God has a plan for all of us. It is something He has uniquely destined us for. Part of that plan is our vocation, which is the subject of this lesson. A vocation is a calling from God. We are going to learn about some different vocations and hear stories of how people have discovered their vocations. What vocation do you believe God has destined for you?
Introduction Video and Opening Prayer
Go Deeper
Before you watch the videos below, have each member of the family complete the following opening activity. When you are done, attach the completed activity to a page in the Destined Journal.
Now it is time to learn about some of the different vocations we can be called to. Below are interviews with some Saint Mary Magdalen “celebrities:” Sr. Maryetta, Fr. Shaun, and Dcn. Devon and Erin Wolfe.
If one of our “celebrities” in the videos above inspired you, write them a letter! We are happy to deliver any letters that are dropped off to the parish office or emailed to youth@saintmarymagdalen.org.
Featured Saints
We will learn about 4 special saints who are related to the the vocations we have learned about. The first is Saint Jean Vianney the patron saint of priests.
Next, we will learn about St. Catherine of Sienna. She was a Dominican nun and one of Sr. Maryetta’s favorite saints! An icon of St. Catherine, dedicated to Sr. Maryetta, can be found on the cross in the parish chapel.
Finally, we will learn about Saints Louis and Zelie Martin, a married couple who both became saints.
Let Us Pray
You may have noticed that all of our “celebrities” talked about the important role prayer has played in their vocation. We should all pray and ask God what he wants us to do with our lives. God has great plans for us and he always wants to help us discover them, whatever they may be.
Your challenge over the next two weeks is to pray the following prayer as often as you can. It is a prayer for those who are still trying to find their vocation. For those adults reading this who have already found theirs, take time to ask God to strengthen your call and show you how you can better live out his will in your life.
A prayer to know your vocation:
I glorify You, God in all that I do. In mind, body, and spirit I give my best to you Help me to follow your will no matter the call: sister, brother, or priest, I promise my all. If you call me to marriage, I promise to love, And teach my own children To seek grace from above. Glory be to the Father, And to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning, Is now, and ever shall be, World without end. Amen.
Live it Out Activities
Families are the places where each of our unique vocations are nurtured. The Church asks parents to help their children discover who God has called them to be. Parents, read the following passages from the Catechism to learn more about this important aspect of your own vocation.
“Education in the faith by the parents should begin in the child’s earliest years. This already happens when family members help one another to grow in faith by the witness of a Christian life in keeping with the Gospel… Parents have the mission of teaching their children to pray and to discover their vocation as children of God. ” (CCC 2226)
“Just as the child grows to maturity and human and spiritual autonomy, so his unique vocation which comes from God asserts itself more clearly and forcefully. Parents should respect this call and encourage their children to follow it. They must be convinced that the first vocation of the Christian is to follow Jesus: “He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” (CCC 2232)
The following discussion questions were written by the Diocese of Lansing to help parents talk about vocations with their children. Now that you have learned more about the different vocations, please go through some of these questions together as a family. Feel free to modify them for older or younger children. When you are done, share of the highlights from your conversation in the comments.
More to Explore
Click on the button below to explore an entire library of vocations videos put together by the Diocese of Lansing.
In order to get the conversation rolling in the comments, I filmed this short video to share my own vocation story with the families of our program. Enjoy, and feel free to share some of your own family’s vocation stories!
https://youtu.be/OCyaFmBkN5I?rel=0
My kids (who are younger) loves making prayer hands for our journal, and they enjoyed watching the videos of faces they recognize in church!
Very fun lesson! We enjoyed the videos with Fr. Shaun and Sr. Maryetta. We did get an error saying the video was unavailable when we tried to watch the Deacon Devin video so we could not watch it.
It seems to be working now, please let me know if you continue to have trouble with it.
We really enjoyed the videos!
We enjoyed the activities, but the discussion was great fun as it gave me an opportunity to discuss with my children the life of my Great Aunt, Sr. Marie Walter Page. She was a very unique woman called to vocation as a nun. Within her calling she was also a teacher and counselor for several parishes in the archdiocese of Detroit and also at the St. Francis Home for boys. It brought back great memories of my childhood. Thank you!
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The kids enjoyed watching the videos as well!
The kids picked two discussion questions. #4 which asks what fears or negative thoughts do you have about religious vocations. Liam said the vocation would be limiting and he would be prevented from exploring other things. They also picked #6…what gifts and talents do they have to use toward a vocation. Adelaide is a great writer and she loves math and people. Liam is funny, personal and enjoys learning.
Thanks for the videos, we enjoyed them.
We really enjoyed the family discussion questions, in particular, what might be positive or difficult about being called to serve as a priest or a nun, and then reflecting on what some of our gifts are and how they might be used to serve others. For example, being talented with reading can help someone pursue a science or engineering field and improve society, or how a talent with music an help ease the burdens of others and add to their joy and quality of life.
Thank you for these videos. It was great to learn everyone’s vocation stories.
Some of the questions were a little difficult for my first grader but he enjoyed talking about his gifts and talents and how they could be used.
It sounds like you did a perfect job of adapting them! What did he think some of his gifts were?
This was a fun activity and enjoyed hearing the backstories of some of the “Celebrities” at SMM.
The question that the kids understood was number 6. Sarah (6) loves to read and loves young kids, and she said she wants to be a preschool teacher so she can read to young children when she grows up. Jake (3) loves to help people and said he wants to be a fireman so he can help people if their house is on fire. This was a great lesson, I enjoyed the videos! It only keeps their attention for so long but I enjoyed it.
Thanks for the insight on different vocations,
We enjoyed the lesson very much, we loved the videos with Fr.Shaun and Sr.Maryetta