God continually calls young men to be priests and religious. And, thankfully, He who calls provides the grace to live such a phenomenal calling i.e. the calling to consecrate oneself to Him, making a radical gift of oneself to the Order in religious life for the good of the Church and the world. Just as He called and inspired St Francis of Assisi to live the Gospel – to conforming himself to Christ through the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience – God calls young men today to be this sign and witness of His love in the world, to be a living book of the Gospel and proclaim Christ by their lives.
God puts this desire into the hearts of many, but discerning God’s call is not always an easy process. It’s important that young men spend time in prayer with an attentive heart and an attitude of surrender to whatever it is that the Lord is asking of them. The Capuchins seek to aid those who are discerning this call to the priesthood and/or religious life through a series of initiatives:
- Initial Contact Form
- Youth Ministry to give young people a chance to get to know the friars and the Capuchin charism
- Retreats and retreat days – see Our Events
- Discernment/Vocation retreats and reflection days – see Our Events
- Meetings with the Vocation director to receive advice and assistance in discerning the call (Father Christopher: vocations@capuchinfriars.org.au)
We hope that this website, too, offers young people the chance to come to know the Capuchin Order, our charism and spirituality, our activities and our life. Of course, one should go beyond the website to making concrete steps to come to know the friars, because once you do you open up the possibility for God to stir in your heart one way or the other.