Leading by applying discernment to ministry

One way vocation directors exercise leadership is by stepping back and evaluating what’s happening with new membership efforts, and, when needed, naming a new vision. Father Tom McCarthy, O.S.A. presents how he teamed up with other members to take such steps. He also shares some of the practical ways his community conducts vocation ministry today. This article is based on McCarthy’s presentation for the NRVC webinar “Using all avenues to support vocation ministry.” Find the hour-long webinar, which includes two presentations and a live Q&A, at nrvc.net/webinars.

DISCERNMENT IS A WORD we vocation directors like to use. The young (and not so young) people we work with have the word drilled into them by us and every vocation brochure, magazine, and website they encounter. But do we practice discernment when it comes to our own vocation ministry? Do we first discern our personal call to this ministry and then delve into all the ramifications of it?

I say this from my own experience. In 1998 I was summoned to the provincial’s office for a Saturday meeting. As a young religious, I felt being summoned to the provincial’s office at any time was not necessarily good. I was there with four other younger friars, and we were told that one of us was going to be the new vocation director. To say I was nervous is putting it mildly. I was terrified! I had been ordained four years and was loving my ministry as chaplain in one of our high schools. I wanted to be the vocation director like I wanted to stick a needle in my eye. I did not want to do either! Vocation directors in our province tended to be friars who were yanked out of a ministry they loved and put in the vocation office at the provincial center to stare at a phone that never rang. After two years of misery, another sucker—I mean friar—was put in and the cycle continued. As I said, I was terrified. Happily, I was not appointed, and I continued my ministry at the high school.

The story might end there, but it does not. Ten years later, to the day, I volunteered to become the vocation director with two other friars and a lay staff member using a completely new model of vocation ministry. We all kept our primary ministries and formed the Vocation Team. I am happy to say that 13 years later this model is still working for us, and we are going strong.

An honest assessment

Why did this work? Because we discerned. We discerned about what we were doing and concluded it was not working. We discerned that we had a lifestyle as Augustinians that was attractive, life-giving, and worth living. We were willing to change and try something new. St. John Henry Cardinal Newman once said, “To change is to grow, and to be perfect is to change often.” (Winston Churchill made the saying even more well known.) We knew what we were doing as a province was not working, so we discerned a new way that was risky and went against all we understood about how to do vocation ministry. We risked, and it worked, and it continues to work today.

I begin with this story because I believe all of us in vocation ministry need to discern why, how, and what we do. I challenge us to discern, to look honestly at how we are doing this incredibly necessary and beautiful ministry. If we are continually discerning the best practices and are willing to change if necessary, let’s keep doing that. If we are doing things the way we did them 10, 20, 30, or more years ago, we need to openly delve into discernment and see where we need to go and what we need to change.

None of us has all the answers or the perfect way to do vocation ministry. That said, we can all learn and grow and maybe even change. I am simply sharing with you from my heart and my lived experience. Some things work and some things do not work. That is OK. The NRVC named its webinar “Using all avenues to support vocation ministry.” That means we all have something to share and we all can and must learn from each other.

Not every new idea works. When I was principal of St. Rita of Cascia High School in Chicago, we tried something new. We were going to implement a House System. Following what other schools were doing, and inspired by the Harry Potter movies, we decided to put every student, faculty member, and staff member into one of eight different “houses.” The houses were randomly assigned with students from each class year mingled with faculty and staff members. We presented it to the whole student body as they returned to school in August. A committee of students and faculty members had worked all summer and were excited to unveil their new creation that was going to transform the school and let us get closer to each other.

Well, it was a disaster. The more we pushed it, the more they pushed back. No matter what we tried, the students rebelled and wanted to go back to the old class year system. At the end of the school year, we dissolved the houses and went back to the ways that worked.

I tell this story to show that we tried something new. We discerned that we would try something different. It did not work, but I am so glad we tried. If I were back at St. Rita, I would try it again, but, learning from our experiences, we might introduce it incrementally, starting with the freshman class and adding a class each year. Remember, we can learn, grow, and change even from failures. We need to discern, grow, and change!

Practical tips from what we’ve tried

Online upgrade

With this as a background and challenge, let us look at some things that have been effective. Our first and most powerful action has been to update and adapt our online presence in social media and on our website. We decided we needed a person who understood technology and the way younger people use social media. We started by hiring someone 10 hours a week and have moved to 20 hours a week. I cannot stress enough that your website is open 24-7-365. It is open when young people look at websites, on their time, which usually doesn’t mean office hours of nine to five. Young people take study breaks at 2:30 in the morning, and your website may be what they look at. Is it welcoming? Is it user-friendly? Is it up-to-date? Is it informative? The same goes for our presence on social media. Some platforms I have never heard of and am not using, but our vocation office better be using them.

Material on social media needs to be relevant and eye-catching. In a ridiculously small number of seconds, a person either is or is not attracted enough to view our information. If it is not attractive to young people, they will move on to the next website or social media platform. And we will be left in the dust.

QR codes

I never heard of QR codes until a few years back. But if you’ve gone to a restaurant during COVID-19, you encountered one to get your menu. Is a QR code on your posters and other print material? Young people may not take the time to type in a website but they will scan a QR code. If they do look for a website address, is it unique and easy, or is it so difficult that it takes three tries to finally get there?

Wristbands tied to website

We used to buy all kinds of trinkets as giveaways for our tables at vocation fairs. How many pens have you ever lost? How many flashlight keychains does one person really need? We have all tried these giveaways, and to a certain degree, having some is good, but don’t think they are the end-all and be-all. We have found that rubber wristbands have been the most effective. Many young people actually like them and will wear them if they are attractive. Find a short question or quote that is relevant to your community and put it on the wristband with your website. At 2:30 in the morning when they are bored with studying and take a break, they may look at the band on their wrist and go to your website.

Our bands simply say, “Restless?” and give our website. On our site we explain the prayer of Saint Augustine, “You have made us for yourself, Oh Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” We tell people to wear the band or put it somewhere they will see every day and ask if they are truly restless in their search for God in their lives. It has worked beyond belief for us. We buy the bands in various colors in bulk and pay about 12 to 20 cents each.

Stay in touch with inquirers

Another bit of practical advice comes from what we’ve learned about tracking inquirers and discerners. First, every single person gets a response, no matter how far out or undesirable. They reached out, and they deserve the courtesy of an email response. We’ve developed 34 form letter responses for inquirers, from men who are 78 and bored with life—so why not become a priest?— to those who ask if their wife can attend a discernment weekend with them. We have to say no to a lot of people, but it doesn’t take much to say no charitably.

We also keep electronic files of names because people can come back years later. We put a sentence or two about each person to jog our memories. For instance, we took note of the guy who said if he joined, he’d get three meals a day and a place to sleep. It actually happened!

Beside the turndowns are people who are viable. We send them an appropriate email from our 34 form letters. If we haven’t heard back in three weeks, we send another email saying, “You might have received a lot of material at once, we just want to check in.” If they did get a lot all at once, now they get our email separately. After another three weeks without a response, we send a third and final email. My assistant in the vocation office, Father Jack Tierney, O.S.A. found us through VISION and did not reply until the third email. It does pay off.

Visits are also critical for us. I like to visit discerners on their territory and then invite them to come to us. And we always include our lay employees and associates, asking them to get to know these discerners.

Involve your community

My final piece of advice is to not do this ministry alone. Have members of your community to support you in prayer and presence. Let’s invite young people into our homes for prayer, fellowship, and some good food. We need to be present to them and actively engage in their life journeys. They need to know we care before they will care what we know. Walk with them and enjoy getting to know their stories.

These are simply a few thoughts based on how I’ve learned and changed in this ministry. I don’t know it all, and that’s why we need to talk to and learn from each other. Young people are restless for meaning and purpose, and we in religious life have wisdom and a way of life to share. Let’s discern, go forth, and minister.

Further reading

“Our vocation culture project,” by Father Tom McCarthy, O.S.A., HORIZON, Fall 2018.

Father Tom McCarthy, O.S.A. is the vocation director for the Augustinian Midwest Province. In addition he is director of St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel in Chicago and prior of the Pre-Novitiate Community of St. Clare of Montefalco Friary in Chicago. He serves, too, as a papal Missionary of Mercy.