The “Sons of Thunder” vocations club at St. Bartholomew Church in Scotch Plains, New Jersey. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Matthew Gonzalez
CNA Staff, Dec 7, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).
A little over a year ago, Father Matthew Gonzalez, a priest in the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, had the idea to create a group for boys in grades eight to 12 that focuses on vocations and what it means to be a Catholic man in today’s world.
“The Lord has placed a strong desire for vocations on my heart. I am convinced the Lord is still calling young men today,” Gonzalez told CNA.
“A few years ago, I brought several of our parish young men to the Quo Vadis summer camp, a weeklong experience focused on authentic Christian manhood. They came home with a hunger for more — more faith, more fraternity, more service. That experience planted the seed,” he explained.
Soon afterward, Gonzalez started the Sons of Thunder, which takes its name from Mark 3:17, where Jesus gave that nickname to the apostles James and John. The group meets once a month at St. Bartholomew Church in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, and currently has 12 members who come together for prayer and fellowship.
Each monthly meeting starts with one of the boys leading evening prayer and another one handling the readings. Then the group watches a video from the Knights of Columbus called “Into the Breach,” a series on authentic masculinity that explores topics such as the importance of prayer and how to become a leader. A discussion follows the video.
Gonzalez shared that the aim of the group is to inspire the boys to model themselves after the ultimate Catholic man — Jesus.
“Every meeting always includes three pillars: prayer, faith formation, and fun. We pray together, learn together, and build brotherhood together,” he said.
The group also frequently visits the local seminary and takes part in community service projects.
“We’ve done a garden project in the rectory backyard, organized service for the needy and for religious communities, and held a beach cleanup day. Serving others is central to our mission,” Gonzalez said.
Another central focus of the group is to introduce the boys to the priesthood.
“People often say we have a vocations crisis. I don’t believe that. There is no crisis in vocations — the Lord is still calling, just as he always has. What we are facing is a crisis of meaning and purpose in our culture, and this affects young people deeply,” Gonzalez said.
“Sons of Thunder exists to help restore a sense of identity as Christian men, of purpose, and of mission. When young men know who they are and what they’re made for, they can hear the Lord’s call more clearly.”
Gonzalez recently started a new assignment as rector of the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, so the Sons of Thunder will look slightly different going forward. The group’s lay leader, who has helped Gonzalez run the group since its creation, will now be taking over the responsibilities of running the group.
“As I begin my new mission as the rector of the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, I’m spending time learning the heartbeat of this parish family. But I absolutely hope to expand youth ministry here, and one way to do that is by beginning a new chapter of Sons of Thunder,” Gonzalez said. “I want the young men of this community to experience what our first group experienced.”
For members who are currently in the group, were previously in the group, or will join one day, Gonzalez said his “greatest hope is that they learn the faith is worth living — even when it demands sacrifice and self-gift. And at the heart of it all is relationship: a relationship with God and the relationships they build with one another. If they leave knowing they are loved by God and made for greatness, the mission of Sons of Thunder is fulfilled.”
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