Did you know that all Catholics--not just sisters and priests--are called to holiness? This is what Seth Alexander, an Oblate Candidate of St. Scholastica Monastery, recently shared with a class at DePaul University in Chicago.
The students are part of a Christian Experience class, learning about different ways of living one's faith. Seth, 36, enrolled as a candidate with the Benedictine Oblates last spring.
Since his enrollment, he says, "I hope that I have...started to convert my life into something that reflects St. Benedict's Rule. In my relationships with other people, I've tried to focus on building community and promoting peace. I hope that comes through in how I teach my classes at Loyola University and how I conduct myself as a manager in my '9-5' job."
He talked with the DePaul class about the Universal Call to Holiness found in Vatican II and shared that being an Oblate is one way for people to respond to that call. He mentioned that being an Oblate is lived differently by everyone depending on their unique contexts. People such as Jacques and Raissa Maritain (married couple active in the intellectual life), Frances of Rome (wife, mother, and charitable worker), and Dorothy Day (single Catholic activist) all lived as Oblates in various contexts.
Seth reflects, "I hope [the class] perhaps widened their understanding of the diverse ways we can live as Christians and opened up their understanding of 'vocation.'"