Should i seek a religious vocation/life ? or am i confused?

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Hello, I have, in the past few months become so Catholic that I am considering becoming a priest, or religious brother, etc. I am not sure what to do? I’m 18 years old, and for years I thought I wanted to become a nurse, and was so sure of it, but now I want nothing more than to serve the lord. I don’t want a material life, I don’t want material things, I DONT WANT MONEY, I hate money, money is the seed of evil I don’t want anything that I don’t need. I want to work hands on with the poor, and sick, day and night. I don’t want to be clean and comfortable in my own home, knowing that some child or human is out there starving, or in need of a home or shelter. I’ve delve so deep into my faith that I cant get out (not that I would want to), that I’m not happy if I’m not at church anymore. I’m not happy if I’m not celebrating mass, I’m tired of living In a material world full of sin and vanity. What should I do? or what vocation would be good for me? I want a mix of helping the poor and sick, but also praising the lord at the same time with mass and prayer. Am I just confused? I used to want expensive cars and a huge house and nice things, but now I see that I don’t need or want any of that. I don’t want anything to my name. The only thing holding me back is this material life, and I’m sick of it, Ive lived enough time in sin, and want NO MORE of it. What should I do to make sure this is what I really want? Thank you and God bless!
 
Speak first to your parish priest or confessor, and then you may also want to contact the Vocations director of your diocese/archdiocese and find out what you need to do to begin discerning your vocation. Be aware, you will need to be patient and obedient. It generally takes time.

In the meantime, keep praying. 👍

I will also pray for you. :gopray2:
 
There are orders of monks who specialize in caring for the sick; that may be your vocation. Or the priesthood, for the spiritually sick 🙂

The poster above suggsted the correct course of action.
 
I think you’re confused. The reason I say this is because you really can’t be a religious without a liberal bishop telling you what to do. For example, our bishop here said priests can’t pray in front of the abortion clinic, and that they couldn’t say certain conservative things, or else their faculties would be stripped.

We really don’t live in a time of religious anymore.

I thought about being a priest once. When I was little, that’s all I wanted to be, but then I realized later on that God was sparing me from liberal bishops, liberal people, and liberal priests.

Pursue nursing instead. You can take care of people that way. You’re very young, which means emotions come and go like the weather.

Remember two things. You don’t need to be a religious to be holy, and money is not the root of all evil. The love of it is.
 
** A Vocation is a gift given. It comes like Faith comes to a person–slowly, surely and with time. Any vocation comes over time to a person, and like all things discovered, you have to study what is coming to you.

People like to use the phrase, ‘falling in love’, but over my years, now I am 75, I think, you fall into faith, first, and follow the Faith to see where it is taking you. gh**
 
I think that to become a good nurse is a noble career and the skills learned would be welcome and put to good use in most religious communities, esp. if you want to work with the poor. Go to school for the next two-three years and concentrate on the nursing and God will show you your path. Right now you seem conflicted and you need time to focus so getting an education is really a good way to go, whatever you decide on. Peace.
 
hausofferni said:
Hello, I have, in the past few months become so Catholic that I am considering becoming a priest, or religious brother, etc. I am not sure what to do? I’m 18 years old, and for years I thought I wanted to become a nurse, and was so sure of it, but now I want nothing more than to serve the lord. I don’t want a material life, I don’t want material things, I DONT WANT MONEY, I hate money, money is the seed of evil I don’t want anything that I don’t need. I want to work hands on with the poor, and sick, day and night. I don’t want to be clean and comfortable in my own home, knowing that some child or human is out there starving, or in need of a home or shelter. I’ve delve so deep into my faith that I cant get out (not that I would want to), that I’m not happy if I’m not at church anymore. I’m not happy if I’m not celebrating mass, I’m tired of living In a material world full of sin and vanity. What should I do? or what vocation would be good for me? I want a mix of helping the poor and sick, but also praising the lord at the same time with mass and prayer. Am I just confused? I used to want expensive cars and a huge house and nice things, but now I see that I don’t need or want any of that. I don’t want anything to my name. The only thing holding me back is this material life, and I’m sick of it, Ive lived enough time in sin, and want NO MORE of it. What should I do to make sure this is what I really want? Thank you and God bless!
Click to expand...
There are 32 uses of the word “I” in this paragraph, and only one of The Lord and one of God (the pro forma “God bless”) at the end. I think you’ve been very clear here about what you want and what you don’t want. Now it’s time to see what the Lord has to say about all of that.
 
I praise you if you do go for a vocation. There are not many of us willing to make such a noble sacrifice, and to serve in such a worthy cause. But then nursing is also challenging and worthy - you’ve given yourself brave choices!

We need more to lead the religious life - even to seriously consider it is a wonderful thing! I was never so brave.

Whichever you choose, God bless you! 👍
 
hausofferni said:
Hello, I have, in the past few months become so Catholic that I am considering becoming a priest, or religious brother, etc. I am not sure what to do? I’m 18 years old, and for years I thought I wanted to become a nurse, and was so sure of it, but now I want nothing more than to serve the lord. I don’t want a material life, I don’t want material things, I DONT WANT MONEY, I hate money, money is the seed of evil I don’t want anything that I don’t need. I want to work hands on with the poor, and sick, day and night. I don’t want to be clean and comfortable in my own home, knowing that some child or human is out there starving, or in need of a home or shelter. I’ve delve so deep into my faith that I cant get out (not that I would want to), that I’m not happy if I’m not at church anymore. I’m not happy if I’m not celebrating mass, I’m tired of living In a material world full of sin and vanity. What should I do? or what vocation would be good for me? I want a mix of helping the poor and sick, but also praising the lord at the same time with mass and prayer. Am I just confused? I used to want expensive cars and a huge house and nice things, but now I see that I don’t need or want any of that. I don’t want anything to my name. The only thing holding me back is this material life, and I’m sick of it, Ive lived enough time in sin, and want NO MORE of it. What should I do to make sure this is what I really want? Thank you and God bless!
Click to expand...
I admire that you are seeking and discerning. I was looking at discernment vocations for my daughter and found this great website. Hope you find it useful. It talks about the contemplative and the active orders. Also, reviews the scripture reflection of Martha vs Mary (Active vs Contemplative). It was very interesting way of looking at discernment. I will add you to my prayers as well.

religious-vocation.com/discerning_religious_vocation.html#.VhLw0-mJnHh
 
We are ALL called to mortify ourselves,
“we believe that one died, therefore ALL
died, that those who live will no longer
live for THEMSELVES, but for Him who
died and rose again ON THEIR BEHALF”
2 Cor. 5:14-15 It is Christ in you that is
yearning for these things! But we belong
not ONLY to Christ, but to the Church,
His Body, that is WHY you love mass,
is that not true? We are NOT alone in
our desires, we are ONE with the mystic-
al Body of Christ, working out our sal-
vation thru the good works done by our
Church, of which Christ is the Lord
and Head. See Eph. 2:10
 
It is hard to give extensive advice in a forum such as this, since it does not give the opportunity to know the person and their experience. One question I have, from your account, is: Is this desire something that has grown over a period of time or is it something of more sudden onset?

IF you really wish to try a vocation to religious life, then personally I would counsel you to look at that first. The process of becoming a Religious spans years, in any event, with ample opportunity for you (and the community you are looking at) to discern if you are really called to religious life…and specifically to that particular religious congregation or institute of consecrated life. There is also opportunity for spiritual direction across the entire process, which I think would be very helpful. If the discernment is no, then you can always pursue your interest in nursing.

A real problem today, though, is that students emerge from their years at college with a desire to try religious life but they are impeded because of enormous student loans needing to be repaid before they can try their vocation and this delays even further their entrance.

There are various ways in which, in the context of religious life, you might be able to pursue your desire either to be a nurse or to minister to the poorest of the poor or to do both – especially if the religious community’s charism is health care, such as the Alexians or the Camillians.

In monastic life, too, especially in the larger monasteries, many times one of the monks, once perpetually professed, will study and become a nurse and will work in the monastery’s infirmary – but the decision rests with the Superior as to whether or not to send any given monk for such training. In such a case, you would indeed be doing nursing as well as praising God through a life of liturgical prayer…but opportunities to work with the sick poor outside the monastery are significantly fewer for monks than other types of Religious or Consecrated.

You might have a look at www.alexianbrothers.org or www.camillians.org or www.religiousbrotherhood.com and note the communities working in health care – such as the recently founded Friars of the Sick Poor of Los Angeles.

There are many wonderful young Religious today and many great religious communities.

In religious life, though, one always has to subordinate one’s personal desires to the work that is given you in obedience. On the other hand, joining a community whose purpose is healthcare means you will most likely work in that field in some fashion.

May God guide you.
 
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