NEWSLETTER INSERTS FOR VOCATIONS SUNDAY - 26th APRIL 2026

‘Only the one who pauses, listens, prays and welcomes the Shepherd’s gaze can say with confidence: “I trust him; life with him can truly be beautiful. I want to walk this path of beauty.” What is most extraordinary is that, in becoming his disciple, one truly becomes “beautiful”; his beauty transforms us’.

Pope Leo XIV, Message from 63^rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations.

‘Through the intimacy of his friendship, you will discover how to give of yourselves, whether through marriage, the priesthood, the permanent diaconate, or consecrated life. Every vocation is an immeasurable gift for the Church and for those who receive it with joy. To know the Lord means above all learning to entrust oneself to him and to his providence, which is abundant in every vocation’.

Pope Leo XIV, Message from 63rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations.

‘As I continue to journey with you, I invite you to lift your gaze to the radiant truth of the Resurrection. When we believe in the risen Christ, who burst the bonds of death and declared, “I am the resurrection and the life” (Jn 11:25), we are set free. We can stand more lightly on this good earth, unafraid of change, because our lives are already hidden with Christ in God (Col 3:3). The Resurrection gives us shared courage and pilgrim hearts. It inspires us to adapt boldly to every new season in parish life, in society and in our personal trials. We can trust that the same power which raised Jesus is at work within us, turning our fleeting days into eternal fruit’.

Bishop Ger Nash, From his Pastoral Letter ‘A Call to Courage’.

‘God our Father, we trust in your loving kindness. Bless our diocese of Ferns with many priestly and religious vocations. Give the men and women you call the light to understand your gift and the love to follow always in the footsteps of your Son. Amen.’

Vocations Prayer for the Diocese of Ferns

‘Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.’

St Catherine of Siena

‘You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.’

St Augustine

‘The glory of God is man fully alive; and the life of man is the vision of God.’

St Irenaeus

‘Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours.’

St Teresa of Avila

‘Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ.’

Pope St John Paul II