A Guest Post This Week
A tip of the hat to Father Mark Botzet for letting me post his homily from June 14, 2026. Putting what he said in context, here’s the Gospel reading for that day.
“At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.’
“Then he summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.
“Jesus sent out these twelve after instructing them thus, ‘Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.'”
(Matthew 9:36–10:8) [emphasis mine]
The homily’s title, “Focus on Listening to God for Our Vocational Calling”, is Fr. Botzet’s; written across the top of the transcript he gave me.
I took the liberty of changing some punctuation so that it matches the style of this blog, and adding some headings. Finally, about the paragraph breaks: I figure those reflect the rhythm of a spoken presentation.
Okay, enough preface. Here’s Fr. Botzet’s homily.
Focus on Listening to God for Our Vocational Calling
Father Mark Botzet (June 14, 2026)
They were like sheep without a shepherd.
The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few, so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.
The Farm: an Analogy
A few weeks ago, my brother and I loaded the Momma cows up with their calves.
It is kind of interesting loading them.
You would think loading the mother cow and the calf would follow.
But it is actually the other way around.
Get the baby calf up to the trailer.
Lift them in.
And then watch your back.
Because Momma is right behind you.
This Shepherd has to move quickly and I have to watch my back. For the calf, it is a new experience.
Momma has done this many times.
Last Monday as I was at the farm.
My brother and I checked on the Mothers with their babies calves that are now in the pasture.
The mother cows came running with their calves.
They stopped and gazed at us as we watched them.
The calves started to nurse.
It must have been meal time.
At the farm, we are going to have to address a real issue that is emerging very quickly.
The need for more calves in order to sustain the future viability of the family farm.
Steubenville Conference
I ask for your prayers.
On Monday I will be leaving on my canonical retreat.
Flying out to the University of Steubenville.
Attending the Priest, Deacon and seminarian conference.
It will be a gathering of the shepherds.
Don’t worry. I will be back on Friday.
So do not get lost without me!
Vocations
“They were like sheep without a shepherd.
And
“Jesus gathered a number of disciples around him.”
Yet, that number was small in comparison to the souls to be harvested.
Jesus tells them to pray to God to send out laborers.
Just like we should pray today for more vocations,
For Priests and Sisters to help lead souls to Christ.
Families and Priests
You may have noticed in the last few weeks we have had a large number of funerals.
It is starting to appear that we are having more funerals then weddings that lead to baptisms.
With that said, we need more children.
God willing more children — will mean more priests.
You see, priests just do not fall out of the sky.
Priests come from families.
It is hard to believe this.
But do you know that priests even come from families that are broken?
We are like sheep without a shepherd.
Addressing a Fear
There is a great fear among our young people in answering their vocational calling.
What is God wanting me to do with my life?
Recently, Pope Leo addressed 600,000 young people during his apostolic visit to Spain.
Telling them — do not be afraid of marriage and starting a family.
It is a calling.
Not something to delay indefinitely out of fear.
The biggest challenge that young people face today is just that — answering their vocational calling.
Fear.
Fear of the unknown.
We are living in a society that is walking around like a group of people without a shepherd.
Looking for that vocational calling that will lead to the great joy and happiness that is the fulfillment of our life.
They are looking for God in all the wrong places.
They are searching for the truth.
I urge you to not follow the crowd that is lost.
Disciples, Then and Now
Our young people are more hungry for the truth today than they ever have been before.
They are tired of getting hurt by the lies.
Love just does not occur between a Man and a Woman.
Recognizing that God pours love out into your relationship!
Without Priests there are no sacramental marriages.
Mothers and Fathers play a critical role.
So gather your children like Jesus gathered his disciples.
Do not be afraid to teach them to have a prayer life.
Sharing Our Stories
Today Jesus teaches us that we need to walk with our young people.
Like he walked with his disciples.
He bestowed special powers on them.
The ability to cure the sick, to heal the lepers, to expel the demons and even to raise the dead.
Jesus did all of this before dying on the cross and ascending back to God in Heaven.
All these miracles Christ had performed himself,
and he passed on this miraculous power to his Apostles.
Moms and Dads, Grandmas and Grandpas
What are you doing to pass on and give to the younger generation?
Are you going to share your life story?
Your vocational calling of how you met and allowed God to work in your lives.
A vocational calling that you answered that led you before this very altar.
To the sacrament of marriage and the beginning of a family.
Share with your kids and grandkids those little setbacks on the journey.
Pray with them, encourage them, teach them.
They do not need to live a life of being lost sheep without a shepherd.
God is there for them.
They need to recognize Him and what God is calling them to do.
“Do Not be Afraid”
Do not be afraid.
You greatest Happiness and Joy is found in what God calls you to in your vocation.
The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.
Definitions and Links
“Vocation” means several things:
- “A strong impulse or inclination to follow a particular activity or career.
- “A divine call to God’s service or to the Christian life.
- “A function or station in life to which one is called by God.”
(dictionary.com)
Fr. Botzen was talking about the third sort of vocation. The Catechism of the Catholic Church’s Glossary goes into a little more detail:
“VOCATION: The calling or destiny we have in this life and hereafter. God has created the human person to love and serve him; the fulfillment of this vocation is eternal happiness (1, 358, 1700). Christ calls the faithful to the perfection of holiness (825). The vocation of the laity consists in seeking the Kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God’s will (898). Priestly and religious vocations are dedicated to the service of the Church as the universal sacrament of salvation (cf. 873; 931).”
(Catechism of the Catholic Church, Glossary)
I’ve talked about vocations a few times, including:
- “Holding Infants, Raising People” (November 1, 2025)
- “Time and Talent: What am I Doing Here, and Why?” (January 27, 2021)
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