Serra Club Vocations Essay:
Work of priests and religious can change lives

By Kevin Zander

Jesus said, “Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance, but sinners” (L 5:31,32).

When priests, brothers and sisters fulfill these words of Jesus, they bear enduring fruit for the world. They do this because we are all in need of God’s care and healing, and they are called to provide it.

Brothers and sisters bear enduring fruit in many ways. They pray for each individual’s conversion to the faith and they teach the faith in schools, both of which are important responsibilities for brothers and sisters.

The sick, the poor and all who are in need of help are ministered to by the brothers and sisters so that each ­individual knows they are in the hands of God.

Like brothers and sisters, priests also minister to all people, but in a different way because they have received the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Through preaching, priests guide those who are looking to strengthen their relationship with God.

They can preach by example along with verbal teaching. Priests can reach out to the world through missions by which the faith can be spread and strengthened throughout a country. The sacraments that the priest celebrates will give each of us grace, which bears fruit in our lives so that we can get to heaven.

One way of strengthening the faith through the sacraments is by confession, which shows us that God is always willing to forgive. The priest acts as another Christ so when the priest gives absolution it is through him, but from God.

The Holy Eucharist is the gift of Jesus’ body and blood to us. Through the priest, the Sacrifice of the Mass is carried out and the bread and wine are transformed into Christ himself. The grace of these miracles in everyday life keeps us on the path to heaven.

Priests, brothers and sisters provide a great example of holiness, sacrifice, obedience and joy in their lives. They work with joy in their hearts because they do their work for Christ.

When this happens, lives are changed and the Church grows because of the example that the priests, brothers and sisters have shown. Their joy and their work will bring enduring fruit: lives that are changed and the hope of eternal life.

(Kevin and his parents, Tony and Jean Zander, are members of St. Luke Parish in Indianapolis. He just completed the seventh-grade, is homeschooled and is the seventh-grade division winner in the 2005 Serra Club Vocations Essay Contest.) †