Do not grant newcomers to the monastic life an easy entry, but do as the Apostle says: "Test the spirits to see whether they are from God." (1 Jn 4:1).
If the newcomer keeps knocking at the door, and if he patiently bears the difficulties ... and persists in his petition ..., then let him be granted admittance.
A senior shall be assigned to him who is skilled in winning souls, to watch over him with the utmost care and see whether the novice truly seeks God...
Let all the hard and rugged ways by which we walk towards God be set before him.Rule of Saint Benedict, ch. 58
A vocation is perceived in various ways by the one who receives it.
For some, it is a general desire to consecrate one's life to God, to the Church, or to the person of Christ.
For others, an explicit attraction to monastic life is present from the very beginning.
Discerning a vocation is an art. It consists in helping a person to perceive and accept God's will for them—that is, what will make that person deeply happy.
It begins with an initial contact, followed by one or more stays at the guesthouse, with the possibility of working alongside the brothers.
Duration: at least one year.
The postulant joins the community in all things and meets regularly with the novice master.
Duration: 2 years.
If the postulant asks to become a novice, a simple decision of the abbot (after taking counsel) suffices.
The postulant then receives the novice's habit (white robe, white scapular and belt).
Duration: 5 years.
If the novice asks to make vows for five years (or for one year, renewable annually), the community gathers (in conventual chapter, reserved to the solemnly professed) to discuss his case. An absolute majority vote is required.
The novice then makes his vows in chapter.
Duration: usque ad mortem.
If the temporarily professed monk asks to become a monk permanently, the conventual chapter is convened once again and a vote is required.
The monk then makes his solemn vows in the church during the Eucharist.
The priestly vocation is not an essential part of the monastic vocation, but for one who has received that call it adds a very important dimension that helps him unite himself more closely to Christ the Sovereign Priest.
After all these stages, the monk embarks upon the most demanding one: lifelong perseverance.
Further details are available in the Constitutions of our Order.
