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dtatum
Guest
Does anyone know of contemplative/semicontemplative orders for men in their 50’s ?
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FCEGM
Guest
The Discalced Carmelite Friars of the Washington, D. C. Province have some flexibility as to the age requirement:
ocdfriarsvocation.com/
Also, I know that the Discalced Carmelites of the Western Province have allowed some older men to join as brothers. Their website isn’t complete, but the contact information can be found here:
ocdwest.org/sanjose.html
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dtatum
Guest
Thanks for the info. I will check the sites. I’ve have heard of older people receiving permission from their Bishops to either enter a religious order or begin their own. Any comments are appreciated. Blessings,D.
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Dale_M
Guest
The matter of older vocations seems to be frequent question here. I suppose its not surprising when you consider people are living longer and in better health than in decades past.
Perhaps there is a need for a new religious order which is oriented towards older men (or women).
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dtatum
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I am certain that you are right in this. I say this because I personnaly know of several such individuals who “long in their hearts” for such intamacy with Our Lord. The diffilculty stands that most of the church’s Orders, do not account for this from all the vocation info I have seen. I do feel however, that there is such a place for our service. I continue to pray and ask the Holy Spirit’s guidance and assistance. We thank you for joining in our prayer. God Bless, D
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augieboo
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Excellent idea!
How about naming it “The Congregation of the Beloved Disciple” – since he lived to a ripe old age.
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popsep
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If there is a lote of older men that want to be Religious ,when we my just have to make our oun and start it at 45yrs and older. We are now living up to 80 or 90 yrs now so we can give the Church a good 20 or 40 yrs and think that is good. It is funny that they say “If you here God calling you harden not your heart and answer him”. So when I used just that to ask to become part of an order, They said " OH NOT YOU" you are to old. That is when I asked them were did it say that GOD STOPS CALLING AT 45 YRS…
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atassina
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what are the practical considerations for older vocations-- including health issues.
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albertziggy
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I think one of the challenges one should consider is how to relate to people many years younger than you. Religious orders/congregations normally accept people within the 20-35 year range. A person in his 40s would really need to exert effort in trying to think the way people in this age group do.
Another challenge is how to adapt to the religious way of life, particularly with obedience. How many of those in the 40s and above are readily willing to follow orders without question from a novice master who is in his 20s and 30s.
Just my two cents worth.
albertziggy
Another challenge is how to adapt to the religious way of life, particularly with obedience. How many of those in the 40s and above are readily willing to follow orders without question from a novice master who is in his 20s and 30s.
Just my two cents worth.
albertziggy
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atassina
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Men in their twenties are simply my younger brothers. Why would that be a problem? All of my superiors at work are in their 20s, 30s or 40s. I regularly take orders from them on a daily basis. I just simply do it. Why would this be a problem for me in religious life? Obedience is simply a matter of humility. There is no age in the Kingdom of God.
I am in my early fifties. You still haven’t addressed the essence of my question: What are the practical considerations–such as health–that religious orders or diocesan vocation directors would consider. For example, a man truly believes God is calling him to be a priest. He will serve at any cost. Yet, the vocation directors believe that he wants to use the priesthood as a retirement plan. Address this issue and other specific age related issues.
I am in my early fifties. You still haven’t addressed the essence of my question: What are the practical considerations–such as health–that religious orders or diocesan vocation directors would consider. For example, a man truly believes God is calling him to be a priest. He will serve at any cost. Yet, the vocation directors believe that he wants to use the priesthood as a retirement plan. Address this issue and other specific age related issues.
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barb_finnegan
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You’re right, albert, especially with regards to obedience.I think one of the challenges one should consider is how to relate to people many years younger than you. Religious orders/congregations normally accept people within the 20-35 year range. A person in his 40s would really need to exert effort in trying to think the way people in this age group do.
Another challenge is how to adapt to the religious way of life, particularly with obedience. How many of those in the 40s and above are readily willing to follow orders without question from a novice master who is in his 20s and 30s.
Just my two cents worth.
albertziggy
I heard it said on Mother Angelica’s program many years ago, when an older woman called about religious vocations. Mother told her, in effect, that older people were ‘too set in their ways’.
I’m going to be 56 next month, and it can be very depressing whenever I go on websites for the ‘good’ religious communities and notice that many of them will not consider older/belated vocations. It seems that once you pass the age of 35, you are ‘no good’.
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atassina
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I’m still waiting for somebody to address my original question about health.
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TiggerS
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I will have a try to answer you.
I think your first paragraph makes a good point. One problem that I have been made aware of by a religious order is that they have very very few young vocations and by far a minority in membership and not very far along the way in formation - and most of their professed members are either in advanced age or getting there and they are reluctant to accept mature aged vocations unless they do receive more young vocations. I was assured that older and mature vocations can be invaluable to a community but the older we get the more likely we are to develop health problems. Another religious order I know of only had one relatively young professed sister and no novices, and the bulk of all the heavier work was falling on that younger sister. Hence I think sometimes not accepting mature age vocations may have some practical reason, rather than a stricly personal one in the actual applicant.
As to your second paragaraph - I think that it is entirely up to each religious order or the diocesan vocation director whom they will consider and whom they will not and the obligation of course is theirs before God to be discerning about an actual vocation. Are some who do have vocations rejected? This is a possibility, it is possible, although probably in practise a remote one. We are desperately in need of vocations and I am sure that leadership is well aware of this if they do reject an applicant as well as their awareness that a vocation to the priesthood or religious life is a quite serious matter.
Choosing religious life or the priesthood as a ‘retirement plan’ probably indicates some sort of self interest - an objective in the worldly interests of oneself rather than an actual calling from God. Although I do think to be accused of such would be absolutely crushing and not to be made without clear evidence is my personal viewpoint.
I think from the personal perspective, it is ok and even necessary for the person to ask why one may have been rejected and to expect an answer.
The final point is that the three signs of an actual vocation generally are:
Attraction to the life
Ability to lead the life
Acceptance into the life
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atassina
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Yes, this is a good, reasoned response. I just wish I had listened to God earlier in my life instead of running away from him. Now that I am racing deeper into His heart, I just hope he calls me to the priesthood.
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TiggerS
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We are all called to holiness without exception. A vocation could be said to be God’s invitation to attain holiness in a certain way of life with a promise that He will grant the Graces necessary to live that way of life and all this is confirmed by the particular way of life that attracts us accepting us into that way of life. All is Grace as St. Therese of Lisieux said. A vocation is an invitation and not a Divine Command and hence, even if we seem to refuse an invitation to a certain way of life for whatever reason, The Lord is not so miserly and mean as to refuse us hence all we need to attain holiness and Unity with Him. Though we may have declined an invitation God continues with His Grace to draw us to Him. Regrets re decisions made earlier in our life are rather common especially once we realize that to decide in that direction positively correcting our earlier decision may be no longer possible. It is a cross and the cross is the road to holiness and the cross, large or small, will exist in all ways of life since it is the road to holiness. The cross is our symbol and we recognize the Sufferings of Jesus as the means of our salvation but sometimes cannot see how that still lives on today and in us also united to Jesus.
I hope and pray He will call you to the priesthood too! Early fifties may be too old along the way for some religious orders, but I think the diocesan priesthood and certainly the deaconate is open to late vocations even in early fifties in many diocese. Do not give up and continue to pray and to apply where you can.
God bless - TS
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atassina
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Thanks. I like the part about the cross. People in my parish are encouraging me to become a priest.
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elizabeth61
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I do not know about male communities and communities in the USA. I have found several (mostly contemplated ones) who do consider belated voations. Thye look more to the person and what his/her lifestyle has been and how much life experience they have. I am in contact with several communities in the United KIngdom which have no difficulty in accepting people above 40 they think they are an asset to their community. Many the USA communities must start thinking that only young people are called to religious life. God does not stop at a certain age to call people to follow him radically. For communities to make that switch is hard, but eventually they gain people who are commited to community life and in radically following Chist.
Good luck on your search and don’t give up. I have not!
Good luck on your search and don’t give up. I have not!
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TiggerS
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Good comments. I think sometimes, however - but not always - the reasons religious orders are reluctant or even refuse more mature vocations over say 50 or even 60, are practical considerations if their current membership is getting on in years when more health problems have either set in or are likely to do so. I have been told that quite a few communities would be open to mature vocations and value them immensely if only they had younger professed sisters and this, of course, is due to practical considerations.
Probably most communities will take more mature vocations if it is practical and will consider a late vocation on an individual basis. They are probably quite foolish to my mind if they do not, but I do know that they exist. It is probably more difficult to make radical changes when we get older, but it is not impossible to do so and such really radical changes can be asked in secular life not only in religious life - and we manage to make the adjustment. With God’s Grace all things are possible.
Nowadays sometimes, I think that there are both men and women who for whatever reason are unable to enter religious life, do take up a quite radical Gospel living lifestyle in the lay state and sometimes even vowed privately to the evangelical counsels. In our parish we had a homily on vocations and included in it was the single state, which was a very happy surprise to me that the single state was classed as a vocation, which of course it can be. However sometimes there is a resistance to this fact usually by those not called. There are of course too secular institutes that are institutes of consecrated life in the lay state, third orders of seculars too attached to established religious orders. “In my Father’s House there are many mansions”. I know it can be a real heartbreak and cross if one feels one has a religious vocation to have a mountain in the way and one that seems to be an impossible mountain to climb. But God does not instill the desire to give oneself fully to Him alone without also providing the means and necessary Graces. It may mean that I have to let go of what I want - and often these sorts of very painful detachments, or letting go, can make saints. That is, of course, if God is asking one to detach or let go. A good spiritual director is pure gold in the spiritual life.
But for those who are getting late in years and feel they have a religious vocation, keep trying and looking as long as the desire persists. “Ask and you shall receive, knock and the door shall be opened to you”.
In very many ways, we are living through a difficult time in Church history including that we do seem to have more mature aged vocations, but due to the lack in communities of younger healthy professed, it is not practical at times to consider such vocations. Let us pray that more younger vocations will be forthcoming, which may open up religious life to more mature vocations in future years.
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TiggerS
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I am glad that your fellow parishioners are encouraging you! Don’t give up, keep applying where possible and asking questions. We sure need more good priests. I will keep you in daily prayer that your heart’s desire will be realized and it will - it may be however not quite as you imagine. Or it may.
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donsena
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Hello, what oppurtunities are availalble to people in their late 50’s as far as vocations go?
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