Paul Keenan
Site ‘challenges people to see role of the priest’
The Archdiocese of Armagh has launched a website to assist prospective seminarians discern their vocation. Armaghpriest.com was officially launched by Archbishop Eamon Martin at an event in the Synod Hall, St Patrick’s Cathedral Armagh on Tuesday evening.
Speaking to The Irish Catholic, Fr Peter McAnenly, vocations director for Armagh said the site was “the fruits of a lot of work over the last few months”. Praising the efforts of all connected to the project, Fr Peter further pointed out that much of the design of the new website had fallen to a current seminarian, Damien Quigley.
“There are resources and interviews with ordinary young men,” Fr Peter said.
However, Fr Peter also stressed that the site has been designed with more than prospective priests in mind, and he encouraged visitors to discover “the prayers and reflections offered on the site for people generally”.
With declining vocations clearly a concern for dioceses, including Armagh, Fr Peter expressed the hope that Armaghpriest.com would “raise the profile of priesthood and challenge people to look at the role of priests”.
On the new departure for vocations that Armaghpriest.com represents, Fr Peter said: “Social media is very much the reality for people now. We have to respond to that and use this new means of reaching out to people”.
