Cardinal Timothy Dolan joined Fr. Carlos Limongi at Holy Name of Jesus-St. Gregory the Great on 96th Street in Manhattan for their monthly Holy Hour for Vocations on the occasion of the feast of St. Gregory the Great on Sept. 3.  

Cardinal Dolan centered his remarks on St. Peter, explaining how the saint’s vocation brought love to both himself and the Lord. 

“Lord, you know everything. I can’t lie to you. You know me better than I know myself. You see the deepest part of my life. You know everything. You know that I love you… You know that I, Timothy Dolan, love you, and Lord, you’re something else. You know everything. I don’t know squat! But I know you love me. As solid as my love is for you here, Jesus, my Lord, my God, your love for me is even more dramatic, more passionate, more personal forever,” he said. 

Music and prayer fill the church 

The holy hour was accompanied by music from the team at Holy Name of Jesus-St. Gregory the Great, and the dimmed lighting in the church added to the sense of prayerfulness as the faithful asked for renewed interest in vocations. Fr. Limongi holds these monthly holy hours, with Cardinal Dolan attending the feast of St. Gregory the Great was a special blessing for the parish. 

“The idea [for these Holy Hour for Vocations] came from [Cardinal Dolan]. He asked the presbytery to do a holy hour, especially for vocations, and pray for priests and seminarians and everything. So, it’s sort of come full circle today,” Fr. Limongi said afterward. 

A community united for vocations 

The community that has come together around this cause for vocations was inspiring to witness. After the final blessing, parishioners had time to speak directly with Cardinal Dolan and embrace him. In addition to the holy hours, Fr. Limongi is hosting a community chalice, which will be passed among different members of the parish each week for families to pray for continued vocations in the archdiocese. 

“We need priests, but rarely do we actually do something about it. I hope this initiative catches on now that people have seen how it is, and it is a beautiful moment where we all gather together in the presence of the Lord to ask him for more good and holy priests,” Fr. Limongi told The Good Newsroom.