By Thea Jarvis

The Vincentian vocation is more than a call to answer the material needs of the poor, said Father John Adamski at an April “School of Charity” for members of the archdiocesan St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Vincentians should be “bringing Christ (to others) as we would want Christ to be brought to us through our work,” he said to the capacity crowd that filled the Hyland Center of the Cathedral of Christ the King for a day of practical direction and fellowship.

The gathering also commemorated the 150^th anniversary of the founding of the Society. Frederick Ozanam began Vincentian work with the needy in France in 1833.

Workshops during the day dealt specifically with the Vincentian vocation, use of community resources, an outline of the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store operations and procedures to follow when making home visits. A Mass and reception concluded the day.

Father Adamski, who has been the spiritual director of the archdiocesan group for seven years, assessed the heart of the Vincentian call – a call to service not only through charitable giving, but also through personal contact and friendship with the poor.

Such contact means “recognizing Christ in that encounter with another,” leaving the Vincentian “changed and transformed.”

The predictable pattern of Vincentian work, which often involves cases with the same problems and hardships, should nevertheless mean a challenge to be “more sensitive to the ways in which Christ can be present” both to the Vincentian and the one he is helping.

Because the Vincentian attempts to bring Christ to others and see Christ in others, the interaction should make a difference in his life and in the life of the parish where St. Vincent de Paul conferences are found.

“Our goal is not to be like everybody else, but to be more like Christ,” Father Adamski indicated.

Focusing on parish conferences which carry out Vincential work with the poor, he characterized such groups as “fraternal societies” where “support, concern, interest – just a downright friendliness” should prevail, beyond what would normally be experienced within the parish community.

The attractiveness of local conferences should mean other parishioners see “some obvious sign that Christ is changing us, doing something in our lives,” Father Adamski emphasized. The “sign” should not be worn as a badge, but must be a natural outgrowth of Vincential activity, he added.

The beginnings of the St. Vincent de Paul Society 150 years ago were characterized by extensive lay leadership and involvement. The call to be a lay society “is still our vocation today,” Father Adamski reminded the group, noting that his means recognizing God’s presence in the ranks of the laity.

“The spark, the direction of Vincential work should come from the laity,” he insisted.

“By and large, we don’t seem to be a Church of the poor,” he pointed out, “more a Church of the middle class.” Because of this, Vincentians need to see poverty in their lives as a special challenge.

“We should be consciously looking at our set of values,” Father Adamski stressed, examining them in the light of the Vincentian call to become “more poor ourselves.”