Religious calling
A religious calling refers to an individual's profound sense of being summoned to serve their faith in a particular capacity, often believed to be a divine initiative. This concept, which is sometimes synonymous with "vocation," typically involves roles within the clergy, such as priests, nuns, or monks, but can also extend to laypeople who feel compelled to carry out their faith through various lifestyles or acts of service, such as missionary work. The idea of a religious calling is supported by many ancient texts and sacred writings, illustrating that this experience has historical significance across multiple faith traditions.
In various religious contexts, responding to a calling can involve significant personal commitment, often requiring individuals to make deliberate choices about their lives, such as opting for marriage, remaining single, or dedicating themselves fully to religious life. Theologians like Martin Luther have expanded the understanding of religious callings to include secular occupations, asserting that one can serve God through their daily work. Some individuals may discover their calling later in life, transitioning from secular careers into religious service, often prompted by significant life changes. Despite the fulfillment and joy that a religious calling can bring, it also presents challenges, especially regarding age restrictions in certain religious orders. Overall, religious callings are deeply personal experiences that resonate with a desire to serve the divine and the community.
Religious calling
A religious calling refers to a belief or sense someone feels to serve his or her faith in a specific capacity. It usually implies that the deity of a person's faith is calling him or her to service. A religious calling is often connected to the idea of becoming a member of the clergy or taking orders as an ordained religious leader, but the term can also refer to other calls to service, such as becoming a missionary. In some traditions, people are also said to have a religious calling to certain lifestyles. For example, some people feel religiously compelled to marry or stay single or to have children or remain childless.
Background
Religious callings are often called vocations. This comes from the Latin words vocatio ("calling") and vocare ("call"). While the term vocation is sometimes applied to a person's secular occupation, a religious vocation or calling involves more than what someone does to earn a living. The concept includes the idea that the person has great affinity for following the vocation and that he or she is dedicated and willing to sacrifice for its pursuit. In some cases, people who feel a religious calling continue with outside employment. Others may answer a religious call after they have worked for some time or have retired.
The concept of a religious calling can be seen in many ancient texts and sacred writings. A number of figures in mythology answered calls from their gods to take on specific roles. Texts such as the Hebrew Bible include the stories of men and women called to service, such as Moses being called to lead the Hebrews and Noah being called to build an ark. From the earliest days of Christianity, people were said to have experienced a religious calling if they consistently chose pursuits such as prayer and service to others over secular activities.
The Roman Catholic faith, which for many centuries was the main form of Christianity, identifies four main vocations or callings: married life, single life, religious life (such as nuns or monks), and ordained life (deacons, priests, and bishops). The Catholic belief is that God calls each individual to one of these vocations, which the person can discern through prayer and study. These vocations imply a conscious choice by the individual. For instance, a person is not living out a religious calling to be single just because he or she is not married. A deliberate decision has to be made not to marry because the person believes this is the best way he or she can serve God. There is also an element of consent by other members of the faith. Someone does not become a priest simply because he believes he is called but because others in the faith agree that he has a calling.
Theologian and Protestant reformer Martin Luther expanded on this idea by promoting the concept that people could serve God through their secular occupation, regardless of what they did for a living. In Luther's view, a farmer could live out a religious calling by using the skills and resources God gave him to coax the best possible crops out of the ground and sharing them with others. Many faiths continue to support this idea of a religious calling by encouraging people to seek opportunities to serve others and dedicate the work they do to fulfilling the will of the divine.
Signs of a Calling
The most common view of a religious calling is a specific summons. A person takes vows to live a holy life in service to other people and to the divine. Priests, deacons, bishops, cardinals, popes, rabbis, monks, nuns, and other religious leaders and servants fall into this category. Various faiths have established guidelines to aid individuals in determining if a specific religious calling has been received.
Although religions differ on what constitutes a religious calling, there is a great deal of overlap among them. In most instances, a person who feels a religious calling to take vows will usually have a great passion for the deity, sacred texts, rituals, and other aspects of his or her faith. The person often feels a greater sense of responsibility than most to live out the tenets of that faith by serving others, observing holy days, etc. To a person who has experienced a religious calling, participating in these activities does not feel like a duty or chore. Instead, they bring the person great peace and joy and provide a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction.
Some people who have experienced a calling may feel simultaneously excited and afraid at the idea of making a commitment to live a religious life, but they often find themselves unable to set the idea aside for long. In some cases, a religious calling may lead to dual vocations. For example, a person who serves in the military and experiences a religious calling might become a military chaplain.
Calling as Second Career
Most people who experience a religious calling begin their vocation in their twenties. In some countries, there is a growing trend of people taking on religious vocations as second careers. By the twenty-first century, many people in their fifties and sixties had experienced a religious calling as they reached retirement age. Sometimes this call is preceded by a time of personal loss or change, such as the death of a spouse. The person could also be finally responding to a call he or she first felt many years before but set aside in the pursuit of a career, marriage, or other ambitions. These people may take vows as ordained religious leaders or pursue new careers in missionary work, counseling, or teaching that they feel called to do by the divine. However, following a religious calling later in life can present its own challenges. In the Catholic faith, many religious orders have age restrictions on joining an order. Nunneries in particular often place age limits on prospective candidates.
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