Wisdom Andrew Carl - Tuning In to God’s Call

Andrew Carl Wisdom, OP
and Christine Kiley, ASCJ

FOREWORD BY
The Most Reverend Edward M. Rice
Auxiliary Bishop of St. Louis

Imprimi Potest:
Harry Grile, CSsR, Provincial
Denver Province, The Redemptorists

Published by Liguori Publications, Liguori, Missouri 63057
To order, call 800-325-9521, or visit liguori.org.

Copyright 2012 Andrew Carl Wisdom and Christine Kiley

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior written permission of Liguori Publications.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wisdom, Andrew Carl, 1961
Tuning in to Gods call / Andrew Carl Wisdom and Christine Kiley.1st ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-7648-2140-0
1. Discernment (Christian theology)Prayers and devotions. 2. Listening
Religious aspectsChristianityPrayers and devotions. I. Kiley, Christine. II. Title.
BV4509.5.W57 2012
248.4dc23

2012010655

Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C., and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

The English translation of the Non-Biblical Readings from The Liturgy of the Hours 1974, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.

Excerpts from English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for the United States of America 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.Libreria Editrice Vaticana; English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: Modifications From the Editio Typica 1997, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.Libreria Editrice Vaticana.

Excerpts from Vatican Council II, The Basic Edition: Constitutions, Decrees, Declarations, edited by Reverend Austin Flannery, OP, copyright 2007, Costello Publishing Company, Inc., Northport, NY, are used by permission of the publisher, all rights reserved. No part of these excerpts may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwisewithout express permission of Costello Publishing Company, Inc.

Quotations from Popes John XXIII, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI are used with permission. Copyright Libreria Editrice Vaticana ( Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2012).

Compliant with TheRoman Missal, third edition.

Printed in the United States of America
16 15 14 13 12 / 5 4 3 2 1
First Edition

We gratefully dedicate this work to those with whom we first discerned a vocation.

T HE W ISDOM AND K ILEY F AMILIES

We also dedicate Tuning In to Gods Call to:

the many young men and women with whom we had the privilege to help discern their vocations, some of whom we joyfully call our religious brothers or sisters today.

the Dominican Friars of the Central Province of St. Albert the Great and the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, U.S. Province, who daily inspire us to live fully the beauty and blessing of our vocations.

Part III: How Does a Person Begin Discerning?
The Elements of Discernment

When I was a junior in high school, I first began to open my heart to a vocation to the priesthood. I had no idea what to do with my thoughts, and I felt I had no one to turn to. Luckily I brought it up with my guidance counselor.

It was not long after that I received information about our diocesan seminary, and I was filling out the application. As I look back on the process, it all seemed so simple.

Today our young people have technology at their fingertips and can communicate in ways that did not exist back then. Today they can send a message halfway round the world within seconds or post personal thoughts for all to see. Yet for all the ability to communicate, there is a price. We can lack the face-to-face encounter with another human being. The very technology that assists us in communicating can cause alienation and lead some to withdraw. Our dependence on the computer can hinder our ability to form mature relationships.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that God desires to communicate with us: The desire for God is written in the human heartand God never ceases to draw man to himself (CCC 27). With Tuning In to Gods Call, Sister Christine Kiley, ACSJ, and Father Andrew Carl Wisdom, OP, offer the young people of our Church a valuable tool for getting in touch with the human heart and the stirrings of God. The books general format of Scripture, reflection, quote, action, and prayer will assist the reader in fostering a relationship with the living God. The authors choice of a low-tech method of prayer and reflection reminds us that, ultimately, when one opens the heart to the will of God, one discovers a vital and personal relationship with the living and true God (CCC2558).

Sometimes we must disconnect in order to reconnect. This certainly applies to discovering ones vocation. The reflections and the format outlined in this book will assist young people in discerning the will of God in the depths of their hearts. By reading Tuning In to Gods Call, readers will discover what the title character in Alices Adventures in Wonderland was looking for when she asked the Cheshire Cat, Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

T HE M OST R EVEREND E DWARD M. R ICE

A UXILIARY B ISHOP OF S T . L OUIS

When Alice in the popular childrens book Alices Adventures in Wonderland meets the Cheshire Cat, she asks him, Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here? He responds, That depends a good deal on where you want to get to. Alice answers, I dont much care where. Then, the Cat says, it doesnt matter which way you go.

Discernment is about getting somewhere. And it does matter which way you go. It has a beginning point and an end point. But before you can know which way to go, you have to know where you want to get to. What is the goal of your search? If, as a Christian, your goal is to know the will of God for your life, then that is where you begin: with the end in sight! Observing, as Father Thomas Dubay did, that acorns grow into oak trees, tadpoles into frogs, and babies into adults, so Christians are to grow into an alter Christus, another Christ. How do we know if we are becoming that fully mature man or woman in Christ? More precisely, how do we know where we are in the process of that becoming? What vocational expression should it take in my life: marriage, the single life, religious life, or priesthood?

For the Christian, discernment is both interior and exterior. It requires steadfastness in prayer that enables you to be attuned daily to the voice of God in life. God speaks to us through the events, experiences, and encounters that make up each day. We respond by following that inner voice with concrete action that reflects its direction. The fruit of discernment is decision.