As the temperatures soared this week, so did the spirits of 80 young men opening themselves further to God’s call in their lives during the Diocese’s annual vocation discernment retreat.
Now in its 20th year, Quo Vadis Days has become a summer tradition of the Diocese’s Office of Vocations.
And as the thermometer climbed to incredible digits the week of June 22, so too did the number of retreatants, doubling from 40 last year to 80 this time around.
Father Joshua Weaver, Diocesan Vocations Director, attributed the growth to the Diocese’s Called by Name Program. Through the initiative, parishioners were invited to submit the names of young men whom they see as having the qualities to potentially become a priest. From there, the Vocations Office reached out to those men several months ago with information about vocations, as well as invitations to discernment dinners and to Quo Vadis Days.
First-year Quo Vadis Days participant Udoka Ugoagwu attended this year’s retreat because he was directly invited through the Called by Name program.
“I had heard about Quo Vadis Days for the first time two years ago, but I wasn’t ready for it at the time,” said Ugoagwu, a member of St. John Neumann Parish in Lancaster.
Then, last fall, he started volunteering with two youth groups and made a pilgrimage to Assisi. “Those experiences added more fuel to my faith life,” he said.
“I started going to daily Mass, and not long after that, some of the parishioners who saw me there put my name into the Called by Name program,” he said.
Ugoagwu, and dozens of other young men in the Diocese, was invited to the Diocese’s Project Andrew this past spring, and it was there that he signed up to get more information on Quo Vadis Days.
Ugoagwu, a parishioner and volunteer who “has a habit of saying yes to everything that someone asks of me, even if it’s overwhelming,” decided to attend the retreat.
“I thought it would be a good opportunity to say yes to myself,” he said.
With a home base of Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., the vocation discernment retreat takes its name from the legend that Peter asked Jesus this question (“Quo Vadis?” – meaning “Where are you going?”) on the outskirts of Rome, as Peter was fleeing persecution. Jesus’ response was, “To Rome, to be crucified again.”
Throughout the retreat, it’s a question that participants are continually encouraged to ponder.
The week immerses young men ages 15-25 in days filled with the celebration of Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours, discernment talks with a host of Diocesan priests and seminarians, Holy Hours, indoor games, outdoor sports, hearty meals and a dose of camaraderie and conversation.
Whether engrossed in Adoration, praying the Rosary during a procession to the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes up the hillside behind the seminary, or competing in volleyball tournaments and water balloon battles, participants are engaged in living as Catholic men called to carry out their mission as disciples of Christ.
The priests and seminarians are readily present to the attendees, from small-group presentations, spiritual direction and conversations in the rec room or cafeteria, to friendly banter on the seminary’s athletic field.
During the week, young men get a glimpse of seminary life and a look at the brotherhood of the presbyterate – a joyful reality that Bishop Timothy Senior reflected on when he visited Quo Vadis Days on Tuesday, June 24. The bishop told the young men that the priesthood is the greatest brotherhood.
“I can already start to see the truth about what Bishop Senior said today, which is that the priesthood is the greatest fraternity,” Ugoagwu told The Witness, while overlooking the seminary’s football field after the annual priests and seminarians versus retreatants water balloon battle.
There was a great deal of laughter and good-natured competition on the field, and it spilled into board games and pool in the rec room, and during an outdoor soccer match as attendees battled the heat. Elsewhere, priests and seminarians engaged retreatants in conversation over a barbecue lunch, cases of soda and ice cream sundaes provided and served annually by the Knights of Columbus.
But Quo Vadis Days isn’t all about fun and games. The week centers retreatants on listening to God’s call, especially through Adoration, Mass, quiet reflection and spiritual direction.
That’s been a huge draw for two-time retreatant John Kellett, who will be a senior at York Catholic High School in the fall.
“Obviously all the activities and sports are fun, but when it really comes down to it, I think the two most important things for me have been the quiet prayer time and the spiritual direction,” he said. “Last year, I received spiritual direction from two different priests and got great information about vocation discernment. This year, I had some spiritual direction with Father Weaver; again, I’m getting what I need to continue discerning.”
Kellett shared that his discernment is currently focusing on whether he is being called to enter seminary directly after high school, or whether he should go to college first.
“The biggest thing that has stuck with me this week is seeing the joy of the priesthood,” Kellett said. “It’s about embracing the vocation and loving it. Joyful priests make such a huge difference in doing their ministry with a servant’s heart. That has really stuck out to me. If I’m called to be a priest, I want to bring the joy of Christ to others. God can use all of our interests and personalities to bring people to Him.”
Spending the day with retreatants on June 24, Bishop Senior shared insights and conversation with the young men through his homily during the celebration of Mass, over lunch, and during times of recreation and walking the seminary grounds.
“Each one of us has been created by God for a unique purpose. God knows us thoroughly, completely. He knows that we are not perfect, and He’s always working in our lives. But our imperfection does not define us; what defines us is God’s plan. That’s a whole journey – growing in holiness, being formed as disciples of Christ. It’s something I recommit to everyday, our priests do, our seminarians do,” the bishop said in his homily.
“God loves you beyond imagining. Nothing can change that,” he told the retreatants. “As you discern, realize and remember that God loves you and He delights in you.”
“Sometimes when we think of a vocation, especially a religious vocation, we think, ‘Oh that’s not me, because I’m not good enough. I’m not worthy. I have too many things I have to work through.’ And it may be true that we have to work though things, but everybody has to work through things,” he said. “God doesn’t call perfect people. He calls human beings who He has created and loves, and He calls us to seek holiness and perfection. It’s about allowing God to form us and shape us throughout our lives.”
The bishop answered retreatants’ questions about the graces of the priesthood, qualities that make a good priest, prayer life and celebrating the sacraments.
“The most important quality for a priest is to have a heart like the heart of Christ – a servant’s heart that can bring mercy to people,” he told them.
Learn more about our Quo Vadis Days, our seminarians and discernment of the priesthood at www.harrisburgvocations.org.
(Photos by Jen Reed, The Catholic Witness.)
By Jen Reed, The Catholic Witness
