Roman Catholic Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity Sister Mary Teresa Bettag, Theology Instructor at Yuma Catholic High School, reflects on discerning who each of us is Called To Be from what we are called to do. “Who did You make me to be, who are You calling me to be?
She offers insights into how action follows being – what we do comes from who we are – and how the Church can teach ‘discernment’ to distinguish the different voices we may be hearing. Properly ordered, our primary vocation comes before our secondary vocation. ”That sense of purpose that can send us into the world to be the hands and feet of Christ…. Since 1869, Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity have served in Catholic Health Care, Education, Campus Ministry and Parish-Community Service in Dioceses in Michigan, Wisconsin, the Midwest, Central and Southwest U.S. God Calls You. We Invite You Dios te llama. Te invitamos. https://fscc-calledtobe.org
Transcription follows.
What do you want to be when you grow up? It’s one of the most frequently asked questions. We start asking this of you from like the moment you can start to talk and at this stage in your life as high schoolers. We ask this to odd nauseum. Our juniors and seniors especially are sick of getting asked this question along with where are you going to college, what are you going to study? What are you going to do? You know?
What we are really asking?
But have you ever noticed something very interesting? We ask you what you want to be when you grow up. But what we really want to know and what you answer with is what you want to do. Kind of interesting, right? You say things like you want to be a doctor, a lawyer, a nurse, an astronaut, a football player, a sanitation engineer, right? Like various things that you could do but that’s not who you are because if it’s who you are, then what are you on weekends? Who are you when you are not at work? Who are you when you’re retired? Who are you at this stage of your life when you don’t have a career yet? Right? We know that what we do is not in fact who we are and so the question is then it is not like okay well we should start asking kids what they want to do. Well yeah maybe that would be more appropriate? But you know I don’t necessarily think that we’re asking the wrong question. We need to be asking the question. What do you want to be when you grow up? But we need to care about that answer. Right? Because it’s an ancient philosophical axiom. I think from our boy Aristotle that says action follows being. That what we do comes from who we are. That if you get who you are right, you’ll know what you’re supposed to do. But if you don’t know who you are, you’re just going to be floundering trying to figure out what you’re supposed to do and don’t we see this so often that so many of you feel the stress and anxiety of figuring out what you’re supposed to do with your life and I feel badly about this because I think that as adults and as a Church we often let the ball drop for you guys because what we should be teaching you. Is in my opinion, the most practical spiritual skill known as discernment.
Practical Skill of Discernment
Discernment enables me to distinguish my voice from God’s voice, from the world’s voice from the God’s voice, from the world’s voice, from the devil’s voice. Right? And it’s a very practical skill so that you can listen to what God is calling you to. Right? And I think one of the easiest ways to begin this it to use actually something that the church gives us. This concept known as primary and secondary vocations. So what’s the difference? Well a primary vocation is your state in life. It is who you are. So presently your primary vocation as high schoolers (You’re going to love this) it’s a single life. I don’t care if you’re hot and heavy with boyfriend or girlfriend, you are in the single life, because you know what you’re not in the commitment of marriage which is a different primary vocation that maybe in five to 10 years from now probably the majority of you are going to be called to marriage, that’s a scary thought only 5 to 10 years, right like in five to 10 years, probably the majority of you are going to be called to marriage, some of you to priesthood and religious life.
Primary Vocation
All three of those are primary vocations because all of them are an identity, in other words we don’t punch in and punch out of marriage; it’s not a part time thing like, if you’re married, you’re married all the time. It’s why we describe ourselves when we’re married as a husband or a wife, it’s an identity and if you don’t understand that, your marriage is doomed to fail. In the same token, being a priest or a religious, it’s not a job. It’s an identity, right? And at the moment that we forget that, the moment that we act as though, oh, it’s my job like being the administrator of a parish or being a sister working at a school or hospital or something like that and we think that it’s a part time thing, that’s the moment that we become a source of scandal. It’s the moment that we live unfulfilled lives. It’s the moment that like our vocation we fail to live up to the high call that God gives to us, but once you know who you are, that primary vocation, then, it’s much easier to determine what you’re supposed to do with your life because now would be the appropriate time to ask it once you know who you are.
Disorder of Secondary Vocation
When we do things out of order, when we ask what we want to do before we figure out who we are called to be, when things are done out of order, we call that disorder. It’s disordered to do it the way that we often teach you to do, that we often teach you, figure out what you’re supposed to do with your life. No, no. first, who are you supposed to be? Because once I know who I am supposed to be, then my career can follow from that, my secondary vocation and the thin about primary and secondary is they’re always ranked first and second and I think that we see kind of a crisis of disorder in our world because don’t we see so many men and women who think that they’re a lawyer or a doctor or a teacher or a nurse before they’re a husband, wife, mom or dad and it’s a problem (1) and marriages and families fracture and splinter apart because of it and don’t we unfortunately see far too many priests and religious who are a parish administrator or a teacher or a nurse before they’re a priest and a religious and we see a crisis in religious life and priesthood possibly because of it, right? I think it’s really that we have to let what’s primary be primary. We have to allow who we are to come before what we do. And why do I say this?
Luke 4 Scripture Reading
Well, because in today’s gospel we hear a really climactic reading. In Luke chapter four Jesus comes into his hometown synagogue, and he proclaims his identity that this is who I am. Now as an aside, he’s reading from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. If Jesus reads scripture possibly, we should too. And also this just my take on the Old Testament. Jesus prayed the Old Testament, so the Old Testament is very cool for you to read and pray. Don’t discard it. Okay any way back to our regularly scheduled program. Really, Jesus is reading from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah and he’s saying this promised Messiah this promised savior that’s me. That’s who I am. Identity. And Jesus correctly identifies that that’s not enough for them. That even though the savior of all the world is in their midst, that’s not enough because he knows that they want him for what he can do. Do for us the things that we’ve heard were done for us this that the other thing right like and aren’t you and I that way so much that God who God is we don’t let that be enough for us. Because instead we’re looking for God for what he can do, treating God like a vending machine or like Santa Claus. Okay and then as long as you’re trying to control God and tell God you should do this you should do that whatever as long as you try to control God; you’re not letting God be God. Right? And as long as you’re trying to control God your life is going to be out of control. But the moment that you and I reorder our lives and focus on who God is, this creates faith and have you ever noticed that the number of one reason Jesus is able to act, able to do in the Gospels is because your faith has saved you. Right? Like that if we focus on who Jesus is, first and above all, then we’re giving him permission to act.
Giving Jesus permission to act
But unless and until we do that, then we’re always going to be like frantic trying to like figure out what Jesus should do, but dude we’re not God, so let God be God. You don’t need to do what God does. You don’t need to tell him what to do. He knows he’s got this. Right? Like so sort of that’s thing. And I think that it’s really interesting that these readings that this message comes to us this weekend. Right? Like it’s the Monday of Labor Day weekend. You’re off school. And how awesome is that? That as we celebrate labor as we celebrate work. Kudos to the United States of America for this one. That we do it by not working. It’s really kind of ironic. That as we celebrate work, we say don’t work. You know why? Because the reason you’re able to do what you do is because of who you are.
Take time to be who you are
So, take time to be who you are today. Take time to just be and not do because the reason you’re able to do is because of who you are and I celebrating work by not working, right? In celebrating what you do by instead reordering and refocusing on who you are first and above all and I think all of us would do well to maybe refocus on not only who we are asking God perhaps for the first time, God, who did you make me to be? Who are you calling me to be? But also reordering our focus on who God is. That maybe the next time you sit down to pray instead of right away asking God to do things for you. How about you create this space of faith to recognize who God is. And to maybe just praise God for who he is in your life. To praise him not just for what he’s done but for who he is. Because I think when you and I can get what is primary, when we can figure out what’s really important, when we know who we are and whose we are, then, we’re reordered for mission. Then, we’re reordered for ministry. The, we have that sense of purpose that can lead us into the world to be the hands and feet of Christ.
Prayer for all workers
And so, as we conclude this, we pray for all workers on this Labor Day weekend and I hope you are all having a wonderful day off. We’ll see you tomorrow. Bye.
