Gareth O'Callaghan: Vocations are like trends — they change over time

I often ask myself why a man would want to become a priest in today’s Ireland

Pope John Paul II in the Phoenix Park during the 1979 Papal visit.

Standing at the top of the grassy hill below the huge cross in Dublin’s Phoenix Park, the Pope’s Cross as it’s known, and looking out across the sprawling expanse of the 15 acres, still triggers a sense of nostalgia whenever I visit, considering I grew up less than a mile from this historic site.

Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass here, in front of a congregation of over one million people — the biggest mass movement ever to take place in Ireland.