When I think of priesthood, I imagine the joy of baptizing a baby into the family of God, presiding at Mass, and helping people to experience healing through the sacraments of reconciliation and anointing. If this is what God calls me to be, how can I say “no”?

Priests have the privilege of carrying on Jesus’ ministry. While I feel some doubt about my ability to measure up, I trust that somehow God will continue to give imperfect people the grace they need to do His work.

I have always liked school and have strong academic ability. I definitely see myself in graduate school, and I will probably always enjoy scholarly pursuits.

I believe in working hard to get the best grades I can in school. I don’t know if I have ever been the smartest person in a class, but I do well because I put in the effort.

My heart is set on priesthood. The academic studies may be a struggle for me at times, but I know that I will spend a lifetime coming to know more of the richness of what Scripture and Church tradition have to teach.

I hardly ever make an error in my checkbook and always pay the bills on time. Deadlines have never been a problem because I organize my time and prioritize.

I can envision a tendency to procrastinate when It comes to the administrative responsibilities of running a parish, but I am dependable.

I hope to delegate the day-to-day business aspects of parish leadership to laypeople trained in finance and administration. There are some things that other people can do better than I can, and God gave us different talents for a reason.

My style is basically talking one-to-one with God. Mass and other liturgical celebrations are important, but Jesus set a good example by teaching the crowds and going off by himself to pray.

There is something about a community of faith gathering together that energizes me and helps me put things in perspective.

I see prayer becoming an increasingly integral part of my life--not just a Sunday or quick-before-meals thing.

Sometimes, when I listen to a priest preaching at Mass, I can see myself doing that. I have an engaging manner of public speaking and would enjoy preparing homilies.

I don’t have much experience with public speaking, but I do seem to have a gift for explaining things to people in ways they can understand.