Cardinal Ignatius Kung Pin-Mei – From a Pastoral Letter
Vocations
As we witness the number of vocations—priests, teaching brothers, and religious novices—steadily declining each year (this year only 14 major seminarians, 9 teaching brothers, and 15 religious novices enrolled), our hearts are filled with sorrow, and the future appears deeply concerning.
Given the low number of seminarians in China, His Excellency Archbishop Riberi sounded the alarm last year. Recall the appeal of Bishop Haouisee, calling for priestly vocations. In our churches, prayers should be offered that God may grant us a greater number of holy priests. Redouble your supplications. Pray also for a greater number of teaching brothers devoted to sacred learning and for Sisters of the Holy Presentation.
Along with prayer, we must also seek practical means of fostering vocations. A vocation is like a delicate flower. Planted in the hearts of children, it grows and blossoms only after receiving much care. Ordinarily, the school and the family are called to work together in nurturing this gift. In principle, the responsibility of parents is essential, and even the Christian influence of a school can accomplish little without their cooperation.
Offering one’s children to God is a painful sacrifice for parents. Yet Christians, aware of the honor God grants them, should, despite the cost of this sacrifice, recognize this extraordinary grace—the exquisite flower of a vocation—that may be unfolding in the heart of a child within their own home. They should strive to surround that child with a healthy family environment filled with a fervent love for Christ, devotion to His Church, purity of heart, and a spirit of sacrifice.