A Time of Grace for Youth

The largest parish-based vocations conference in the country is asking for your prayers for the success of its March 5-8, 2009 event in the Chicago area.

The annual HERE I AM LORD National Conference expects 3,000 or more youth and adults for its St. Charles, IL event, and it is filled with prayer, expert Catholic speakers and top-rated Catholic musicians.

“Though marketed as a ‘vocations conference,’ HERE I AM LORD is so much more,” says conference coordinator Michelle Tack. “During the conference weekend we have programming for grade school students, Confirmation programs for high school students, and evening programs for adult formation and children of all ages.  While our guest speakers and musicians are all exceptional, what makes this conference what it is, are the priests, brothers, and sisters who attend.”

Michelle is right — I went to last year’s conference. I found that this event is a special time of grace in which Christ-centered, authentically Catholic direction is given in such an important time in the life of youth. The event is designed to bring teens and religious communities together. Experience has shown that these kinds of conferences are what are giving a real boost to vocations throughout the country.

As I’m sure Michelle has heard before, I wish such Catholic events were around when I was growing up.

Michelle is asking primarily for your prayer support, especially among  cloistered communities, many of whom have made a commitment to do so. She invites them to send a display and information on their charism. If there is a representative that they would like to send, organizers will be pleased to accommodate them and the arrangements for their stay.

Find out more at the HIAL website.
Religious Prayer Warriors
Religious registration on the St. Pat’s website.

Advertise Your Community on the
HERE I AM LORD Website

Your religious community or diocese can advertise on the HERE I AM LORD (HIAL) website for a reasonable fee. You ad will be clearly visible to the more than one thousand web visitors expected over the next few months.

When your ad is clicked, visitors will be taken to your community’s website. The HIAL website, designed by TreeFrogClick, is where conference organizers and youth come to learn about the conference.

Now is the time to advertise, since visits are expected to triple between December and the time of the event. More than one thousand unique web visitors are expected in March, based on last year’s experience.

For rates and more information, go to TreeFrogClick’s HIAL-Religious Ads.

How do single persons learn about a religious community?

A community’s website is very important — second in importance behind personal contact, according to a recent study by a vocation organization. The study, which surveyed discerners themselves, shows the growing importance of the internet among Catholics who are thinking of a vocation.

Personal contact with a religious priest, sister, or brother continues to be the most helpful source of vocation information, according to VocationMatch.com’s Feb. 26 Second Annual Survey on Trends in Religious Vocation, sponsored by VISION Vocation Guide.

Sources:
- VocationMatch.com article on FoxBusiness
- Website services for religious communities at my website, TreeFrogClick.com

by Kevin J. Banet, webmaster

The Pope has come to America - that is big news!

How can you use this event to reach out to friends and potential vocations?

Take a look at the website of the Poor Clares of Portsmouth, Ohio. Emblazoned across the top is a very attractive, custom-made banner that says, “Thank you for your visit to the US, Holy Father.”

Sporting a picture of a waving Pope Benedict XVI, the website also has a short prayer asking for Jesus’ protection of His Holiness. Below that is a paragraph explaining how the Poor Clares chose April 19 as a special day of prayer and retreat in response to the request of Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Apostolic Nuncio for the US, for prayers from contemplative communities for the Pope on the occasion of his visit April 15 - 20.

This is a good example of the use of a current event to act as a springboard to keep in touch with your friends. Every one of us wants some kind of news about the Holy Father’s visit. We want to get caught up in the excitement of the trip, and we want a spiritual interpretation of what is going on. And most of us won’t read the text of the Pope’s speeches, so we rely on either the 10 o’clock news or on Catholic blogs, enewsletters, and websites.

Did you know that at the youth rally at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, NY, the Pope spoke strongly about religious and priestly vocations, and encouraged the youth to “discover the particular vocation God has for you”? Why not read that talk and comment on it in an enewsletter or blog? See the link below.

Your potential vocations need to know that you are thinking about them, and an enewsletter or blog is a great way to do so. After sending my first enewsletter recently, I received emails from about 20% of persons on my list just saying “hello” — some of whom I hadn’t heard from in a while.

Keep in touch with your friends, and keep them updated!