At the beginning of this series on vocation, I set some pretty lofty goals — to do nothing less than address the questions, Who am I? and Why am I here? What we’ve seen the past few weeks is that these questions of identity and meaning originate from the deepest parts of ourselves that long … Continue reading Vocation Today – Concluding Thoughts
Before ending this series on vocation, we need to look at the all-important topic of spiritual discernment. It’s all well and good for us to talk about what we believe God is calling us to do with our lives, but that kind of confidence can easily lead to delusion — with dire consequences for us … Continue reading Vocation and Discernment
The common theme in this series on vocation has been that our vocations are from God and for the community. We’ve seen both these elements in every level of vocation: The calling to bear the image and likeness of God isn’t about puffing us up, but about embodying generosity in and for the world; the … Continue reading Vocation and Community
The amazing twentieth-century Black theologian Howard Thurman tells a story of meeting with his advisor at his predominantly white seminary. The advisor lauded Thurman’s work but was concerned he was limiting himself by commenting as much as he did on the Black experience instead of “the timeless issues of the human spirit.” About this, Thurman … Continue reading Vocation in the Real World
After what has been a long journey through general human and Christian vocations and the callings to maturity and individuation, we come at last to a discussion of the specific ways we are able to live out our callings in practical, day-to-day life. In each of the previous posts, we’ve seen that all of the … Continue reading Called to Contribute
Matthew Root 