In his epistles, St. Bernard of Clairvaux wrote, “He who is his own master is the disciple of a fool!”

In other words, a young person discerning a vocation to the priesthood ore religious life needs help - God’s help, the help of friends and family, your help, and perhaps most importantly, the help of a spiritual director.

In his book, To Save a Thousand Souls: A Guide to Discerning a Vocation to Diocesan Priesthood, Fr. Brett Brannen writes an example of a story he has heard in applications and autobiographies, over and over.

In my second year of college, at the advice of my vocation director, I found a great priest who became my spiritual director and I began to meet with him once a month. My spiritual life was immediately transformed! My prayer life grew. I began to serve others more consistently, and my sins began to diminish. He taught me about prayer, gave me great books to read about Jesus and priesthood, and sound advice about growing in holiness. I became excited about holiness as I began to see it as actually possible. The voice of God started coming through with greater clarity. Having someone to talk to about my fears and uncertainties brought me peace. I also learned about the devil. Discernment is not easy and Satan was actively trying to confuse and frustrate me. Once I started meeting with a spiritual director, I learned how to recognize what he was doing and to rebuke him.

The spiritual director plays a unique role in the discernment process, and a competent spiritual director, while not required, can be hugely fundamental in the foundation of a discerner's faith and prayer life.

The difficulty is that competent spiritual directors are not always available, depending on the circumstances. Some are already stretched thin with other responsibilities, some discerners may live in an area or have a career or responsibilities which don't allow ready access to a regular spiritual director, for example.

So what should you do when you know a discerner who needs spiritual direction?

If you’re qualified, and you’ve got the time, great!

But if not, it may be good to keep a list of available spiritual directors on hand to recommend. And if you don't know anyone who is available, the vocation office can put the discerner in contact with a spiritual director.

While spiritual direction may seem to be a rare commodity, it is an important aid to a diligent discernment, whatever the resultant vocation may be. Being ready to connect discerners to spritual directors is an important work in promoting vocations!