by Mike Snyder | Sep 22, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
The Permanent Oath is the lifetime commitment members make to Maryknoll at the time of ordination as priests or completion of training as Brothers. During the initial formation years we make yearly Temporary Oaths. This Oath is a public sign of our commitment to the mission work of Christ as entrusted to Maryknoll. It is a commitment to each other that binds us together in a mutual response to God’s Mission. By this oath we commit ourselves to Jesus Christ, to the Catholic Church and to its duty to be messengers of God’s love, compassion and mercy throughout the world. Our seminarians and Brother candidates begin taking a temporary oath just prior to their participation in the Overseas Training Program (a two year internship program). It is renewed each year afterward until ordination as priests and lifetime commitment as Brothers when each makes his Permanent Oath as a lifetime member of Maryknoll. We have nineteen candidates in our program and this year nine have taken their temporary oath. Congratulations to all!The Permanent Oath is the lifetime commitment members make to Maryknoll at the time of ordination as priests or completion of training as Brothers. During the initial formation years we make yearly Temporary Oaths. This Oath is a public sign of our commitment to the mission work of Christ as entrusted to Maryknoll. It is a commitment to each other that binds us together in a mutual response to God’s Mission. By this oath we commit ourselves to Jesus Christ, to the Catholic Church and to its duty to be messengers of God’s love, compassion and mercy throughout the world. Our seminarians and Brother candidates begin taking a temporary oath just prior to their participation in the Overseas Training Program (a two year internship program). It is renewed each year afterward until ordination as priests and lifetime commitment as Brothers when each makes his Permanent Oath as a lifetime member of Maryknoll. We have nineteen candidates in our program and this year nine have taken their temporary oath. Congratulations to all!
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
New moon emerges over Nairobi, Kenya
Welcome to the Summer 2021 Vocations Newsletter! I hope that the living is indeed easy for you during this time of the year, especially after a long year of fighting the Covid-19 pandemic. You have been in contact with Maryknoll and so are contemplating a missionary vocation as priest or Brother. You come to us from the motive of faith and hope in the life-giving message of Jesus.
I once heard the word vocation defined as the place God calls us to where our deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet. I hope you recognize how much you and so many others like you are needed today. The Gospel message of God’s love, mercy and compassion for all people is so important. It needs to be preached not only in words but in the living out of our daily lives. You are a messenger wherever you go and in whatever you do. But, you still need to take steps in the direction that will fulfill the deep gladness you wish in life. To move beyond your own personal concerns by seeking to meet the needs of others as a missionary priest or Brother may be the vocation that God has chosen for you – the path that brings joy, gladness, and contentment to your life.
As always we look forward to hearing from you at (vocation@maryknoll.org): Fr. Rodrigo Ulloa-Chavarry, Fr. Mike Snyder, Fr. Joe Donovan and Mr. Greg Darr.
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
The Permanent Oath is the lifetime commitment members make to Maryknoll at the time of ordination as priests or completion of training as Brothers. During the initial formation years we make yearly Temporary Oaths. This Oath is a public sign of our commitment to the mission work of Christ as entrusted to Maryknoll. It is a commitment to each other that binds us together in a mutual response to God’s Mission. By this oath we commit ourselves to Jesus Christ, to the Catholic Church and to its duty to be messengers of God’s love, compassion and mercy throughout the world. Our seminarians and Brother candidates begin taking a temporary oath just prior to their participation in the Overseas Training Program (a 2 year internship program). It is renewed each year afterward until ordination as priests and lifetime commitment as Brothers when each makes his Permanent Oath as a lifetime member of Maryknoll. We have eighteen candidates in our program and this year nine have taken their temporary oath with one, Br. Candidate Jonathan Jose, taking it for the first time. Congratulations to all!
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
Newly ordained Fr. Greg McPhee and seasoned missioner Br. Joe Bruener have recently traveled to Cochabamba, Bolivia. First they will study Spanish and later begin their missionary service. Fr. Greg came to us with a background in law as a criminal defense attorney in Syracuse, New York. As a seminarian he was sent to Tanzania, East Africa for two years on our Overseas Training Program. Br. Joe has spent many years serving in Asia (Taiwan, mainland China and Hong Kong). He has also served as vocation minister and with the initial formation team here in the U.S. He brings the richness of these experiences to his new assignment in Latin America.
Fr. Greg contemplates the Mission Cross given at ordination
Fr. Rodrigo (center) bids farewell to Fr. Greg & Br. Joe as they leave the Maryknoll Center for Bolivia
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
While we always enjoy in person vocation events, the pandemic has stimulated us to utilize social platforms to engage with young men interested in a missionary vocation. One of these has been Saturday evening Come & See events. They last just two hours and during this time we cover various subjects, introduce participants to Maryknoll priests, Brothers and candidates in training and hear some of their stories.
For example on May 22nd we covered a lot of ground in two hours from learning a little of ourselves including the music that has given us grace during the pandemic; how to prepare and build your vocation raft (using Tom Hanks’ movie: Castaway); visiting the Maryknoll Center via a virtual tour; reflection on a mission story by vocation minister Greg Darr; discussion on the particular Gospel that is lived in one’s home town; what our nation went through when George Floyd died and the meaning of the poetic words of Amanda Gorman. Preparation matters when building your vocation raft. Stay tuned for more information about the next come and see event.
Participants at our May 22nd Event
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
The Gospel offers us the chance to live life on a higher plane, but with no less intensity:
“Life grows by being given away, and it weakens in isolation and comfort. Indeed, those who enjoy life most are those who leave security on the shore and become excited by the mission of communicating life to others”. When the Church summons Christians to take up the task of evangelization, she is simply pointing to the source of authentic personal fulfilment. For “here we discover a profound law of reality: that life is attained and matures in the measure that it is offered up in order to give life to others. This is certainly what mission means”. Consequently, an evangelizer must never look like someone who has just come back from a funeral! Let us recover and deepen our enthusiasm, that “delightful and comforting joy of evangelizing, even when it is in tears that we must sow… And may the world of our time, which is searching, sometimes with anguish, sometimes with hope, be enabled to receive the good news not from evangelizers who are dejected, discouraged, impatient or anxious, but from ministers of the Gospel whose lives glow with fervor, who have first received the joy of Christ”.
– Pope Francis (The Joy of the Gospel #10 (2013)
by Mike Snyder | May 26, 2021 | Vocations - Blog
We understand that not everyone is a Facebook user. However, if you take the time to visit us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/mklvocations) you will find several short video testimonies of Maryknoll Missioners speaking about their vocations and experiences in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Here is a sample by Sem. John Siyumbu: https://www.youtube.com/embed/qQI_rFCN4m8
We also have a private Facebook Vocations Group that meets regularly to watch interviews with Maryknollers where they have the opportunity to dialogue with us and with each other about missionary life. Please visit our Vocations Facebook page and if you are interested in joining this group then just contact Fr. Rodrigo at vocation@maryknoll.org or follow the instructions on line for membership.
The Mission Bell at Maryknoll NY
by Mike Snyder | Mar 4, 2021 | Vocations - Blog, Vocations - Events
As the Spring season dawns on us in New York so too does the warmth and fragrances of nature. At Easter we join with Jesus in proclaiming new and resurrected life. This can strengthen our faith in God and hope for a better world. I think imagination is an important factor when addressing the theme of hope, especially during these challenging times with a pandemic affecting the lives of people throughout the world. Without imagination we can fall subject to either the presumption that humankind can solve all problems by itself or despair when it discovers otherwise. Hope with imagination enables us to avoid both of these pitfalls because its fulfillment is always on the horizon in our life’s journey. It is an eschatological hope that can only reach its fulfillment when we are finally fully united with God. Faith driven by love for God’s people and demonstrated in our relations to them propels us forward ‘imagining’ what full union with God will be like and striving to grasp it day by day. Perhaps another word for imagining is dreaming. Maryknoll needs dreamers who truly believe that a world centered on God’s love for it is possible. God became a human being and took the name of Jesus to show us the way to make all this possible.
When Maryknollers go to Africa, Asia and Latin America we are filled with both excitement and some trepidation. We wonder if we have what it takes to learn new languages, adapt to new cultures and establish good healthy relationships with the people. Missionary virtues include creativity, imagination, a sense of adventure and, yes, dreams. Our vocation is steeped in faith, hope and love. Prayer, attentiveness to God’s activity within us, becomes core as we slowly grow and acculturate in these new settings. In time we recognize God’s voice not only in our own lives but also in the lives of those we encounter in these new lands.
I hope you recognize how much you and so many others like you are needed today. The message of God’s love for all people is so important. It needs to be preached not only in words but in the actions of our daily lives. Each of you is a messenger wherever you go and in whatever you do. But, you still need to take some steps in the direction that will fulfill the dreams that have brought you in contact with us. So, don’t be stymied by the challenge. Rather, imagine, dream on and make the dream a reality!
As always we look forward to hearing from you: Fr. Rodrigo Ulloa-Chavarry (vocation@maryknoll.org), Fr. Mike Snyder, Fr. Joe Donovan and Mr. Greg Darr
by Mike Snyder | Mar 4, 2021 | Vocations - Blog, Vocations - Events
Greetings from the Formation Community in Chicago! It is close to a year since the first restrictions related to Covid-19 came into effect. The last in-person class at CTU was on March 13, 2020. A new way of studying for ministry beckoned us as classes were conducted online and in-person ministry became unavailable. The beginning of the pandemic was a time with lots of signs. God invited us to discern and separate the transient and ephemeral from the enduring and timeless. God’s graciousness to us during this Covid-19 pandemic points us to the steadfastness of God’s word of love that never passes (Isaiah 40:8). Our intercultural and multigenerational community has not witnessed a case of infection thus far. It has been a blessing to continue having our community liturgical schedules throughout the pandemic. These moments of communal prayer helped sustain the light of God in our community and world during one of the dark nights of our generation. The fire and zeal for the Mission of Maryknoll has kept burning in our muted celebrations of some vocational milestones by our members – the making of a permanent oath and the renewal of temporary oaths. These were livestreamed so that we could share these moments with the wider Maryknoll community and our families across the globe. In the midst of a global pandemic, we strove to build a community that drew from our diverse cultures in preparation for the Mission of Church. We took turns making our meals when multiple stay-at-home orders sought to protect our House Staff and all Chicagoans from Covid-19. We have had sumptuous dinners. That Fr. Rector’s fish recipe can beat the Food Network Chefs’ is a settled matter among us.
In collaboration with members of the Maryknoll Sisters’ Formation House, we participated in ministerial ventures that sought to supply packaged sandwiches to local food depositories. With our in-person ministerial engagements curtailed by the raging virus, making sandwiches in the safety of our house offered a pragmatic way of adapting to the signs of the times in Mission. Some aspects of our own formation programs such as the Intercommunity Novitiate had been reduced to online interactions over Zoom sessions. Together, and in solidarity with others in the world, we adapted to a virtual world that helped to maintain ministerial, educational and pastoral relationships threatened by a global pandemic. Our Formation Community is a gift to us. Our interactions in community have emphasized the beauty and sanctity of the Mission of Jesus Christ to all in our Common Home. Formation continues to strengthen our resolve to learn the ways of Maryknoll, to follow Jesus Christ closely so that we may be transformed in the Mission of Christ and the Church. In this, we know that all will work for the good of the Missions of Maryknoll and for the glory of God. Amen.
Institution to the Ministry of Acolyte for Sem. John Siyumbu (center)
held on October 31, 2020 at the Formation House in Chicago
