The end of October brings to a close the special Year of the Eucharist proclaimed in 2004 by our late Holy Father, Pope John Paul II. During this Year we have focused more deeply upon the great mystery of the Eucharist, and how our lives as disciples of Jesus Christ flow to, and flow from, the Eucharist.

The Catholic Church is rightfully known as the Eucharistic Church since the Eucharist is the center, font, and source of our life in Christ.

Essential to the regular celebration of the Eucharist are ordained priests --- men called by Christ to continue serving as a sign of ecclesial communion and as the presider at the Eucharistic table.

While the Church properly calls forth the Baptismal gifts of the entire People of God, and places those remarkable gifts at the service of the Body of Christ and of the community, we still need ordained priests to celebrate the Eucharist and the Sacramental life of the Church.

The pastoral reality which Jesus noted in his own time is the same for all of us here, today, in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles: "At the sight of the crowds, Jesus' 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'" [Matthew 9:36-38]. There are so many people here in our own Local Church yearning to be nourished with the Bread of Life --- and for this spiritual ministry, we need more priests.

I am establishing a special Year of Prayer for Priestly Vocations beginning November 1, 2005 and continuing through October 31, 2006, and I invite all of the Catholics of the Archdiocese to join in fervent prayer that Jesus Christ will call more and more men to serve the Church as priests, and that they will respond generously to that call.

While we continue our various programs of vocation enrichment across the Archdiocese, we know that prayer to the "master of the harvest" is absolutely essential. I am recommending a variety of simple but effective ways that we can celebrate this Year of Prayer for Priestly Vocations:

---Individuals and families praying regularly the special Prayer for Priestly Vocations

---Including Prayer for Priestly Vocations in all Holy Hours and Days of Eucharistic Adoration in the parish

---Asking all Parish Prayer Groups to pray the Prayer for Priestly Vocations at each of their meetings

---Praying a special intention for Priestly Vocations in all General Intercessions --- both weekdays and Sundays

---Placing the Prayer for Priestly Vocations weekly in all Parish Bulletins, and in the pews of the Church

---Beginning every parish organization meeting with the Prayer for Priestly Vocations

---Celebrating the Votive Mass for Priestly Vocations on weekdays when no other Memorial Mass is calendared

More suggestions will be given in the next few weeks, but our common goal is to make this entire year an intensive Year of Prayer for Priestly Vocations. Surely the Master of the Harvest will hear our pleas and our prayers, and surely he will respond with a new flourishing of priestly vocations!