My call to the priesthood.

Every priestly and religious vocation is different, especially. There are cases when God calls man directly to the priesthood; it is always a unique path. Most of the time, however, it works through the people and circumstances we experience. However, it is also true that not all who feel called to the priesthood will achieve this. Sometimes they lose it through their fault; sometimes, they are prevented from doing so for various reasons. More specifically, in former Czechoslovakia, many felt called to be priests, but when the Communists came to power, many were not allowed to study theology. For me, the priestly vocation has gradually developed. As I look back on my life now, I see that God has not only called me to the priesthood, but has led my life so that I can attain the priesthood. When I was in eighth class, my parents enrolled me in religion. One can ask oneself why only in the eighth class, why not earlier? At least in Bratislava, this was not possible at that time. When I went to eighth class, the political situation began to change. Dubcek came, and many things that were not allowed before were suddenly allowed. Although the priest who taught us religion was older, he taught us very interested, and above all, he knew how to awaken our interest in religion. That’s when I got the idea that I would like to administrate. I must say that the priest who taught us religion was called Peter Lajcha, who did not call anyone to minister with him. The idea came by itself. So, I started ministering in the Church where Father Lajcha was pastor. I think this is where my priestly vocation was born. There was a very vibrant Christian community in this Church. The theologian Miloš Vojtíšek impressed me very much with his deep religion. The community organized various lectures, films were shown, excursions were made, and pilgrimages were organized. People took part in actions in large numbers. I don’t know if I would have a priestly vocation if I had seen empty churches and the people who had no interest in the Church. Maybe yes, maybe no. I have to mention something else here; people had great respect for the priests.

The political recession did not last long. Warsaw Pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia, gradually Reformed Communists who wanted socialism with a human face were removed, and the Church regained state control and began to restrict its activities again. The truth did not go from day to day, but gradually. However, he was mistaken if anyone believed that the Church, especially in Slovakia, could be silenced. The Church has partly come into legality, and hundreds or even thousands of people have done everything to make Christ known to children and young people. Many people knew they were at risk of losing their jobs or even going to jail, and some even went to prison. But that didn’t deter them. I think this circumstance has also influenced my priestly vocation. I was proud to be a member of a courageous and vibrant Church. I will never forget the atmosphere I experienced at that time. At that time, I already felt called a priest. At that time, it was only possible to attend the seminar with a high school diploma. Whether I would be admitted to high school was not certain because even there, the number of students who could be accepted was limited. Sure, I could have gone to another middle school, but I couldn’t study theology from that school. The second question was whether I could study at all because of the family circumstances that prevailed in our home. Probably very difficult. But a solution has been found. I went to my grandmother and godmother in Hlohovec, where I was admitted to high school without any problems and had suitable study conditions. It was a coincidence that a classmate at the high school sat down with me, who did not come from Hlohovec, and I quickly learned that he also wanted to be a priest. It was a coincidence or God’s providence. Together, we encouraged ourselves to become priests. Unfortunately, he did not become a priest. His brother, a great communist, finally put a spanner in the works: After graduating from high school, I wanted to study theology; it was not at all certain whether I would be accepted. The number of theology students was limited, the numerous so-called class. Thus, every fourth candidate could accept theology. In this respect, I was lucky. In Bratislava, in the Church where the parish priest, where I used to be a ministry, was transferred, a priest was vice dean at the Faculty of Theology. Him I also ministered with him, mainly through the holidays; I had protection to be accepted to theology. Also, in Hlohovec, I ministered to a priest who had previously taught at the faculty of theology. So, I was accepted with their help. There was a military regime in the seminary. There were twelve of us in one room. The beds we slept on were over a hundred years old, as was furniture from the last century. The food was also quite poor because the state did not contribute enough to the seminary. But that didn’t bother us. We were eagerly awaiting to become priests. After the fourth year, I did two years of military service. It was demanding military service. We built bridges over the river, even if it was minus twenty degrees below zero. We have also participated in various military exercises. I remember an event. The night we shifted in heavy cars, not on the road, but through various forest gorges. The car driving in front of me crashed into the gorge; due to the snow, it was not to be seen that there was a ravine there. The crew of the car suffered serious injuries. Then I thought I could also sit in this car. Yes. I experienced the second serious event when a drunken soldier started shooting from a submachine gun, and the bullets flew about 10-15 centimeters around me. But nothing happened to me. After my military service, I continued to study theology and was ordained a priest in 1979. In conclusion, I would like to say that I have never doubted whether I should become a priest or not. I felt that God the Lord had called me to the priesthood, and I am grateful to God the Lord for allowing me to become a priest.