Kiphire, June 26 (MExN): For the first time in the history of St. Peter’s Church, Kiphire, a three-day Diocesan Vocation Camp was held from June 24–26 in the church. The camp, organized for students of Class 7 to 12, was attended by 47 select students sent from Shamator, Sitimi, Meluri, Pungro and Kiphire.
Rev. Fr. Ntonse John, the Parish Priest of St. Peter’s Parish, Kiphire gave a cordial welcome to the young campers. Rev. Fr. Thomas, Vocation Promoter, Diocese of Kohima set the tone for the programme. He said every Christian is called to the perfection of love, quoting “be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt. 5:48). Stating that vocation is a personal call from God (Is. 43:1, Gal. 1:15, Eph. 1.4), Rev. Fr. Thomas maintained that promotion of Vocation to Priesthood and Consecrated Life and to discern it is a serious responsibility of the Church. He further recommended children to pray, reflect and discern the will of God.
Rev. Sr. Catherine UFC while addressing on ‘Vocation to Holiness’ said there is the divinity of God within a person since human being is made in the image and likeness of God, a press release from Diocese of Kohima informed. She said that one can discover the divine within us through prayer. “Vocation is a way of life and not merely a profession. Therefore to discern the will of God, in our lives like the heroes and saints in the Bible, we need to listen and recognize the voice of God speaking to us,” Rev. Sr. Catherine added.
Speaking on ‘Mission in the Church’, Rev. Fr. Solomon Kevishe stated the word “mission” means being “sent.” The Church is “sent into the world to continue the works of Jesus Christ,” he said. He listed the works of Jesus Christ such as preaching, teaching, healing, and acts of charity and justice.
Tushila Caroline, President of Kiphire Catholic Women Association in her address on ‘A consecrated life brings joy to the family’ said wherever there are consecrated people, seminarians, men and women religious, young people, there is joy, there is always joy, while quoting Pope Francis. She said that worldly things and their attractions are short lived and will perish sooner or later, but doing God’s will bring true happiness and joy to all.
Rev. Fr. Tomy, Kallurembel, St. Francis Church, Centre in-charge of Shamator officiated the Holy Mass on Saturday, June 25. During the Eucharistic celebration, Fr. Tomy in his homily enlightened the boys and girls to answer the call of God like Samuel who listened to the voice of God and answered His call. “Jesus asks us the same question today ‘what do you seek?’ and he gives an open invitation, ‘come and see’. We need to seek only him to be rooted and grounded in his love. We need to keep in mind that religious life is not a way to escape family life or problems of this world but to live totally for the Lord,” he preached.
Rev. Fr. John Poji, Vice Principal of NEISSR (MSW), Dimapur in his homily referred to the Sunday’s reading and said Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem opens with three vocational scenes. First is of an enthusiastic follower - Christ suggested waiving his property to be His disciple. Secondly, he required radical disengagement from all affections, forbidding even to attend the funeral of his father. In the last vocation story, Jesus affirmed that to follow him one must break completely with the past. Rev. Fr. John asserted that only people with total commitment and willingness to sacrifice their lives can win the world for Him.
Rev. Fr. Charles Phom took session on ‘Vocation in the Local Church.’ Proposing vocations in the local Church, he said, means having the courage to point out the challenging way of following Christ. He urged children to pray continuously to find that inner desire.
‘Prayer’ was the theme covered by Rev. Fr. Loyola Antony. Urging the students to pray always and all ways, he said “when we pray we become less selfish and other centred.” He further said that prayer can be of three types- Prayer of praise, prayer of petition and prayer of intercession. Secret to become a better person is to pray for others, he added.
The camp ended with a get together, where varieties of items were presented by the groups.
