Final Oath to Glenmary

And everyone who has left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children or land for the sake of my name will be repaid a hundred times over, and also inherit eternal life. ~Matthew 19: 29

“Thank you for your commitment and for what you are doing.” Once I describe my vocation to people whom I’ve met for the first time this is invariably the statement I receive. I tend to accept this graciously and am humbled by the kindness of others. People are generally supportive of the path I am taking in life. I think they perceive it to be a great sacrifice, and as serving a real need. Perhaps they think, too, that they would never be able to choose it. And yet, after my experience of the past two weeks, this statement is even more humbling, and perhaps difficult, to accept.

Two weeks ago I made my Perpetual Oath to the Glenmary Home Missioners. In front of hundreds of people I read the Glenmary Oath and signed my name, making the lifelong commitment. This decision certainly was not taken lightly, and was preceded by years of difficult and intense discernment. Certainly in making this Oath I was being asked to sacrifice much, and marriage and a family generally tend to come to the top of that list. And yet as the Oath ceremony finished, the banquet following it came to an end, and my family and friends departed for their homes, I could not help but think: I am receiving so much more than I could ever possibly give over to God, the Church, or to the world.

Jesus assures his disciples that those who leave everything and follow him will be rewarded a hundred times over with blessings of every kind. My experience has been that Jesus’ words are accurate.

In my years of formation I have encountered family beyond my biological family, I have found dozens of homes away from home, I have encountered vast experiences that I could never have imagined, I have been the recipient of the generosity of so many people, and I have, if I may humbly say, grown closer to God.

I think there is a valid fear that is associated with pursuing a vocation to the priesthood or religious life. Much will be asked from people who do so. But, God will never be outdone in generosity. The blessings that a person receives for courageously entertaining this kind of call will truly be a hundredfold. In the end, the ultimate blessing is the peace that accompanies knowing that one has discerned the will of God, and as much as is possible, aligned him or herself with that will.

And this, my friends, is eternal life: fullness of life on earth, and an eternity spent with God and all of his people in Heaven.