'Everything about this life is so pure and so good'
CHARLOTTE — St. Joseph College seminarian Jose Palma and his younger sister, Jessica, have a unique sibling bond. Both have answered the call to serve the Lord in a vocation in the Church. Jose is in his third year of seminary now. Jessica is a postulant with the Daughters of the Virgin Mother, which supports seminarians and priests of the diocese in prayer and works.
These young adults recently provided some insights on their vocations and how a shared desire to serve the Lord has brought them closer.
CNH: Can you tell us what your family faith life growing up was and how that may have had an impact on your vocations?
Jose: At first for a while we weren’t faithful Catholics, we were lukewarm. When I was about 12 (and Jessica was 5) we had a complete family conversion, which was great. This is the fruit of that. God had given my parents and my older sister a conversion – a conversion to God to be able to pay attention to Him and to pay attention at Mass.
From that point on, from my perspective, everything changed. We were going to Mass more faithfully, at church more regularly, and prayer was very much encouraged. I think that definitely prepared the way for me to be able to discern to enter the seminary. We took the faith seriously. We embraced the wholeness of the Catholic faith. That was crucial. To know that my parents were praying for us and with us, that definitely impacted me later in life.
Jessica: I was maybe about 16 when things started stirring up in my spiritual life. I think I owe it a lot to my parents for their prayers for us, and always praying for us and for our futures – letting God’s Will happen.
CNH: What is it like living your vocation now?
Jose: These past three years in seminary, I can honestly say they have been the happiest years of my life. There is a certain sense of fulfillment. I came in expecting a lot; you’re nervous, scared. But coming in there was a sense of peace. The formation is phenomenal. It challenges you.
I was happy the very first day I came in. I said, ‘This is awesome!’ We have a lot of great guys. We spend a lot of time in prayer. It is difficult. You are adjusting to a very strict schedule. You are adjusting to a different prayer life. Before I entered seminary, I thought I had a decent prayer life. You come in and it’s like you really have to try, to dig deep.
There are difficulties in seminary, but it’s like normal life. It’s like anything else – you just have to keep going. You have to remember the Lord brought you here and He will get you through anything.
Living out the vocation is fantastic. We have a great fraternity. The guys are really awesome. We have great conversations. We play sports together. For us guys, it’s great to be able to play sports every day, to just hang out.
Above all, to pray together. We challenge each other.
Jessica: I have only been in the convent seven months. It’s been really good. There is a certain peace that I feel ever since I entered. It has been so good. The sisters are great. They are very welcoming. The community life that we live, we mold well together. We all go out and do our work, and then we come back and we pray and have dinner and recreate.
We can be together, pray together, console our God and make friendships with Our Lady. When we come out of prayer, it is like fresh air that you just took in and then you don’t have to worry about worldly things.
I actually just tried on the habit because I am going to get clothed in October. It’s exciting! Everything about this life is so pure and so good.
CNH: What does it feel like to know that you are supporting each other (in your vocations)?
Jose: It gives me a sense of joy, and I am obviously proud of my sister. It gives me great peace, great joy, to know I have my own sister in a convent that prays for priests in a diocese which I am a seminarian in. And God willing, I will be a priest.
It gives me a lot of joy and fills me with a lot of hope to know I am supported. There is something very special to know that my own sister, with whom I lived all my life, whom I used to feed, is now in a convent praying for me, offering sacrifices for me for the work that God wants me to do. I know we understand each other very well.
Jessica: It has put a lot into perspective. I get to watch him in his vocation to the priesthood. It’s hard to explain. He’s my brother. It is a special bond we have, we understand each other without saying words.
At first, for me, it was a little awkward. Our vocations were colliding. Whenever you enter a vocation, you don’t expect to see family. Over the months, it normalized itself. It became tender.
The idea that we switch prayers – he prays for me and I pray for him – it’s just neat that I entered a convent that supports the priesthood.
It’s hard to explain. There are so many graces and beautiful things going on. There’s no way to explain it and do it justice.
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter