Vocation is a call from God. Initially this is manifested in an inner attraction. This is a very gently movement towards the call. This inner attraction is supported or complemented with an external event, which is one’s history. This can be the good family background of the parents or in the environment where the child grows.
The response of the child to the call is then felt through a conscious motivation in entering the seminary, which maybe the love of God and service to others. This desire is a response, which maybe mixed with an unconscious motivation, which maybe a wrong motivation. Part of the unconscious motivation is self-satisfying. Hopefully motivations are clarified as early as possible.
It is in this inner context or situation that the seminary leads the seminarians to an encounter with God. The emphasis is the intimacy with God to come to the open. This is not just knowing God, but this is to allow oneself to be loved by God. This happens through an intellectual conversion, which is a reinterpretation of the motivations and an effective conversion, which a growing love of God.
The seminarian is then lead to reach a degree of willingness and commitment to continue his priestly studies.
