When the new pontiff traveled a short distance from the Vatican to the Basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls to venerate the tomb of St. Paul, entrusting the beginning of his pontificate to the intercession of the apostle, he chose to reflect on a reading from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans. In the letter, the saint highlights grace, faith, and justification (growing in holiness).

The pope remarked, “At the root of every vocation, God is present, in His mercy and His goodness.” In other words, just as St. Paul received God’s grace to fulfill his vocation, to truly live out the Lord’s call, the faithful need God’s help — His grace.

He went on to explain that the Lord did not take away St. Paul’s freedom on the road to Damascus; rather, the Lord gave him the opportunity to decide. “Salvation does not come about by magic,” Pope Leo noted, “but by a mysterious interplay of grace and faith, of God’s prevenient love and of our trusting and free acceptance.”

Pointing to St. Paul’s conversion, the pope addressed justification, observing that once St. Paul answered the Lord’s call, he stopped persecuting Christians, growing in holiness by bringing others to Christ.

As he closed his brief homily, Pope Leo recalled a 2011 homily to young people by Pope Benedict XVI: “Indeed, ‘our life originates as part of a loving plan of God,’ and faith leads us to ‘open our hearts to this mystery of love and to live as men and women conscious of being loved by God.’” Those words, the pope emphasized, are the “basis of every mission.”

For the pope to reflect on grace, faith, and growing in holiness as he began his pontificate makes sense for even the most unknowing of observers, but he chose to underscore, several times, that God and His love are present in every vocation, every mission, whether it be priesthood, religious life, married life, or single life.

Three men who exemplify the pope’s point are featured in this issue’s cover story: Deacons John Gardiner, John Paul Stepnowski, and Andrew Vickery. All three, in their own way, accepted God’s grace and, in faith, sought out their path to holiness, given to them by God. As the deacons prepare to be ordained priests of the Diocese of Birmingham in late May, they serve as a testament to what is possible when a heart is opened to God’s love.

It is my hope that their stories and others in this issue, including a story on married life featuring Mary-Margaret Blackwood Mascari, will reiterate the pope’s reflection on vocation: simply, because God loves us, He wants to help us, and our faith in His love will propel us on our journey to holiness. May we all ask for and accept the “grace to respond faithfully to His call,” whatever that might be!

Prayer for formation in discernment

Holy Spirit, You, light of our understanding, gentle breath that guides our decisions, grant me the grace to listen attentively to Your voice and to discern the hidden paths of my heart, so that I may grasp what truly matters to You, and free my heart from its troubles.

I ask You for the grace to learn how to pause, to become aware of the way I act, of the feelings that dwell within me, and of the thoughts that overwhelm me which, so often, I fail to notice.

I long for my choices to lead me to the joy of the Gospel. Even if I must go through moments of doubt and fatigue, even if I must struggle, reflect, search, and begin again. … Because, at the end of the journey, Your consolation is the fruit of the right decision.

Grant me a deeper understanding of what moves me, so that I may reject what draws me away from Christ and love Him and serve Him more fully. Amen.

-Pope Leo XIV | Prayer intention for July 2025