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Papal Lay Apostolate for Vocations
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Mission StatementAs Serra International is the vocation arm of the Church, our mission is to foster and affirm vocations to the ministerial priesthood and vowed religious life in the United States, and through this ministry to further our members’ common Catholic faith.
Objectives and Purposes
- To foster and promote vocations to the ministerial priesthood in the Catholic Church as a particular vocation to service, and to support priests in their sacred ministry.
- To encourage and affirm vocations to consecrated and vowed relgious life in the Catholic Church.
- To assist its members in recognizing and responding in their own lives to God’s call to holiness in Jesus Christ and through the Holy Spirit.
“Always to Go Forward and Never Turn Back”
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The first Serra Club was formed by four Catholic laypersons in 1935 in Seattle, Washington.
The founding Serrans chose Father Junipero Serra as their organization’s patron. He was born in 1713 in Petra on the island of Mallorca, Spain. When he died in 1784, he was laid to rest in the San Carlos Borromeo mission, in Carmel, California. The 18th-century Franciscan missionaries founded many missions in Mexico and California. He established nine missions himself, and baptized thousands of Native Americans.
Father Serra was chosen as patron because of his commitment to his vocation, as exemplified by his notable quote: “Always go forward, never turn back.” He was
The Serra Club of Beaumont was chartered on October 5, 1949, with 41 members. In recognition of its mission and ministry, the organization now identifies itself as Saint Serra Vocations Ministry of Beaumont, the Papal Lay Ministry.
Currently, it has a membership of approximately 60. In October 2019, the Club celebrated its 70th Anniversary.
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The Serra Club of Beaumont meets the 3rd Thursday of each month. Each meeting includes dinner and a speaker from an educational or religious community. Some meetings have a club-organized presentation. Talks cover a spectrum of interests, and each meeting is opened and closed with a Serran prayer.
Serra International has monthly conference calls, covering topics from Communication to Leadership. The District 10 meeting for leadership is held every other month in Houston. And conventions are held annually, attended by representative from all Serra Clubs worldwide.
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Any person who is a practicing Catholic in good standing with the Church may join the Saint Serra Vocations Ministry of Beaumont. Currently, membership is “by-law” restricted to the territory of the Diocese of Beaumont. This includes Catholic residents of the counties of Chambers, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, Polk, and Tyler in southeast Texas.
Membership fees are annual, and a portion of them is passed on to Serra US Council and Serra International to support materials and programs developed for local groups. If a married couple joins, the spouse’s fee is reduced 50%. Members under the age of 35 pay 50% of the annual fee.
The mission of the Saint Serra Vocations Ministry of Beaumont is to foster and affirm vocations to the ministerial priesthood and vowed religious life, and through this ministry further our members’ common Catholic faith.
The Saint Serra Vocations Ministry of Beaumont invites you to come join us in supporting the Clergy and Religious of our Diocese and fostering vocations. We meet one evening a month. We would love to have you join us, and if you cannot, please consider praying for us, and for vocations.
Email: [email protected]
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Saint Serra Vocations Ministry of Beaumont sponsors numerous projects and programs each year.
- Vocations Chalice
- 31 Club
- Third and Fourth Grade Poster Contest for Catholic students.
- Fifth Grade Essay Contest for Catholic students.
- Parish Vocation Committee formation and mentorship.
- Adopt a Seminarian program.
- Annual Appreciation Dinner for Diocesan Priests, Deacons, and Religious.
- Greeting cards signed by the group are sent to all Clergy and Religious on the occasion of their birth, ordination, and all religious profession dates.
- Vocations activities at the Lamar Catholic Student Center, and support of the Diocese of Beaumont’s Vocation Director’s plans and programs.
Saint Serra Vocations Ministry assigns each member to a committee, to foster full participation of its members.
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Prayer for the Preservation of Vocations
O God, You have constituted Your only-begotten Son supreme and eternal Priest for the glory of Your majesty and the salvation of mankind: grant that those whom He has chosen ministers and dispensers of His mysteries may be found faithful in fulfilling the ministry they have received.
Serran Prayer for Vocations
O God, Who wills not the death of a sinner, but rather that he be converted and live, grant we beseech you through the intercession of the Blessed Mary ever Virgin, Saint Joseph her spouse, Saint Junipero Serra, and all the saints: an increase of laborers for Your Church, fellow laborers with Christ to spend and consume themselves for souls, through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever, Amen.
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We would be pleased to have you join the Saint Serra Vocations Ministry in our primary effort to sustain existing Catholic religious vocations.
For further information:
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SaintSerraBmt/
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