After working in corporate America for 10 years and earning three degrees, I realized that everything the world said would make me happy wasn’t fulfilling my deepest desires. If anything, these accomplishments left me emptier and more anxious.
I had never thought about being a priest, but I remember reading an article that mentioned three hurdles to discerning a religious vocation — noise, fear and family. That’s when I decided to spend more time in eucharistic adoration. Getting away from the world’s noise to hear God’s will for me, I experienced a profound peace. Through prayer and reading Scripture, it became clear that he was calling me to be a priest.
However, I still struggled with fear and feelings of inadequacy; and my family, though Catholic, didn’t understand why I would leave my worldly achievements behind.
With God’s grace, I was able to persevere and follow the Lord into seminary. Now, after four years as a priest, I have begun to experience what Jesus meant when he said, “I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”
Father Bryan Kassa
Chaldean Diocese of St. Thomas the Apostle USA
St. Michael of Sterling Heights (Mich.) Council 13799








