The Diocese of Austin is hosting a video series entitled The Call, in which priests who serve in the diocese share their experience in hearing God’s call to the priesthood. Father Zack Rodriguez, pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Temple, said he first heard the call to the priesthood when he was 21 and studying at the University of Texas.

Initially he was terrified. “I didn't tell anybody, and I sort of just buried it. Thanks be to God. He is patient,” Father Rodriguez said.

As he became more active in his faith and in his parish, he became more open to the call.

“And once my heart finally stopped being guarded, I recognized the many blessings that God was trying to give me through the priesthood … God began to really show me his goodness and his good plans for me,” he said.

Father Rodriguez concluded by saying that having been ordained five years, he is now confident that priestly life is what God intended for him all along.

The Call can be found on YouTube (search “Diocese of Austin The Call”), and the videos have been shared on the Diocese of Austin Facebook page.