Program of Priestly Formation (Ascension)

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Priestly Vocations in the Church’s Pastoral Work

desirable that a vocation director himself be able to speak Spanish and be well acquainted with specific Hispanic cultures present in his ecclesiastical entity, because vocations recruitment in these cultures often entails building relationships not only with discerners but also with their families. Vocation directors and admission boards must embrace a missionary spirit in their own ecclesiastical entity, with the goal of encountering Hispanics where they are and accompanying them on their discernment journeys. Such commitment sometimes requires offering academic assistance, counseling, and tutoring to help those discerning a priestly call to prepare for formation. Pastoral leaders and communities fostering vocations among Hispanics must be attentive to cultural differences, which will vary greatly across the broad segment of the Hispanic Catholic population in the United States.

HIGH SCHOOL SEMINARIES AND ACCOMPANIMENT OF ADOLESCENTS

There are few high school seminaries in the United States. Those that remain should look to the Ratio Fundamentalis for guidance in maintaining their formation programs. 102

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102 See Ratio Fundamentalis , nos. 16-23.

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