The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the Diocese of Grand Rapids were among Catholic groups promoting National Vocation Awareness Week, which ran Nov. 6-12 this year.

National Vocation Awareness week is an annual tradition in which dioceses around the U.S. bring attention to the options of the priesthood, religious life and marriage.

“As Christians, we do not only receive a vocation individually; we are also called together,” Pope Francis said, as quoted in a USCCB release. “We are like the tiles of a mosaic. Each is lovely by itself, but only when they are put together do they form a picture. Each of us shines like a star in the heart of God and in the firmament of the universe. At the same time, though, we are called to form constellations that can guide and light up the path of humanity, beginning with the places in which we live. This is the mystery of the Church: a celebration of differences, a sign, and instrument of all that humanity is called to be.”

In the Diocese of Grand Rapids, two priests discovered their vocation together and have been friends since childhood; according to an article in Faith Grand Rapids, where Fr. Colin Mulhall and Fr. Stephen Durkee share their story.

Nationally, Bishop James F. Checchio of Metuchen; chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations; talked about the week in the USCCB release.

“Each year, the CCLV Committee commissions the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate to conduct surveys of those recently ordained and religiously professed in the past year,” Checchio said. “These studies consistently show that vocations are the fruit of communal accompaniment. The family, healthy and holy friendships, youth group, campus ministry, and the broader parish and diocesan community form supportive environments in which vocations are first nurtured and grown.”

Vocation Awareness Week traces its roots back to 1976, when one Sunday a year was devoted to the cause. In 2014, the USCCB Committee on Clergy extended it to a week-long period of engaging young people.

The USCCB website has published a prayer for vocations: “God our Father, we thank you for calling men and women to serve in your Son’s Kingdom as priests, deacons, and consecrated persons. Send your Holy Spirit to help others to respond generously and courageously to your call. May our community of faith support vocations of sacrificial love in our youth and young adults. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.”

The USCCB has also published a recommended reading list for those discerning their vocation. Some of the included books for men are “Pastores Dabo Vobis (I Will Give You Shepherds)” by Pope St. John Paul II; “To Save a Thousand Souls: A Guide for Discerning a Vocation to Diocesan Priesthood” by Fr. Brett Brannen; “Priests for the Third Millennium” by Cardinal Timothy Dolan; “The Spirituality of the Diocesan Priest” by Fr. Donald Cozzens; and “A Living Sacrifice: Guidance for Men Discerning Religious Life” by Fr. Benedict Croell, O.P, and Fr. Andrew Hofer, O.P. Recommendations for women include “On the Dignity and Vocation of Women” by Pope St. John Paul II; “Discerning Religious Life” by Sr. Clare Matthiass, CFR; “The Fire in These Ashes: A Spirituality of Contemporary Religious Life” by Sr. Joan Chittister; “An Introduction to the Vocation of Consecrated Virginity Lived in the World” by the United States Association of Consecrated Virgins; and “And You Are Christ’s: The Charism of Virginity and the Celibate Life” by Fr. Thomas Dubay.