Before today’s youth can truly comprehend the concept of a religious vocation, they must first understand their foundational vocation to live a Christian life.

It is this need to evangelize that forms the framework of Father Joseph G. Celano’s vision for the diocesan Office of Vocations. In his new assignment as vocations director, Father Celano said his key responsibilities are two-fold — to serve as supervisor of the seminarians’ formation and to promote a greater awareness of the different opportunities for service available in the Church.

"This means trying to get our Catholic people understanding and supporting these vocations, as well as helping young people connect to them as viable life choices," he explained. "And to do this, we have to begin to shift the emphasis of vocational awareness. Normally, we’ll go in [to schools, parishes, etc.] and talk about the priesthood and the diaconate and religious life.

"This doesn’t always make sense to young people, because it assumes they’ve been evangelized, that faith has always been integral in their lives. So I think our programs need to have a strongly evangelical component. First, we need to teach the faith before we can build on that foundation."

Father Celano, who is also pastor of St. Bernard of Clairvaux Parish, Bridgewater, said he began to develop a clearer sense of what youth respond to when he was serving as chaplain of Rutgers University’s campus ministry a few years ago.

"The real hook with a lot of young people is spirituality," he noted. "There is a real spiritual hunger there. There’s also a need for catechesis – to ground them in the teachings of the Church. Also, we need to encourage involvement in community service, because they want to give back, to roll up their sleeves and pitch in."

Born Dec. 24, 1959 in Newark, Father Celano is the son of Marino Celano and the late Mary Kennedy. While attending St. Matthias School, Somerset, he was already hearing a call from God. "I was about seven or eight years old," Father Celano recalled. "Everyone else wanted to grow up to be a firefighter — I wanted to be a priest."

He credits a supportive, faith-filled family environment, as well as two priests who were "incredible role models" with nurturing his vocation. But while thoughts of the priesthood came early, he said he didn’t think seriously about it until he was a student in St. Pius X High School, Piscataway. Following graduation, he enrolled in the University of Scranton, where he received a bachelor’s degree in human services. He then earned a master’s degree in divinity and Scripture from Mount St. Mary Seminary, Emiitsburg, Md.

Father Celano was ordained May 30, 1987, in St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral, Metuchen, by Bishop Edward T. Hughes. He has served as associate pastor in St. Mary Parish, South Amboy; St. Cecelia Parish, Iselin; St. Frances Cabrini Parish, Piscataway, and Blessed Sacrament Parish, Martinsville.

Father Celano has also served as chaplain in Middlesex County College, as a member of the advisory board for the Office of Evangelization and the RCIA, and as a member of the Commission on Ecumenism and Inter-Religious Affairs. In addition, he is the former director of the diocesan Department of Pastoral Life.

Father Celano admits that facing a decline in vocations can be challenging, and that the cause is attributable to any number of factors. "Our culture is no longer supportive of religious beliefs," he stated. "And there is uncertainty, even among Catholics, about who they are and what they believe. But the one thing I know is that it’s not that God has stopped calling people."