Vocation
It comes from the Latin vocare, to call, and means the work a man is called to by God.
There are all different kinds of voices calling you to all different kinds of work, and the problem is to find out which is the voice of God rather than of Society, say, or the Superego, or Self-Interest.
By and large a good rule for finding out is this. The kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work (a) that you need most to do and (b) that the world most needs to have done. If you really get a kick out of your work, you've presumably met requirement (a), but if your work is writing TV deodorant commercials, the chances are you've missed requirement (b). On the other hand, if your work is being a doctor in a leper colony, you have probably met requirement (b), but if most of the time you're bored and depressed by it, the chances are you have not only bypassed (a) but probably aren't helping your patients much either.
Neither the hair shirt nor the soft berth will do. The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet.
-Frederick Buechner, Wishful Thinking (1973)
Here at the Frederick Buechner Center, we—his friends, family, and fans—are committed to feeding the world’s deep hunger by preserving, cultivating, and extending the legacy of this remarkable man, theologian, thinker, and author.
The work to which Frederick was called, writing, was the place where his own deep gladness met with the world’s deep hunger. Generations of readers across the globe, individually and together in communities of faith, have recognized the extraordinary nature of his contribution. Together, we have read his books, subscribed to his emails, and followed his social media.
Our responsibility, as those who have benefited from the life and work of Frederick Buechner, is to ensure that his message of hope, faith in the face of doubt, and grace is passed on to new generations of readers, writers, believers, and doubters. To that end, we at the Frederick Buechner Center are committed to carrying on with the work he began, pressing on with his projects old and new. And today, we begin this new chapter by resuming the sharing of his words and works online.
We hope you will continue to walk with us, and that even more will join us in this next phase of our sacred journey together.
With thanks for your continued support, and wishing you happy reading!
David Altshuler
Son-in-law of Revd Frederick Buechner
