It is also God's wish that each of us be a saint, whether in this life or after some purging in purgatory. This means that all of us need to work externally in the world, and internally on our personal relationship with God. There are numerous communities where men and women spend most of their time in personal and communal prayer. These communities are for priests, brothers, and sisters who feel a strong desire for this type of life. A vow of celibacy, and sometimes vows of poverty and obedience, may be part of such vocations.
Most religious vocations are ones where the life is a mixture of prayer and service to others.
In this category are vocations to the diocesan priesthood. A diocesan priest is trained for parish work in a particular diocese. Men who can accept celibacy and who have a strong desire to work with people in a parish setting are best suited to the diocesan priesthood. For both men and women there are a variety of religious orders where service of some kind is the primary goal of the order. A strong desire to serve God through service to our brothers and sisters in one of these areas is needed by those with vocations to such religious orders.