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The Breathtaking Mystery

by Fr. David Pellican

I first felt called to the priesthood when I was ten years old. It started out as a little voice in my head saying: Be a priest. The idea has never left me. At that young age, of course, I did not really understand what a priest was, but my understanding of and love for the priesthood have only grown since.

I grew up in a wonderful Catholic family. Both of my parents provided me with strong examples of how to live a Christian life. They homeschooled my seven sisters and me all the way through high school; with all the grief we caused them, they must be saints! I think my parents were surprised when I told them I wanted to be a priest, and thought at first that it was just some passing whim. But, once they realized that I was serious, they were very supportive.

When I got to high school, though, I began to better realize what sacrifices the priesthood entailed, and I was not always quite so enthusiastic about it. At age ten, the life of a priest had seemed pretty easy and appealing to me. A priest was someone who said Mass once a day and passed around a basket when he needed money, right?

As I got older, I began to realize that priests make a lot of sacrifices. They cannot get married and must promise to live simply; I was not so sure that this was what I wanted to do. No matter how hard I tried, though, I could not push the idea of the priesthood away.

During the summer before my senior year of high school, it was time to begin applying to colleges, and I finally had to make a decision about the priesthood. So I began to investigate a little more seriously. I spent some time during my senior year of high school discerning with some religious orders, and also visited Sacred Heart for a discernment weekend. Through God's grace, I was able to make the decision to join seminary, where I am still continuing to grow in knowledge of and love for the priesthood.

I am now in my third year of philosophy and, God willing, will be ordained in 2020.

I would like to mention two things that really strengthened my vocation throughout middle school and high school: altar serving and Eucharistic adoration. Serving brought me into contact with amazing priests who loved the priesthood and provided me with a good example, and also helped me understand what a breathtaking mystery we celebrate at Mass. Eucharistic adoration also greatly helped me in my vocation. In these moments of silence before our Lord, it always became clear to me that I needed to explore the priesthood.

It was in these moments that I realized how silly it would be for me to pursue some other life when I was so sure that God was calling me to the priesthood.

Fr. David Pellican

Fr. David Pellican graduated from Sacred Heart Major Seminary in 2020 and is currently the Associate Pastor at Church of the Divine Child in Dearborn. Fr. Pellcian co-hosts Men of the Hearts, a podcast by the Office of Priestly Vocations of the Archdiocese of Detroit.

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Sacred Heart Major Seminary is a Christ-centered Catholic community of faith and higher learning committed to forming leaders who will proclaim the good news of Christ to the people of our time. As a leading center of the New Evangelization, Sacred Heart serves the needs of the Archdiocese of Detroit and contributes to the mission of the universal Church.