Laboure Society
“...when the Blessed Sacrament passed before me, I felt wonder and awe, and in an instant, I knew exactly Who was passing before me in the Eucharist: it was Jesus!”
Meet the rest of my class
My name is Tyler Martensen. I am called to follow the example of St. Francis as a friar with the Order of Friars Minor. This is my story.
My early life was pretty chaotic. My parents divorced when I was young, and neither felt attending church was a priority, though both encouraged me to find God in my own way. My step-mom had a crucifix that I used to like to hold and gaze upon, curious what it was all about.
In middle school, I had a friend who was Catholic. Occasionally, I would stay over at his house on weekends and go to Mass with his family. Though I didn’t understand what was happening, I was intrigued, and started to feel drawn towards the Mass.
When I was in high school, the local Catholic church held a memorial service where firefighters and EMS personnel were honored for 9/11. Afterwards, there was Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, along with Benediction. I had never seen anything like this, and didn’t even know what was going on; yet when the Blessed Sacrament passed before me, I felt wonder and awe, and in an instant, I knew exactly Who was passing before me in the Eucharist: it was Jesus! I felt like the Apostle Matthew — God called him, and he dropped everything and followed, even though he didn’t know where he was going. A fire had been lit in my heart and soul. I met with the Religious Education Director at a nearby parish, took some classes, and was confirmed Catholic the following Easter.
After becoming Catholic, I went to Mass every weekend, and participated as an altar server as often as I could. One of my teachers asked me if I had thought about the priesthood. I began to think about it and felt that I had a calling, so shortly after graduating, I reached out to the local vocations director. He felt I had some maturing to do before I would be ready to take the next steps.
I trained as an EMS tech, and worked in that field for about six years. Then, during COVID, I began discerning again. I felt I definitely had a calling of some kind. I decided to attend Briar Cliff, a Franciscan university. There, I became involved with campus ministry, including speaking to area high school students about the importance of their faith. During this time, I discerned that instead of the diocesan priesthood, I was being called to religious life. I met with various orders, and the Franciscans reached out to me in return.
As my work in the EMS field indicates, I have a desire to help the less fortunate in their time of need. The Franciscan Order of Friars Minor serve the community around them. I love how they roll up their sleeves and dive in. Whether it’s in ministry or running hospitals, clinics, and other public services, they help others — and in doing so, bring the Gospel to the people and are Christ to others.
I look forward to living in community with the Franciscans, continuing to grow in holiness, and living a life of service to others around me.
Please pray for me and my fellow Laboure classmates on our vocation journey. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have tylerm@rescuevocations.org.
Download a PDF of my story
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