Speaking of Vocations

While we're on the subject of vocations, I did not get to see the first installment of the A&E television program "God or the Girl" last night. So far, I've heard or read mixed reviews. Mixed, in the sense that some people seem to think that the show is great, while others don't seem to like it at all.

In the positive camp, Brian Walsh of the Maximus Media Group (also linked in sidebar) emailed me last week to encourage me to watch the program, noting that it "really puts a good light on the Catholic Church" and evaluating it as "a good show".

In the negative camp is the Vocations Director for the Diocese of Toledo, Ohio (my own diocese), Father David Nuss, writing at National Review Online:

Having viewed four of the five episodes — mostly as an act of Lenten penance — the only surprise was the absence of toll-free numbers to call and vote one of the men off the cast. Certainly the show is a thing of miniscule importance — no doubt it would take something uncommonly malicious to impress the sort of person likely to be watching, and God or the Girl rises to no such heights. Still, perhaps it would be worthwhile to offer a more accurate account of how a vocation to the priesthood is discerned.

The desire for a man to be a priest is necessary but insufficient. It is the Church who calls the man to priestly life and ministry, and will only do so after a long time of careful, critical, and prayerful evaluation and assessment. The Church deserves nothing less than the best, and priestly candidate assessment is serious business. Massive failures in this assessment and in seminary spiritual formation during the 1960s and 1970s initiated the criminal and depraved molestation of children by malfeasant priests.

The Catholic Church, of course, does not sponsor reality-type pageants for eligible male contestants wishing to become priests (though, if God or the Girl's credits are any indication, the documentary-makers inexplicably got a little help from some friends at the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops, several dioceses, and a couple of Catholic institutions). What really happens is that every suitable candidate for the seminary undergoes extensive scrutiny over an extended period of time — in all cases many months, in some even years. Ultimately the candidate's spiritual, intellectual, physical, and affective maturity are determined from a battery of interviews, recommendations, required documentation, and expert analysis that is accumulated over a period of time. Expediency does not drive the evaluation process, nor are cheap gimmicks employed to test a candidate's mettle. The process is not one for reality television.

While this might make for poor television drama, it makes for good priests.

I guess this is where I say that you should watch the program and judge for yourself. Having missed the first episode, I plan to watch the remainder of the episodes to make my own determination. Also, I am hoping that A&E will be re-running the first installment some time this week.

UPDATE:
Here is A&E's schedule for showing the various episodes of "God or the Girl":

Monday, Apr. 17
11:00am ..... 01 - God or the Girl
12:00pm ..... 02 - God or the Girl
5:00pm ...... 01 - God or the Girl
6:00pm ...... 02 - God or the Girl
9:00pm ...... 03 - God or the Girl
10:00pm ..... 04 - God or the Girl

Tuesday, Apr. 18
1:00am ...... 03 - God or the Girl
2:00am ...... 04 - God or the Girl