Joe Valente

Tuesday, 26. May 2009, 20:43

I think the mass rush of laity to get involved is perhaps a factor in today's shortage. So many of these people wanted to take over that young men propably thought that there was no need for more priests.

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Twenty years ago, when I had less free time but was much more active, I took our local Parish Centre for one week with the intention of putting on an old fashioned Vocations Exhibition. I contacted our local Bishop and got his permission, I contacted almost every religious order, male and female, in Ireland and invited them to participate.
The response was overwhelming and some had to be turned away. The question of cost then arose, so with a few helpers I organised a few fund raising events and we were able to fit the place out with exhibition stands and hire a caterer to provide meals. We when wrote to every Grammar and Secondary School in N.Ireland (Catholic of course) we contacted the University chaplains and many local Youth and sporting clubs.

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Since that exhibition there have been at least 15 ordinations from the schools that attended and a few lay people have given a few years of their life to voluntarily work with religious orders on the missions. Not a lot but some success.

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There is nothing to prevent others doing some thing similiar in their own parish, or two or three parishes co operating.