Haitian Vocations

In general, young Haitian people who become priests or are in consecrated life:

  • Have seen active and motivated priests or nuns in their parish or community.

  • Have served as altar servers (priests) and placed interest in the Mass celebration.
  • Personal contact with a religious priest, sister, or brother.

  • Have belonged to a Youth group or other catholic associations, such as Legion of Mary, or charismatic renewal, or MEJ (Mouvement Eucharistique des Jeunes, in French), or whatever.

  • Have grown up in a catholic practicing family where the participation at Mass or prayer life is a must.

  • Have served as group leader in their parish.

  • Have known a priest or nun in school or in the parish.

  • Have been encouraged by the prayer and the support of the people of their community.

  • Have wanted to serve God as priest or nun.roups of 4 or 5 seminarians would spend two or three weeks in a parish in the absence of the pastor, celebrating the word of God every day, celebrating funerals, welcoming parishioners, so they feel involved in the community life.

Those young people who become priests or are in consecrated life:

  • Were asked by priests or nuns to consider being a priest or nuns.

  • Have had already a member of the family in the Major Seminary or in the priesthood (priest).

  • Have participated at vocation discernment retreats organized by religious communities or Diocesan vocation director.

  • Have heard the testimony of young priests or nuns sharing the story of their vocation.

  • Have seen young active seminarians and nuns.

  • Have had regular contact with priests and nuns.

  • Have sensed that their vocation to the priesthood or religious life is a calling.

The work of priests of nuns engaged in vocation discernment or in the formation.

  • Meetings about vocations where priests and nuns talk openly about their experiences.

  • Priesthood and consecrated life are promoted through sermons and prayer cards.

  • Religious orders produce vocation material destined to the participants at their vocation discernment retreats. (No audio material, No video material, No vocation posters.)

  • At the diocesan level, parish priests zero in on vocation for example on Vocation Sunday or during a particular homily encouraging young people to consider being a priest.

  • Parish priests often invite seminarians to animate groups, or prayer life so young people are in contact with seminarians.

  • Groups of 4 or 5 seminarians would spend two or three weeks in a parish in the absence of the pastor, celebrating the word of God every day, celebrating funerals, welcoming parishioners, so they feel involved in the community life.

  • Prayer for vocations is encouraged.

  • Outing involving priests, seminarians, nuns and young people, for picnic, etc.

  • Well led Vocation Retreats for young people, involving priests, nuns, seminarians, laypeople.

  • Regular meetings and exchanges among religious of various religious orders are promoted. They get to know each other and there is a sense of camaraderie.

The following is the outline of two vocation retreats, organized by the Vocations Commission of the Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The first one was held on November 2009; the second one is slated for January 2010. The wording is in French. Please feel free to contact me for any need of translation from French into English.

 

Camp vocationnel novembre 2009

Vendredi 6 :

15 h : Accueil des jeunes, inscription

16 h 30 : organisation des équipes.

17 h : 1ère causerie La vocation baptismale (Père Chadic)

18 h 30 : Repas

19 h 45 : Prière du soir

 

Samedi 7 :

6 h : Eucharistie

7 h : Petit déjeuner

8 h 30 : 2ème causerie Différents types de vocation (Frère Léandre)

Réflexion personnelle et Rencontres individuelles

10 h 30 : 3ème causerie Mariage chrétien (Carole et Jean-Marie Caïdor)

Réflexion personnelle et Rencontres individuelles

12 h : Repas

15 h : 4ème causerie Initiation à la prière (Père Barthelus)

Réflexion personnelle et Rencontres individuelles

18 h 30 : Repas

19 h 45 : Prière du soir

 

Dimanche 8 :

6 h 30 : Prière

7 h : Petit déjeuner. Ménage.

8 h 30 : 5ème causerie Points forts du discernement (Frère Jean-Claude Saint-Juste)

10 h 30 : Eucharistie présidée par Mgr Miot

12 h : Repas. Départ.

Camp vocationnel 29-31 janvier 2010

 

Vendredi 29 :

15 h : Accueil des jeunes

16 h : Organisation des équipes

16 h 30 : Présentation de l’office divin, en particulier Laudes, Vêpres et Complies.

Prière des Vêpres.

18 h : Rencontres individuelles

19 h : Souper. Rencontre du comité.

 

Samedi 30 :

6 h 15 :Prière des Laudes et Eucharistie.

7 h 15 : Petit déjeuner

8 h 30 : Causerie : Eclairage biblique sur la vocation (Sœur Michelle PAUL)

Réflexion personnelle et rencontres individuelles.

11 h : Causerie : Connaissance de soi(Père Hilaire)

Réflexion personnelle

12 h 30 : Repas

15 h : Causerie : Présentation d’un prêtre-témoin, St Jean-Marie Vianney (Père Barthelus, Mgr Saint-Hubert)

16 h 30 : Rencontres individuelles

17 h 30 : Adoration et vêpres

19 h : Souper

20 h : Soirée sociale

 

Dimanche 31 :

6 h 30 : Prière des Laudes

7 h : Petit déjeuner et nettoyage

9 h : Eucharistie

10 h 30 : Evaluation avec le groupe

11 h 30 : Repas. Départ.

 

Submitted by Rev. Jean Yvon Pierre