He emphasized the importance of raising children well and guiding them to God and urged parents to encourage and support them through “good formation when they show signs of a vocation.”
“Do not force a child to become a priest. A vocation cannot be imposed; one must be called by God and then properly formed to respond and to persevere in faithful and upright ministry,” the Archbishop of the Arusha Archdiocese since December 2017 said.
He invited the people of Gond under his pastoral care to seek the intercession of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus that Christian families become “good formators, so that we may have young people with faith and generosity to offer themselves to vocations of priesthood, brotherhood, sisterhood, and catechists, and also many who will become fathers and mothers, well formed in families that pray.”
“Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus came from such a family, whose parents offered their children in this way; she is our patron and example. Let us ask her to intercede for our families so that we may obtain many ministers in the Lord’s vineyard,” the 74-year-old Tanzanian Catholic Church leader said.
In his January 8 homily, Archbishop Amani also underscored the importance of offering support to the members of the Clergy and the women and men Religious, noting that those set apart for prayer and liturgy should serve faithfully, while the community cares for them with generosity and love so they can serve without anxiety over basic needs.
“Let us support our ministers. When they call for seminars and retreats, when they plan pastoral visits to families, let us be available. The cooperation we give our shepherds brings great progress. Without cooperation, it is like a needle without thread, it cannot sew,” he stated.
The Archbishop cautioned against overburdening Consecrated people with financial and other social demands that may distract them from their spiritual mission.
He said, “God has been generous to you parents in giving you these children, and you accepted them when they desired to follow the way of the Lord. Let us pray for them, that they may remain faithful in the service of the Lord, and find joy in their ministry.”
He said that children offered to serve God “are still on the journey”, adding, “Let us continue to encourage them and pray for them, and not place burdens on them that may shake their vocation. They have been set apart for spiritual work. Let us not burden them with purely human pressures that may cause them to stumble.”
Archbishop Amani explained that the diaconate is not merely a temporary stage but a lasting dimension of ordained ministry that is fulfilled, not erased, in Priesthood.
