ST JOHN VIANNEY - THE PATRON
Beginning with the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus June 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XV1 has declared this the "Year for Priests'. He made the special announcement that St John Vianney is the Universal Patron of Priests on this, the 150th anniversary of his death. The Curé d’Ars is beloved by all who know of him.

The Year for Priests will end June 19th 2010 with an international gathering of priests in Rome with the Holy Father.
+

for more information see
CHAPLET  - 'VOCATIONS'
ST JOHN VIANNEY MEDAL   -   FATHER JAMES GOULD
please share your story to encourage others
ST JOHN VIANNEY    -   YEAR FOR PRIESTS
LOOKING BACK   -   MORE LINKS

FISHERS OF MEN
But that is not all, his parishoners love him too! Fr Gould also has a remarkable reputation for encouraging young men to recognize the call to the priesthood in their hearts. He also teaches us, the laity, all of us, 'how to fish' and become more like the apostles.  His example helps each of us to grow in the desire to become fishers of men. Nothing profound,  just 'to the point' and basic;  to listen, to live it and love it. The message is true, clear and direct. And in our hearts, we recognize it!

LOYAL TO THE TEACHINGS
 Why is his message so clear? He lets the Holy Spirit work through him and does not cloud the message. He listens, he cares, he teaches. He supports and holds dear the true teachings of the church.  He does not slip away from these teachings.  He is loyal to the Holy Father and the Magesterium. He stays on target and cuts through the unnecessary. This has inspired record numbers of young men to enter the seminary.

VOCATIONS DIRECTOR
When Father Gould was the Vocations Director for the Arlington Virginia Diocese under the support of Bishops Welch and Keating (1985 - 2000)  he encouraged, promoted and fostered  more men to become priests in a year setting records throughout the US when there was little interest.  He wasn't looking for numbers, he was looking for a few good men. People liked that. They liked his honesty. They liked the fact that he didn't form committees but just went out and talked to churches, groups and one on one. And he lived it.

By the year 2000, the average age of priests in the Arlington Diocese was an unheard of 42. (22 years under the national average) He was known as one of the most successful Vocations Directors in the US.

UNSWERVING ALLEGIANCE
The formula for his success? "Unswerving allegiance to the Pope and magisterial teaching; perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in parishes, with an emphasis on praying for vocations; and a strong effort by a significant number of diocesan priests who extend themselves to help young men remain open to the Lord's will in their lives," Fr Gould says.

PRAYER COMES FIRST
Father Gold says of the candidate in seminary, prayer comes first. "He has to develop a solid prayer life - going to Mass every day, saying a daily Rosary, and he should pick a saint who is clearly an advocate for him," suggests Fr Gold, who says that, as a child, he picked St. Joseph - figuring he wasn't busy, since everyone was talking to the Blessed Virgin.

THE DAILY MASS
Without prayer, Fr Gould emphasizes, the ordained priest can't even hope to partake properly in the source and summit of the Catholic priesthood. And that is, of course, the Holy Mass. "It's the most important part of the day. Every intention I have for each day goes into that Mass. If you're going to represent the Lord in persona Christi [in the person of Christ], you've got to be able to talk to Him, and you have to want to talk to Him. For the priest, preaching, teaching, and sanctifying is rooted in the Catholic Mass." Prayer is the absolute-bare-minimum prerequisite.

HARD WORK
Hard work is the second mark. "I always said I'd like to send every seminarian to a hardware store to work for a summer. In a hardware store, you not only learn the practical skills of plumbing, electricity and mechanics, but you also learn personalities. You learn about people from those who come in. You learn something about the business world. You interact with people. You're always talking. And you're always service-oriented.

"The greatest malady in the priesthood today," adds Fr Gould, "is not 'liberals' or 'conservatives.' It's laziness and indifference. In this age of 'collaborative ministry' with the laity, many priests may have slipped away from the meaning of hard work. They don't do house calls. They don't teach CCD. They don't visit the grammar school, and they don't teach RCIA - and that's a problem."

GENEROSITY
Generosity comes next, he says. "The candidate has to be able to answer the question: What are you going to give these people? That's what generosity involves. I've got that old Irish superstition that says that if you're not generous to people in need, then you're not going to get what you need" - and he makes it a point to live by that maxim. 

Fr Gould is very optimistic about the future of the Catholic priesthood in the United States. In every era there have been problems in the priesthood; but these problems, as serious as they sometimes have been, have always been overcome by the grace of God and with fidelity and obedience to God's will by clergy and laity alike. (From the PRIEST (Michael S Rose, Sophia Institute Press)

You may have seen him on EWTN talking about his priesthood or working with Raymond Arroyo when he covered the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Or, maybe at St Raymond's Parish in Springfield Va. He is loved by his parishioners not only because cares - and his gregarious nature - and he challenges one to think, yes, all of these - but also because he is true to his calling as a priest. 

What you wrote about Fr. Gould and his approach to vocations is excellent.  I think the key behind his success as vocation director was three-fold.  One has to do with his bishop and two with him. 

First, as you wrote on your website, he is a man who loves his priesthood.  He loves the Church.  He loves our Lord Jesus Christ, and he knows his faith through and through.  That's the sine qua non of good vocations work. 

Secondly, he is an impressive personality.  I know many priests who have the same love and knowledge of Our Lord and the Church as Fr. Gould, but his personality is catching.  He certainly is a mirror image of Pope John Paul II in this respect. 

Pope John Paul II's great personality and boundless energy was the instrument God used in the '80s and '90s to breathe new life into His beloved bride.  Fr. Gould utilized the same resources in his work as vocations director.  Young people like excitement.  Both he and John Paul II gave them examples of excitement with roots. 

Finally, Fr. Gould's bishop at the time took a bold step in choosing him as vocation's director.  I know he would seem to be the obvious choice for anyone outside the diocesan offices; however, I'm sure there were many forces within the bishop's inner sanctum working to deter him from choosing Fr. Gould as vocation director. 

Many may have seen his unapologetic love and defense of the Church and the Magisterium as divisive and rigid, as unrepresentative of the majority of priests in the Arlington Diocese.. 

Some may have seen him as unable to work with more broad-minded people.  Some may have argued that tradition and obedience aren't attractive to young people.  "Young people like options," they may have argued.  I don't know any of the details, but I bet that his bishop had to do some real soul searching before he chose Fr. Gould as vocation director.

SHOPPING LINKS

MUSEUM  -  HISTORY   -   PRAYER
STUDY   -   SERVICE   -   COMMUNITY
 PRAY THE ONLINE ROSARY NOW
 to return to page you were on,
pl  use your back button
TOP OF PAGE

A great link showing the 1st century 
rocky terrain where Christ Was Buried. 
CHAPLE OF ADAM (Church of Holy Sepulchre) Jerusalem
more information
  ANTIMENSION   -   TOP OF PAGE
for more information, see: 
PRAYERS FOR ST PHILOMENA CHAPLET
ST VIANNEY ROSARIES - YEAR OF THE PRIESTS
to review go to
TOP OF PAGE

OFFICE HOURS
877 695 3561 -  9a - 5p central)
WEEK DAYS - MT- TF - (closed wednesdays) 
Shopping cart - Email (24/7)
beadsong@hotmail.com