Father Michael Pratt is the vocations director for the Diocese of Tulsa. He has written this short guide or aid (36 pages) – “Five Conversations about the Priesthood: a simple way busy priests can help young men discern” – for parish priests to help them help young men who are discerning a call to the diocesan priesthood. This book should be read in conjunction with Cardinal Timothy Dolan's book “Priests for the Third Millennium” (2000).
Father Pratt gives suggestions as to how a priest should approach a young man. Father Pratt informs priests they should recognize that most young discerners do not know many of the things priests and religious take for granted such as little active connection with the Church other than their local parish or university campus ministry. They may not know much about Church history or saints or their biographies. Most likely they will come to know these things and more as they go through discernment.
Father Pratt suggests how to identify a potential vocation and how to identify if someone is not. Once the priest has identified a potential vocation, he gives advice into how to go about having a meeting with that person.
He also gives recommendations about what to do and not to do with the initial in-person meeting. At this meeting, the priest will be able to find out if the young man is really looking into a possible vocation to the priesthood or not. It might be that he is not ready to go through the process.
If it is discovered that the young man is truly discerning the possibility of a vocation, then Father Pratt recommends how to go about next steps to continue the conversation. He recommends that the next meetings be short; 10 to 15 minutes, and on the phone. The phone calls should be scheduled at the convenience of the priest and the discerner on a weekly schedule. This makes the young man feel comfortable and also creates a safe environment for both.
Father Pratt recommends five conversations on the phone with the young man using Cardinal Dolan's book. He suggests certain chapters and gives suggestions for conversation starters. The five conversation topics are: priestly identity, the Eucharist in the priest's life, the Sacrament of Penance, preaching and parish priesthood.
After these five conversations, Father Pratt provides the next steps for referring the young man to the diocesan vocations director. This does not mean the priest should stop being involved, continuing to be a good example. This book is highly recommended to priests to help them encourage vocations to the priesthood in a safe manner.
Br. Benet Exton, O.S.B., St. Gregory's Abbey in Shawnee, is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic.