Airman is called to sacrifice

Once Scott Tygett brought God into his life, things were never quite the same.

"For a long time, God was a zero part of my life," said Mr. Tygett, who is now weighing the priesthood at St. Isaac Jogues House of Discernment in Waterford, where men discerning their vocation spend their pre-seminary years.

"I was doing all the stuff a young guy does: partying, movies, going out. I was an average guy. But there was an emptiness. I would tell myself, 'Be patient, and one day you'll figure it out."

And, one day, he did.

Checking Scriptures

A "boring" day in his North Carolina Air Force dorm prompted Mr. Tygett to reach out for his Bible for "entertainment." He opened to Judges and found himself captivated by the story. As questions arose, he began to look for answers.

"It gradually grew from there; that's when I seriously started discernment," he said.

Now 22 and a self-described "military brat," Mr. Tygett had never spent more than four years in one place by the time he entered the Air Force himself. He moved, with his parents, to New Mexico, Florida, Germany and England; as a senior airman in charge of repairing medical equipment, he lived in North Carolina and Texas.

Signs of interest

Mr. Tygett spent a while as an altar server but disliked it, saying that he was always trying to figure out what he could do better if he were the priest.

"In Charleston, I started considering the idea that maybe God wanted me to be celibate, to put that energy toward the people," he continued, so he talked with chaplains, who helped him on his first steps towards a possible vocation.

Eventually, he attended a vocations discernment retreat in Washington, D.C.

There, Mr. Tygett met a speaker: Rev. James Walsh, a member of the Vocations Team for the Albany Diocese. He was impressed when Father Walsh told him about the Jogues House. Further talk and a visit steered him towards the Diocese. He moved into the House last August.

Parallels

Mr. Tygett draws parallels between military life and the priesthood, and holds to the idea of sacrifice for others as having become a central axis in his life.

"In the military, you give up your freedom so others can have it," he explained. "As a priest, you sacrifice a lot of things for others' faith, so you can bring Christ to people.

"I see it as a great opportunity to sacrifice for God. I don't see it as negative. That is at the core of Christianity, what Jesus did every day of His life, up to the very end. And that's where it comes from for me: following in the footsteps of Jesus. If you stay close to God, God will show you what He wants you to do."

Questions

Now that Mr. Tygett has answered some of his own questions, he hears some from other people, including "You have everything going for you; why would you give it up?"

"Culture is very self-centered and tells us that we should concentrate on ourselves," he explained. "Those things are not necessarily bad, but if they're your main focus...."

The Albany Diocese "has come to feel like home," he said. "I see this as God's will. As I am guided by the great people in the Diocese, I'm growing closer to God. I'm finding my identity, who I am, in what a priest does: celibacy, the sacraments, being with people as they are born, live and die.

"My parents are happy for me. I'm happy."

(Bishop's Appeal funds from Catholics across the Diocese subsidize his seminary education, and Mr. Tygett feels "very humbled. It gives me hope that people haven't given up on this Church and on the priesthood.")

(5/4/06) [[In-content Ad]]