The US bishops’ conference has a vocations web site that profiles “religious men and women worth knowing.” It lists them A to Z by their occupations. Here they are: AIDS worker, bus traveler, certified clown, doctor, environmentalist, fiber artist, gardener, homeless advocate, immigrant worker, justice and peace worker, Kookaburra watcher, leader-dog trainer, masseuse at Ground Zero, nurse, opera singer/fire marshal/celebrity magnet, puppeteer/clown/writer/artist, quilter, renovator of homes, shepherd, tattoo remover, unconscious explorer, veterinarian, World Trade Center counselor, xenophobia buster, youth leader, zany brainy.
Funny, but I don’t see contemplative, evangelist, missionary, preacher of the Gospel in there. Granted, some of those are quite important valid professions: doctor, nurse, counselor, youth leader. But what makes them different from lay people who do those jobs?
My favorites? Clown (two of those!), tattoo remover, and unconscious explorer. I’m an unconscious explorer, too ... at night ... when I’m dreaming.
