“Who can determine when it is, that the scales in the balance of opinion begin to turn, and what was greater probability in behalf of a belief becomes a positive doubt against it ?”- (Cardinal Newman)
“It’s the Lord”
My dear brothers and sisters,
The day we were baptised we were incorporated in the Body of Christ. With that incorporation we received privileges, very often we think of our duties as Christians, arising from the new life we receive, we think of our duties summarised in the commandments. We tend to overlook our privileges. Think of the royal family. The princes and princesses have obligation arising from their position in society. But what is foremost are their privileges, their prerogatives.
One of our privileges is that of being able to recognize Jesus as the risen and glorified Lord and once we have recognized him to make his life, his death and his resurrection our own. We do not find it in Holy Scripture that the risen Lord was seen and recognized by the Pharisees or Scribes. It’s the chosen ones, the believers, who were privileged to see him and recognize him.
Today is vocation Day. It would be very suiting that we recognize the Lord in our vocation. The Holy Scripture says that after his resurrection, the Lord Jesus showed himself to his followers in many ways. Today he reveals to us also in many ways. To each individual he addresses himself personally. Think of a young man who thinks of becoming a doctor. The idea first came and the way it came. And the Lord is not bound to come to him in a dramatic way and say “This is your vocation”. No! He throws the seed into the ground and watches it grow. Many of our catholic brothers and sisters take their profession as a vocation from God? How many would consider themselves apostles, saints by Christ into that profession, not merely to heal the bodies of men, but to help the same men towards their goal, heaven.
Sometimes I always think of missionary hospitals. They do marvelous work, and they are there to stay! It’s quite unfortunate that most of our catholic doctors even volunteer to give their services in a mission hospital. The catholic doctors should recognize the Lord in their profession; they ought to volunteer their services to mission hospitals, at least some of them. There are some whom the lord calls for a religious life, men and women they form life essential to the Church. The spirit of poverty, chastity, and obedience, since every year now about 200 Catholics graduate at our universities. Why should religious vocations not flourish among them? I find it difficult to believe that God does not address himself to us here!
We have a debt to the church, to give it our services and to give them in the various forms of Christian life. St. John recognized him because he was attentive, if we too could be attentive we would hear him call and follow him. We do have good home education we give our children. But do you foster the idea of religious or priestly vocation? We need all the forms of life in the Church and its our duty, privilege for each one to recognize the voice of the good shepherd, know him and follow him.

“You cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building nets in your hair”. – Chinese proverb