nun’s

1. a nun’s life A Blog About Being a Catholic Nun in Today’s World For more information or other vocations resources, please contact Graeme Munks, convenor of the Rosebank Parish PPC Vocations sub-committee, on 083 235 6813 or email abbot@iafrica.com

2. By Sister Julie Decoding Formation: A Basic Introduction My good friend is preparing for her final vows so I’ve been thinking a lot about my own journey to final vows. The basic elements of the journey of professing vows in religious life are not totally unlike those of the journey of professing vows for marriage. When a couple gets married they usually get engaged first. Engagement is a period of time when the couple publicly pledges their commitment to one another, prepares for marriage, and continues to get to know one another more deeply. In religious life, the “engagement” period is known as formation. Formation is a time when a person pledges their commitment to a particular religious community (that is, they are not still “dating” other communities or people, though they are free to leave should they choose to), prepares to become a religious within that particular community’s tradition, and continues to get to know the members of the community and herself or himself as well. Each religious community may have its own particular nuances to the formation process, however, the basis for the formation process is discernment and the pattern for formation is similar. Discernment is the grounding of all major life choices, though often we may not be conscious of the fact that we are discerning. Basically, discernment is nothing more than a fancy word that means figuring out what God is telling us. A person who is considering becoming a religious (a nun, sister, brother, or monk) is in a discernment mode. The whole process of formation is one of discernment as a person enters more deeply in relationship with and conversation with God. While discernment to enter religious life may technically come to an “end” when one professes final vows, it continues for the rest of one’s life as a person deepens their appreciation of that call or encounters new dimensions of that call or discerns “little” calls within the big call. Who Me? It all starts with that tiny little part of you that decides that you are going to be open to God’s call. After that, it’s all over. Being open to God’s call sounds like a good and holy thing (and it is), but it can also be rather messy, complicated, and downright uncomfortable. God has this way of thinking that he is, well, God, so often his ideas are not exactly what I had in mind when I first decided to be open to him. Like the whole religious life thing. Being a nun was not at all on my radar screen. I was taught by a few nuns and even had a couple nun friends… but I did not under any circumstances want to be a nun. So when I was confronted with the possibility (because I thought I was being good by trying the “open” thing), I kept thinking, “Who me? What did I ever do to suggest that I’d think this was a good thing for me?” Turns out that being a nun was the best thing that could have happened to me. But it was a difficult process of letting go of my assumptions about nuns and religious life, coming to terms with my relationship with the Roman Catholic Church, overhauling my relationships with others, and taking a sober look at who I truly am. Even though the process was a bit rocky for me, I wouldn’t change any of it because it helped me to be more in touch with reality, God, myself and others. Even if I didn’t continue in religious life, it would have been one of the greatest blessings of my life. The initial discovery of a possible vocation is not always this rocky. I for one went kicking and screaming, but others can be very welcoming of God’s call to become a religious. Either way, we all have to go through the process of finding a real answer to the question “who me?” for it forces us to think about how and why God may be calling you, not somebody next door, but YOU. That can be an awesome and terrifying thing. At the same time it can be attractive and joyful. The key is to hang in there with all the questioning. Whether it results in a vocation to religious life or not, it doesn’t really matter. The fact is that God is calling you to a deeper relationship with Himself. He is trusting that you are ready for this next moment in your lifelong adventure with Him. Maybe ultimately you are being drawn to religious life. But what is so much more important than that is being drawn into a relationship with God, wherever that relationship may take you. Embrace the questions, live into the mystery, find a home for both the feelings of terror and attraction, pray, and see what today brings. Initial Enquiry Once a person has a fairly good idea that they are attracted to the religious lifestyle of a particular community, she may enter an informal period called initial inquiry. As the name suggests, this a time when a person first approaches the community to learn more about the community and the process of joining. Each community has a sister who is responsible for relating with women discerning a vocation. The sister is called a vocation director (or similar title). The sister and woman may exchange emails or letters or have phone conversations. They may meet in person in the woman’s sphere of life or the sister’s or someplace in between. • It all depends on what the discerning person is comfortable with. There should be no pressure here. Just some time, however long, to become acquainted with the sister and her community. The sister is also there to support the person in her discernment even if that discernment means connecting with other religious communities or even pursuing a call that doesn’t lead to religious life. This is a wonderful time of exploration, discovering new things about oneself and God, feeling a little scared and excited at the same time, and striving to remain open to the Spirit, wherever the Spirit may lead. • Entering a Community • Once a person has gone through the period of initial inquiry (discerning and learning more about a particular religious community) she may feel ready to take the next step which is formally preparing for applying to enter the community. The period of time when a person prepares to apply to join a community is called aspirancy or pre-candidacy. This period gets its name “aspirancy” because the person “aspires” to pursue her call to religious life through a particular community. The main work of this period of time is to continue the discernment and prayer that has been ongoing both in the life of the aspirant and in the community. • The person interested in joining begins to more formally study and experience the community’s lifestyle and spirituality. She may be invited to attend certain formation events or community events so that she can truly get a feel for the community. It is so important during this time that the person meet sisters, gets to know them, and share her journey with them. Developing and tending to relationships are important aspects of community life. • In addition to the ongoing formation and getting to know one another, there is a formal application process. Once there is a sense from both the woman and the community that the process should continue, the woman may ask to apply to formally enter the community. • After this time, the community will convey it’s response to the woman applying. When the woman is accepted, she may enter the period of postulancy or candidacy. • To follow Sister Julie’s journey further, or to read or make comments on her blog, visit the website http://anunslife.org • Here there are many more resoucres, including a Vocation Forum, a Virtual Vocations Retreat, and a Life Choices Discernment Program. • For questions more specific to the Archdiocese of Johannesburg, contact Fr. Lionel Sham at 011 402 6400 or email admincatholic@icon.co.za