HOLY HOUR FOR VOCATIONS

(Presider)

Welcome

Song I: (suggestions: Baptized in Water or River of Glory)

The Blessed Sacrament may be exposed during the singing of the opening song.

READING: Mark 1:9-11

It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth to Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John.

On coming out of the water he saw the heavens being town open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him.

And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.”

Pause

Ps. 29: 1-2, 3-4, 3, 9-10

All: The voice of God is mighty

I. Give to the Lord, you children of God,

give to the Lord glory and praise,

Give to God the glory due his name;

adore the Lord in holy attire.

II. The voice of God is over the waters,

the Lord, over vast waters.

The voice of God is mighty,

the voice of the Lord is majestic.

I. The God of glory thunders,

and in God’s temple all say, “Glory!”

God is enthroned above the flood;

the Lord is enthroned as king forever.

All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit;

As it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be forever. Amen

All: The voice of God is mighty

Pause

Ps. Isaiah 12:2-3, 4 bcd, 5-6

All: You will draw water joyfully from the

springs of salvation

II. God indeed is my savior;

I am confident and unafraid.

My strength and my courage is the Lord,

and he has been my savior.

With joy you will draw water

at the fountain of salvation.

I. Give thanks to the Lord, acclaim his name;

among the nations make known his deeds,

proclaim how exalted is God’s name.

II. Sing praise to the Lord for his glorious achievement;

let this be known throughout all the earth.

Shout with exultation, O City of Zion,

for great in your midst

is the Holy One of Israel.

All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit;

As it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be forever. Amen

All: You will draw water joyfully from the

springs of salvation

Pause

REFLECTION I:

With baptism we become children of God in his only begotton Son, Jesus Christ. Rising from the waters of the baptismal font, every Christian hears again the voice that was once heard on the banks of the Jordan River: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

We come to a full sense of the dignity of the lay faithful if we consider the prime and fundamental vocation that the Father assigns to each of them in Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit: the vocation to holiness, that is, the perfection of charity. Holiness is the greatest testimony of the dignity conferred on a disciple of Christ. … The call to holiness is rooted in baptism and proposed anew in the other sacraments, principally in the Eucharist. Since Christians are re-clothed in Christ Jesus and refreshed by his Spirit, they are “holy.” They therefore have the ability to manifest this holiness and the responsibility to bear witness to it in all they do.

The vocation to holiness must be recognized and lived by the lay faithful, first of all as an undeniable and demanding obligation and as a shining example of the infinite love of the Father that has regenerated them in his own life of holiness. Such a vocation, then, ought to be called an essential and inseparable element of the new life of baptism… At the same time the vocation to holiness is intimately connected to mission and to the responsibility entrusted to the lay faithful in the Church and in the world.

Pause

Song II: (suggestions: Take My Hands or Lord, You have Come)

READING II: John 15:13-14, 15b-16

Jesus said to his disciples: “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friend if you do what I command you.

… I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.

Pause

Ps. 92: 2-3, 5-6, 13-14, 15-16

All: I rejoice at the work of your hands

I. It is good to give thanks to the Lord,

to sing praise to your name, Most High,

to proclaim your kindness at dawn

and your faithfulness throughout the night.

II. For you make me glad, O God, by your deeds;

at the work of your hands I rejoice.

How great are your works, O God!

How very deep are your thoughts.

I. The just shall flourish like palm trees,

like cedars of Lebanon shall they grow.

They that are planted in the house of the Lord

shall flourish in the courts of our God.

II. They shall bear fruit in old age,

vigorous and sturdy shall they be.

Declaring how just is the Lord,

my Rock, in whom there is no wrong.

All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit;

As it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be forever. Amen

All: I rejoice at the work of your hands

Pause

Ps. 89: 4-5, 21-22, 27

All: For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord

II. The promises of the Lord I will sing forever;

through all generations my mouth shall proclaim

your faithfulness.

For you have said, “My kindness is established forever,”

in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness.

I. “I have made a covenant with my chosen one,

I have sworn to David my servant:

Forever will I confirm your posterity

and establish your throne for all generations.”

II. I have found David, my servant;

with my holy oil I have anointed him,

that my hand may be always with him,

and that my arm may make him strong.”

I. “He shall say of me, ‘You are my father,

my God, the rock, my Savior.’

Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him,

and my covenant with him stands firm.”

All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit;

As it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be forever. Amen

All: For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord

Pause

Reflection II

A vocation is a unique and particular work of love in which each of us has been called by God.
A vocation is the unique way we have been given to participate in God’s work of redeeming the world.
Every baptized person is given a vocation. And, most people have more than one vocation.
A vocation is received, not chosen.
A vocation is revealed only as it unfolds, not according to a plan or schedule of our own making.
A vocation is bigger than we are. We serve a vocation; the vocation does not serve us.

Not everyone will be able to give a name to his or her vocation, but this does not mean that they will not be able to live their vocation. Even if we cannot name our vocation in our lifetime, if we are faithful God will ensure that we are enabled to carry out our own unique work of love.

(Catherine of Siena Institute, Called & Gifted II, “Discerning Personal Vocation”)

Pause

Song III: (suggestion: Here I Am, Lord or Servant Song)

Reading III: Is. 6:1-8

In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, with the train of his garment filling the temple. Seraphim were stationed above; each of them had six wings: with two they veiled their faces, with two they veiled their feet, and with two they hovered aloft.

They cried one to the other, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!” At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook and the house was filled with smoke.

Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a person of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar.

He touched my mouth with it and said, “See, now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.”

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?”

“Here I am,” I said, “send me!”

Pause

Ps. 40:2, 4ab, 7-8a, 10, 11

All: Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will

I. I have waited, waited for the Lord,

and he stooped toward me.

And he put a new song into my mouth,

a hymn to our God.

II. Sacrifice and oblation you wished not,

but ears open to obedience you gave me.

Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you sought not;

then said I, “Behold I come.”

I. I announce your justice in the vast assembly;

I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know.

II. Your justice I kept not hid within my heart;

your faithfulness and your salvation I have spoken of;

I have made no secret of your kindness and your truth

in the vast assembly.

All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit;

As it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be forever. Amen

All: Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will

Pause

Ps. 25: 4-5, 6-7, 8-9

All: Teach me your ways, O Lord

II. Your ways, O Lord, make known to me;

teach me your paths,

guide me in your truth and teach me,

for you are God my Savior.

I. Remember that your compassion, O Lord,

and your love are from of old.

In your kindness remember me,

because of your goodness, O Lord.

II. Good and upright is the Lord,

thus he shows sinners the way.

He guides the humble to justice,

and he teaches the humble his way.

All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit;

As it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be forever. Amen

All: Teach me your ways, O Lord

Pause

Reflection III

The Latin roots of the word vocation (vocare, “to call” and vox, “voice”) center around the experience of hearing a call or voice. “The original meaning of ‘to have a vocation,’” wrote Carl Jung, “is to be addressed by a voice.” But who or what is calling?

From a spiritual perspective, of course, God is the Caller. The voice of vocation is the Voice of God. A divine source of wisdom, mysteriously both beyond and within ourselves, guides us in the path of our true calling and summons us to our destiny.

Canticle of Mary (sung to the tune of Amazing Grace)

1. My soul proclaims the Lord my God.

My spirit sings God’s praise,

Who looks on me, and lifts me up,

That gladness fills my days.

2. All nations now will share my joy.

For gifts God has outpoured.

This lowly one has been made great.

I magnify the Lord.

3. For those who fear the Holy One,

God’s mercy will not die.

Whose strong right arm puts down the proud,

And lifts the lowly high.

4. God fills the hungry with good things,

And sends the rich away;

The promise made to Abraham

Is filled to endless day.

5. Then let all nations praise our God,

The Father and the Son,

The Spirit blest, who lives in us,

While endless ages run.

Intercessions

1. For all who have received the gift of baptism, may each of us desire to discover the gifts and to know the will of God for our lives, we pray:

Hear us, O Lord

2. For all who have been called to the vocation to live as single persons, may God grant them the gifts needed to serve others with mercy, compassion and joy, we pray:

Hear us, O Lord

3. For all who have been called to the vocation of marriage, may God impart to them the grace to grow in their covenant of love and fidelity, we pray:

Hear us, O Lord

4. For all who have been called to the vocation of priesthood or religious life, may God bless the many ways they minister and serve the People of God, we pray:

Hear us, O Lord

5. For our young people, may God give them attentive ears and discerning hearts in order to learn the plan God has for them, we pray:

Hear us, O Lord

6. For each of us, regardless of our state in life, may we be open and attentive to the personal vocation God has called us to, we pray:

Hear us, O Lord

Lord’s Prayer

Down in adoration falling,

This great sacrament we hail;

Over ancient forms of worship

Newer rites of grace prevail;

Faith will tell us Christ is present,

When our human senses fail.

To the everlasting Father,

And the Son who made us free,

And the Spirit, God proceeding

From them each eternally,

Be salvation, honor, blessing,

Might and endless majesty. Amen

Benediction, Reposition, Sign of Peace

Closing Song: (suggestions: Take the Word of God with You or The Summons)