This is the first article in a series that will interview various individuals and couples on vocation, discernment, and the celebration of diverse forms of holiness. Here, Father Peter Rocca, CSC, rector of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart and a member of the formation staff at Moreau Seminary, speaks about these topics. This is the full transcript of his interview.
Sladek: How would you describe vocation in a general sense?
Rocca: Through my work with seminarians, I’ve helped many of them discover what vocation they feel God calling them to. Realizing your vocation requires you to discern how God is calling you to use your gifts.
Signs of a vocation are threefold. First, you feel in the depths of your heart the call from God to serve others. Second, the vocation you think you may have makes sense to others who know you. The community validates your vocation by seeing how you act, pray, and live as a Christian. The call you think you have makes sense to other people. Third, there should be a joyfulness, a peacefulness, and a fulfillment in living the life you are choosing. If you think God is calling you but you are tortured by doubts, then perhaps this is not the vocation to which God is calling you. Listen to your heart. If you respond to a genuine call, then there will be concomitant joyfulness and peacefulness. Others will see the life you desire as a good fit for you. There have been cases in which a man became a priest because it was what his mother wanted – this is not the way to discern a vocation. Your vocation should make sense to you, it should make sense to the community, and it should give you peace.
These criteria apply for all vocations – priesthood, religious life, marriage, and consecrated single life. Most Catholic Christians will choose the path of married life. Not everyone is called to marriage, and not everyone is called to religious life. Many are called to the single life, a rewarding life in which one can give himself or herself in service to others. All of these vocations, if they are genuine, will bring about joy in the person and in those he or she touches.
How would you describe your personal vocation story?
I thought I wanted to be a priest when I was in the fourth grade. I was blessed to attend a parochial school with 16 Dominican nuns teaching at it and three or four priests in the rectory. They were all very nice, especially the younger priests. I could sense in these people this joy – that the sisters really enjoyed being with us, teaching us – and hitting us every now and then to keep us in a straight line! In the late 1950s it was not uncommon for kids in grade school to think about becoming priests or sisters or brothers. My parents didn’t encourage this life for me in an explicit way, but they never discouraged me. The priests and sisters at school were very encouraging. I also became interested in music at a young age and began learning piano in the second grade. Not long after that I was asked to play organ at Mass. I got to know the liturgy and its music very well, and this became something I loved.
The liturgy and the music and the joy of the priests and sisters were what initially attracted me. I didn’t realize at the time the commitment I would have to make, that being a priest required more than loving liturgical music. That was something I came to understand over time. I realized that a vocation must be from the heart.
How did you decide to pursue your vocation to priesthood in the Congregation of Holy Cross?
For much of my childhood I had never heard of the Congregation. My family did not grow up watching Notre Dame football, and we had no connection to Notre Dame. My father was a CPA who, as it turned out, audited Notre Dame, but he never talked about his work at home and so this connection was discovered only later. My two older brothers attended the Notre Dame High School for Boys in Niles, Illinois, which was founded in 1955 and which was run by Holy Cross. We would go to the high school to watch their football and basketball games, and I saw the Holy Cross priests hanging around at these events. Teaching in a high school seemed like a wonderful way to be a priest. Eventually a Holy Cross priest came to my eighth grade class to show us slides of Notre Dame. I saw the campus and the Golden Dome, and it all looked too good to be real, so I thought, “I’ll give this a try. This could be fun.” I entered high school seminary in 1961 and have been in the Congregation ever since. I went through studies in theology, Latin, Greek, mathematics, sciences, and music, and I enjoyed these studies very much. I really enjoyed praying, studying, and working together in the high school seminary. It seemed like a wonderful way to live.
It wasn’t until after my novitiate, after I had professed vows that I began to realize that we live in community in order to better serve others, to be strengthened by each other to be at the service of others. That’s what religious life is all about: we take the camaraderie of prayer and share it generously with those we serve. We in Holy Cross are all called to serve in different ways. Not everyone is a teacher, a chaplain. Not everyone is in the academy, not everyone is a missionary. Our community is large enough that everyone sees your gifts, your talents, and your passions and can help determine how to best use your gifts. Since I loved the liturgy growing up, I pursued this interest and earned degrees in sacred music, and that is how I have served the community for many, many years – 16 at the Basilica alone.
Did you ever consider a different vocation or religious order?
Oh, never a different religious order! In Holy Cross I have wonderful friends, wonderful classmates – we’ve been together since sophomore year of college. Very few men in my class discerned out of seminary; in fact, there were ten men in my ordination class. Many of my close friends are my classmates. We support one another in our commitment. I never had any serious doubts. I just love what I am doing, and I love Holy Cross!
I was pretty sure about priesthood from childhood. I had “girlfriends” in grade school, but I always felt that this was something I wanted to do. I, like most men in Holy Cross, have made my commitment and have stuck with it.
How did your conception of vocation change over time?
As I studied sacramental theology, I came to understand that all that the priest does – as one who celebrates the sacraments, hears confessions, and ministers in any number of ways – is done for the good of the people he serves. I realized that a religious vocation is not merely between God and me; rather, it is between God and me and the people I serve. The service aspect of vocation became more and more evident to me throughout the formation process. We are here to serve the people of God. As I grew into this, I began to appreciate its ramifications: it requires a closer union with God, which in turn helps me serve others.
I really enjoy hearing confessions and celebrating Mass. I hope with humility that God uses me as an instrument so that other people can be touched by his grace, so that they can experience peacefulness, joyfulness, forgiveness, a nurturing and a deepening of their faith. I hope God uses a very imperfect instrument to reveal his love, his presence, his support, and his strength for others.
What is the most fulfilling part of your vocation?
So many things! Celebrating Mass is such a privilege and an honor and a humbling experience. I take the Mass very seriously; I try to pray and celebrate the Mass well so that others’ faith may be nourished and strengthened. I also enjoy hearing confessions regularly. And weddings – lots of weddings! Preparing for weddings is a great chance to meet with the couple and teach them that marriage is a sacrament, that it is more than the love between the couple. They are called to be a larger reality, a sign to the community of how God loves us.
Then there are those special moments. There is nothing more exciting than being able to preside at the Easter Vigil Mass and on special feast days. They are wonderful occasions. Being involved in RCIA [Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults] is also wonderful for me as I walk with people as they discover how they come to know Jesus Christ better in their lives, to accept him as their Savior and Lord. I welcome them into the Church and journey with them through the rites, especially during the Lenten season. There is a great sense of joy and fulfillment to see people gaining meaning and purpose in life by coming to know the Lord.
Being a priest gives you an entrée into many people’s lives. It is a sacred thing, and I take that very seriously. It is a great grace and blessing that so many people open themselves up to you, and you just hope to offer a word or gesture that will convey God’s compassion and mercy.
What is the most challenging part of your vocation?
There is a lot of work to be done. I am not as young as I used to be! I am a person of pretty high energy, but sometimes I have a difficult time saying “no.” At times I stretch myself so thin that it affects my health. Everyone says to me, “You’ve got to slow down!” For me that is the biggest challenge. If there is a need, I will sacrifice and do what needs to be done, even if I’m tired or exhausted or not feeling great. If something comes up I will give it 100 percent.
My job as Basilica rector keeps me busy. I am also on staff at the seminary, working in formation. Those are two full-time jobs. I am also the chaplain to ROTC [Reserve Officers’ Training Corps] students and the liturgist for the local Congregation of Holy Cross province and for the Congregation at large. I love doing various projects for these groups, but each requires an additional level of commitment.
How important is prayer to your vocation?
Prayer is really essential. I find that if we don’t take time out for prayer, to listen to what the Lord is saying, we just spout out our own stuff, not the message of the Lord. Common prayer is important for me in the Moreau community with my brothers.
I love offering Mass every day. Usually I have to preach, so I have to quiet down, slow down, and formulate my thoughts for a homily. Priests are obligated to pray the entire Divine Office, so I make a point to include this in my prayer. Spending time before the Blessed Sacrament is enjoyable. Finding time for quiet during the day is so important because my life is so hectic. In silence I hear God speaking to me, how He is challenging me to grow in my daily life, and how I decide how to respond to Him.
Kyle Sladek is a senior who studies philosophy and theology with full heart and voice. Contact him at ksladek@nd.edu.
