Vocation Office

> Home > Called and Chosen > Come and See > The Seminary > The Priest > Meet our Seminarians > Frequently Asked Questions > Prayers > Meet the Vocation Director > Contact > Links	Come and See: From the Vocation Director's Desk I believe that providence rules the life of the faithful Christian. My own journey of faith can be adequately understood through the prism of providence. I have very profound memories as a child of my mother bringing me to Church, especially of regularly visiting a small little side Chapel at St. James Major Church in New Orleans. In this Chapel were statues of the saints and the Blessed Mother. My Mother would light a candle and invite me to do the same. I remember praying then in a very simple childlike way—little did I know that the simple prayer of a child whose proximity to innocence is so much greater than most adults—would one day become the sacrificial offering of a priest of Jesus Christ. In a powerful way, my Mother’s example, her daily prayer which included the Rosary, special novenas both as a young mother and even to this very day, profoundly affected me. I later discovered that my mother had all along entrusted me to the care of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a fact that illumined my mind and heart to an awareness of the birth of my vocation. I relay this personal story as I begin a new ministry in the Archdiocese of Mobile, one that I consider to be quintessentially important in the times we live in. In the midst of failure, of mistakes, of woundedness and a need for healing, I feel providentially chosen to be the Director of Vocations to the priesthood. My vocation was the fruit of simple prayer and devotion, of consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary, of a family whose heart sought what was good, true and upright even if in an imperfect manner. Who I am today is intimately connected to the home I was reared in—imperfect but essentially tied to the source of life and holiness—the Church and her Savior, Jesus Christ. It is no small “statement” the Second Vatican Council adopted when it called the family the Domestic Church. The home is called to be a little Church, a sanctuary of love and life, and from that little Church children experience the life of the Spirit, who lives in the hearts of brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers. The family that understands itself as a sacred reality, a living source of grace received and grace commuted, is the first and most powerful seedbed (seminary) for vocations. Whether vocations be overtly promoted or simply implied as a positive reality, a good in the Church, for the Church, is essential. A call to serve the Church, the people of God, as a priest, a nun, a sister, a brother or a permanent deacon, must be received and nourished, less it die like so many inspirations which come from above and drift off into the list of so many things we ought to have done but failed to do. We must begin to understand that life is about discovering my purpose and meaning in this world—what am I called to do? Christ, He in whose likeness we are created, is the answer to the longing of our hearts. He alone can reveal to us, in a personal way, the meaning of my life and what I am called to do. I was a teenager when I first remember praying to God, in that still simple way—“God, what do you want me to do with my life?” The answer came, not in an instant flash, nor in a dream, nor in a sudden self understanding. It came gradually, first with an appreciation of the Church, then in believing that the bread I ate at Holy Communion was in fact the true Body and Blood of God’s only Son. In stages I came to understand that God was asking me to be disposed to service, to listen, to discern. That is what He is asking all of us to be—to be open to His voice which speaks directly to each human heart. He wants to speak to young people, the future of the Church and the world. I have met so many younger and older men and women who are in search of something more than economic success, power, fame or pure pleasure. They have rejected the world and culture that thinks only of itself, but they don’t know where to go, or what to do. They believe themselves estranged for mainline society, and the Church is often not among the possibilities of where to find a place to be or an answer to questions of mission and purpose. To young people, to men and women of all ages in the Archdiocese of Mobile, you who are searching for meaning, you who have heard a voice, have perceived something that is unclear, unknown, something powerful and wonderful but mysterious and even frightening. To you I say directly, God is calling men and women today, but so many are not listening. He is calling you to listen—not to decide now, not to commit your life in an instant, but to listen and discern. To come closer to the heart of the Church and to listen to its beating, for her heart is the Heart of Christ, from whence she draws all her life and meaning. I look forward to speaking to you, to listening to you, to receiving you as the gift that you are, and to helping to nourish that gift and bring it to fruition. As Director of Vocations for the Archdiocese of Mobile, I wish to make this appeal: Vocation is not for living saints alone—but for the repentant sinners who have felt the touch of grace, and heard a call of God. It is for the Peters and Pauls, the Mary Magdalens and Marthas, the Matthews and doubting Thomas, the women at wells and those healed of all sorts of afflictions. These were men and women who were chosen not because of their sanctity but because of they had hearts willing to hear God’s voice and make a positive response. Christ calls sinners to become saints so that as saints they might show the power of Christ crucified. I did not believe it was me He was calling. But I did not end the discernment because of my lack of faith, my disbelief, my fear, my obduracy and my selfishness. I could not deny the call, and I had to entrust myself to Him and allow Him to speak to me through the vessel He had chosen and established to communicate His salvation to the world—the Church. I am honored and humbled by the answer I received, and empowered and impassioned to share that life of faith that is not mine to keep but to give. It is a wonderful life, in dark times and glory, for it is always in either case, a life of love and sacrifice for the other that mysteriously makes me more of who I truly am in Christ. I hope to hear from many of you soon. Rev. Fr. Alejandro Valladares Director of Vocations

Come and See: From the Vocation Director's Desk

I believe that providence rules the life of the faithful Christian. My own journey of faith can be adequately understood through the prism of providence. I have very profound memories as a child of my mother bringing me to Church, especially of regularly visiting a small little side Chapel at St. James Major Church in New Orleans. In this Chapel were statues of the saints and the Blessed Mother. My Mother would light a candle and invite me to do the same. I remember praying then in a very simple childlike way—little did I know that the simple prayer of a child whose proximity to innocence is so much greater than most adults—would one day become the sacrificial offering of a priest of Jesus Christ. In a powerful way, my Mother’s example, her daily prayer which included the Rosary, special novenas both as a young mother and even to this very day, profoundly affected me. I later discovered that my mother had all along entrusted me to the care of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a fact that illumined my mind and heart to an awareness of the birth of my vocation.

I relay this personal story as I begin a new ministry in the Archdiocese of Mobile, one that I consider to be quintessentially important in the times we live in. In the midst of failure, of mistakes, of woundedness and a need for healing, I feel providentially chosen to be the Director of Vocations to the priesthood. My vocation was the fruit of simple prayer and devotion, of consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary, of a family whose heart sought what was good, true and upright even if in an imperfect manner. Who I am today is intimately connected to the home I was reared in—imperfect but essentially tied to the source of life and holiness—the Church and her Savior, Jesus Christ. It is no small “statement” the Second Vatican Council adopted when it called the family the Domestic Church. The home is called to be a little Church, a sanctuary of love and life, and from that little Church children experience the life of the Spirit, who lives in the hearts of brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers. The family that understands itself as a sacred reality, a living source of grace received and grace commuted, is the first and most powerful seedbed (seminary) for vocations.

Whether vocations be overtly promoted or simply implied as a positive reality, a good in the Church, for the Church, is essential. A call to serve the Church, the people of God, as a priest, a nun, a sister, a brother or a permanent deacon, must be received and nourished, less it die like so many inspirations which come from above and drift off into the list of so many things we ought to have done but failed to do. We must begin to understand that life is about discovering my purpose and meaning in this world—what am I called to do? Christ, He in whose likeness we are created, is the answer to the longing of our hearts. He alone can reveal to us, in a personal way, the meaning of my life and what I am called to do. I was a teenager when I first remember praying to God, in that still simple way—“God, what do you want me to do with my life?” The answer came, not in an instant flash, nor in a dream, nor in a sudden self understanding. It came gradually, first with an appreciation of the Church, then in believing that the bread I ate at Holy Communion was in fact the true Body and Blood of God’s only Son. In stages I came to understand that God was asking me to be disposed to service, to listen, to discern. That is what He is asking all of us to be—to be open to His voice which speaks directly to each human heart. He wants to speak to young people, the future of the Church and the world. I have met so many younger and older men and women who are in search of something more than economic success, power, fame or pure pleasure. They have rejected the world and culture that thinks only of itself, but they don’t know where to go, or what to do. They believe themselves estranged for mainline society, and the Church is often not among the possibilities of where to find a place to be or an answer to questions of mission and purpose.

To young people, to men and women of all ages in the Archdiocese of Mobile, you who are searching for meaning, you who have heard a voice, have perceived something that is unclear, unknown, something powerful and wonderful but mysterious and even frightening. To you I say directly, God is calling men and women today, but so many are not listening. He is calling you to listen—not to decide now, not to commit your life in an instant, but to listen and discern. To come closer to the heart of the Church and to listen to its beating, for her heart is the Heart of Christ, from whence she draws all her life and meaning. I look forward to speaking to you, to listening to you, to receiving you as the gift that you are, and to helping to nourish that gift and bring it to fruition. As Director of Vocations for the Archdiocese of Mobile, I wish to make this appeal: Vocation is not for living saints alone—but for the repentant sinners who have felt the touch of grace, and heard a call of God. It is for the Peters and Pauls, the Mary Magdalens and Marthas, the Matthews and doubting Thomas, the women at wells and those healed of all sorts of afflictions. These were men and women who were chosen not because of their sanctity but because of they had hearts willing to hear God’s voice and make a positive response. Christ calls sinners to become saints so that as saints they might show the power of Christ crucified.

I did not believe it was me He was calling. But I did not end the discernment because of my lack of faith, my disbelief, my fear, my obduracy and my selfishness. I could not deny the call, and I had to entrust myself to Him and allow Him to speak to me through the vessel He had chosen and established to communicate His salvation to the world—the Church. I am honored and humbled by the answer I received, and empowered and impassioned to share that life of faith that is not mine to keep but to give. It is a wonderful life, in dark times and glory, for it is always in either case, a life of love and sacrifice for the other that mysteriously makes me more of who I truly am in Christ.

I hope to hear from many of you soon.

Rev. Fr. Alejandro Valladares
Director of Vocations