what gripped you most.
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Sr Theresa Phawa FMA has completed her two-year term as Associate Editor of MAGNET. Our sincere thanks to Sr Theresa for her involvement in every aspect of the magazine—from getting articles to getting the printed copies dispatched.
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In a field generally considered a preserve of priests, I was keen on getting a woman religious to continue our Canon Law column. Here she is: Sr Navya Thattil OSF has a doctorate in Canon Law from Rome, and has been Associate Judge and Defender of the Bond in the Marriage Tribunals of Bombay and Bangalore Archdioceses. She has provided canonical aid to several religious orders of women, including their general and provincial chapters, and taught in theological colleges. She is the Coordinator of ongoing formation for her religious institute and Canonical Consultant of Bhopal Archdiocese.
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My sincere thanks to the readers who have sent us feedback about MAGNET. Those who have not, please take five minutes and do us this favour! Your opinion matters to us! What has come in is extremely encouraging. We are delighted to see that MAGNET more than meets your expectations, and helps you personally and in your ministry.
One more request:
I am looking for someone to take my place as editor. Do you have any good names? The person needs: Excellent mastery of English, good writing skills, knowledge of editing, willingness to re-write, aesthetic sense in choice of illustrations, fanatic commitment to quality, contacts with columnists and other writers. MAGNET should be as good as any Catholic mag anywhere in the world, and its design and production not inferior to the best secular magazines today. This means late nights and much work (as any writer or editor knows), but we can enrich thousands of lives, and animate our animators. The written word, as you know, has an impact larger and more lasting than we can see.
Fr Joe Mannath SDB
Editor
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