Concordia Library Debuts Christian Vocation Collection

Students, faculty and staff can now check out books from the Meaningful Work Collection in Concordia’s library.

Randa Scott, Director of the Center for Vocation and Professional Development, said when she first started studying Christian vocation she didn’t realize how many books were available on the topic. However, after collaborating with professionals at conferences and through word of mouth, she was able to come up with 80 titles on the subject, 20 of which are already available for checkout. The rest of the titles will gradually roll in over time, some popping up this summer and fall.

She hopes the works will enlighten interested readers about the concepts of Christian vocation.

“It helps answer questions such as ‘what does vocation have to do with work?’” Scott said. “Our career is just one expression of vocation.”

The rest of the titles will gradually roll in over time, some popping up this summer and fall. According to Scott, a grant from The Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) helped fund the collection. Librarians Mikail McIntosh-Doty and Angelica Delgado created a designated area in the library for the new collection and will continue to process books as they are available.

As humans, we often hug the fence between “it’s just a job” and “my job is my life.” Finding meaningful work can be the fulfilling solution.

“A consumerist society has created this,” Scott said. “Exploring vocation can help.”

A few weeks ago, Scott said a student came to her office requesting material to help her understand what vocation means in her personal life. Thanks to these new materials, Scott was able to help her identify the appropriate resource.

“The holistic nature of understanding vocation has helped me in my role to better serve students,” Scott said. “The key to hearing the call for your vocation is understanding what vocation means and resources like these provide multiple ways of looking at it.”