“The call to candidacy is a call to be holy. Do not be afraid to be holy,” Bishop Mario Dorsonville-Rodríguez, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington, said to seven seminarians admitted to candidacy on Oct. 18 at the Theological College, The National Diocesan Seminary of the Catholic University of America. Among those declaring their intent “to be holy” was Ramiro “RJ” Regalado of the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

Seminarian Richard R. Gutierrez publically declared his intention to pursue Holy Orders and was officially accepted as a candidate for ordination during the Rite of Admission to Candidacy for Holy Orders at a special Mass celebrated by Bishop Michael J. Bouletter, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio in Our Lady’s Chapel of Assumption Seminary in San Antonio on Oct. 14. Bishop Boulette presided and conferred candidacy with the permission of Bishop Michael Mulvey, Bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

Seeking holiness is the key to discerning God’s will for us; to discovering the road in life the Lord has planned for us—our vocation; and to achieving and remaining in a state of grace, which allows us to do the will of God with joy, great peace and contentment. We all share the duty to help one another seek holiness.

The Serra Club of Corpus Christi hosted a “Family Seminarian Dinner” on Aug. 6 at the St Pius X Youth Center. The Serra Club exists to promote vocations and support seminarians and their families. The dinner was held to extend well wishes to seminarians as they continue another year in the seminary.

The initial diaconate ordination class in the Diocese of Corpus Christi began in 1977 with a “mini-seminary style” program that took place over several weekends each month. The program followed the majority of programs through the United States in terms of length. Both the candidates and their wives came together to study the various courses being offered.

Father Romeo Salinas, ap- pointed by Bishop Michael Mulvey as the new Vocation Director for the Diocese of Corpus Christi, says he wants to continue “to develop a culture of vocations…not just for the person being called by God, but for their families too.” He said families are not spending enough time in prayer, so his goal is to help promote prayer and living the Commandments.

Sister Eileen Mary Doherty, SOLT grew up in “a simple, yet faith-filled family.” Born on Feb. 4, 1953, Sister Eileen is the 10th child born to Patrick and Mary Doherty of the Bronx, New York Everything the family did focused on family and faith, Sister Eileen said.

The college years are stereotypically a time of discovery – discovery ranging from new friends, new viewpoints, new career options or even a new moral code. For a select few students at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, their time on campus solidified their discovery of a calling from God to a vocation of religious life or ordained life as a priest and the St. Thomas Aquinas Newman Center & Chapel at Texas A&M-Kingsville is the hub for much of that discernment.

In the first chapter of John’s Gospel, we read about Jesus inviting two of his disciples to “Come and see.” St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta, when asked by people how they could help her, often responded, “Come and see.” This phrase is used commonly now to refer to an immersion experience of discernment, whether it is a short visit or an extended period of active discernment.

Three Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament were honored by Bishop Michael Mulvey and the Diocese of Corpus Christi in February at the annual Consecrated Life Day at Corpus Christi Cathedral; by Incarnate Word Academy at the 2017 Gala in March; and in a school wide Mass at Incarnate Word Academy, where all three served on the teaching staff. The congregation will celebrate the sisters’ jubilee with a Mass of Thanksgiving on Saturday, June 24, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Philip the Apostle Church. Completing 60 years of consecrated life, Sister Mary Juliane Kuntscher celebrates her jubilee of religious profession this year with golden jubilarians Sister Judith Marie Saenz and Sister Annette Wagner.

In her teens Sister Claudia Ongpin, OP vowed she would never become a religious and, most definitely never a Dominican sister. As her life unfolded, however, she realized God had other plans. 

It has been estimated that anywhere between 20 and 50 percent of inbound college freshmen have yet to declare their majors. Regardless of the number, far too many teenaged men and women are indecisive when thinking about the future. This is true in discernment, too. Indecisiveness and fear lead far too many young people into perpetual discernment, with the idea that the biggest questions in life will be answered “later.”

Sister Milagros Tormo, MJMJ is the third of five children born to Antonio and Diodora Abad Tormo in Madrid, Spain. They were devoted parents who—though poor in material things—were rich in faith and strong in family values. “I didn’t know we were poor. I had a great childhood,” Sister Milagros said.

Doctors told the parents of Angeles Berrozpe that their daughter would never be healthy. They said her heart was the size of a baby’s heart and she would be sick for most of her short life. Angeles was born in northeast Spain to José and Katalina Zabalo Berrozpe. She had one brother and a sister.

Religious sisters in the Diocese of Corpus Christi celebrated National Catholic Sisters Week (NCSW), an annual celebration that took place from March 8–14, with an event at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Alice. Twenty young people joined 17 religious sisters for a daylong celebration on March 12.

"I think I’d love being a (priest/brother/sister), but I would have a hard time being celibate.” That is a thought most priests and religious likely have at some point in their discernment process. Celibacy is the one universal roadblock to a person considering a priestly or religious life.

Father Ángel Montana was 14-years-old when he heard his bishop back home in Guadalajara, México talk about the need for more priests in his diocese. He knew almost instantly that God was preparing him for a religious life. 

In a previous article, we talked about what prayer is (and is not). This article focuses more specifically on how to pray. To begin, here are some important points to consider.

When South Vietnam fell to North Vietnam in 1975, Father Hanh Van Pham fled from Ben Da in southwest Vietnam with his mother, father and six siblings. They made their way to the United States for safety. They spent time in Arkansas, Louisiana and California meeting up with other members of their extended family, but finally settled in Rockport, Texas because his father wanted to continue his work as a fisherman.