SINGAPORE (LiCAS News): William Cardinal Goh of Singapore urged young Catholics to discern their vocations not as career choices but as deep and compelling calls from God. He delivered his message to approximately 120 religious priests, brothers, and sisters from 18 congregations, along with 650 lay faithful at the Blessed Sacrament Church on February 2.
Speaking at the Mass for the World Day for Consecrated Life in February, he cautioned against weighing the pros and cons of different vocations based on material benefits.
“For many people, discernment is for them to see which is a better ‘job’—will they have more benefits by being a priest or religious, or out in the world where they have greater freedom and resources to do what they want,” the cardinal said.
Instead, he emphasised that a vocation is about recognising God’s call so profoundly that one cannot refuse it.
“It’s so intimate and so compelling that we just surrender ourselves,” Catholic News SG, quoted him as saying.
“If we don’t have light from Jesus, we cannot be a light to the world,” said Cardinal Goh. He further emphasised that priestly and religious vocations require a profound encounter with the Lord.
“The vows and the work you do will be meaningless without a relationship with the Lord,” he said.
Jesuit regional superior, Father Francis Lim, echoed Cardinal Goh’s sentiments, affirming that religious life is a personal call from God rather than a pursuit of personal fulfillment.
“In order to persevere in a vocation, one must always return to that original call from God, especially in times of challenges in living out religious life,” said Father Lim, who has been a priest for 13 years and is the newly-elected president of the Conference of Religious Major Superiors of Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei.
He shared that religious congregations in Singapore plan to collaborate more in the formation of their young members.
The World Day for Consecrated Life was established by Pope St. John Paul II in 1997 to coincide with the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord.
