Responding to God's Call/Seminarian Nicholas Murakami

Intermountain Catholic

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Editor’s note: This is one in a series of personal vocation stories from seminarians, religious women, deacons and priests in the Diocese of Salt Lake City.

“Remember that God speaks in a still, small voice.”

My first interest in the priesthood began for me at the tender age of 5. I remember seeing a priest celebrating Mass, and I knew immediately that there was something very compelling about the priesthood that made me want to become a priest. I told my parents that I wished to become a priest when I got older, but at the time they believed it to be a mere phase.  

As I grew older, my faith deepened and my intimacy with God increased. Occasionally my parents would ask if I still wanted to be a priest, and my reply would always be “Yes.” I even used this intimacy to put an end to being bullied in the second grade. People would often tell me that I was going to hell because I was not of their faith. One day I grew tired of this and told the group that was telling me these things, “We are all children of God. Why can’t we all just get along?” Upon hearing this, the group looked at each other and said, “You know, he’s right.”  They then apologized for their actions.  

At about the same age that this took place, when I was 8 years old, I started first truly discerning the priesthood. I would always be praying to God and asking Him if He wanted me to be a priest. I wanted it to be of His will and not only mine. God would always give me small signs of a yes that I would brush off as a coincidence. I brushed these signs off for years until God gave me big signs that basically screamed to me that I needed to join the seminary.  

One such example of a big sign is when I went to see the Relics of the Passion tour when they came to Utah. I was serving with Father Joseph Delka at the service that went with these relics. After the service had completed, my father asked Fr.  Joe to bless me with the relic of the True Cross. As he was blessing me, the representative for this tour in the North American region approached us and pushed the True Cross into my chest, right by my heart. She said it was OK to put the True Cross next to my heart. I was taken aback by this and quite honored. A few weeks after this my family decided to see the tour at another parish that was near my younger sister’s track meet. When I approached the True Cross again, the representative walked over to me and pushed the cross into my chest again. I was taken aback by this once again, and my father thanked her and told her that I wanted to be a priest. She told him, “Thank you for that confirmation. I just looked at him and a spark went off and something told me to put the Cross to his heart.” This was one of my biggest signs from God that He wants me to be a priest.

If someone is discerning a vocation to the religious life, I highly advise you to pray a lot and listen for any sign from God. Don’t brush the signs off thinking they are coincidences as I have done.  Remember that God speaks in a still, small voice.

Nicholas Murakami has completed 1st year college at Mt. Angel Seminary.