The account of the call of Samuel (cf. 1 Sam 3:1-21) enables us to gather together the fundamental elements of discernment: listening and recognition of the divine initiative, a personal experience, gradual growth in understanding, patient and respectful accompaniment of the mystery as it unfolds, a mission to the community. The vocation is not imposed upon Samuel as a destiny to be undergone; it is a proposal of love, of being sent out on mission in a story of daily mutual trust. As for the young Samuel, so too for every man and every woman – vocation, while it may have strong and privileged moments, involves a long journey. The Word of the Lord needs time to be understood and interpreted; the mission to which it calls is revealed step by step. The young are fascinated by the adventure of gradual self-discovery. They learn willingly from the activities they carry out, from their encounters and their relationships, putting themselves to the test in daily life. Yet they need help to piece together the various experiences and to read them from a faith perspective, overcomingthe risk of dispersal and recognizing the signs by which God speaks. In the discovery of a vocation, things are not all clear at once, because “faith ‘sees’to the extent that it journeys, to the extent that it chooses to enter into the horizons opened up by God’s word” (Francis, Lumen Fidei, 9).
TheoFonsAt the sources of the faith