What is expected?

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margarita_maria

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Hi I am new here and this is my first post. I was wondering if a person has a sincere desire to serve Christ and alot of experience such as from volunteering etc. But due to circumstances did not make it all the way in High School to earn a GED and finds it very hard to learn in the classroom after a few years.

Does this stop me from pursuing my vocation, many orders want education, I have everything but this and wish it wasnt an obstacle to my vocation I love Jesus so much and just want to be His Bride.

Any suggestions…thank you.😊
 
While a High School Diploma or GED is certainly a plus, and sometimes requested of you by religious orders, there are those who do not list it as a requirement.

It really depends on the kind of order. Those who teach children definitely must have a diploma or GED because they need to go to college to earn a Bachelors in Education. But the orders that focus more on healthcare may not require you to have one. I have been through CNA school and though I have a high school diploma, it was not a requirement.

You might also want to look at cloistered orders as well. Since you wouldn’t be working in a public ministry, it is less of a requirement.

If you know which charism (Franciscan, Carmelite, Benedictine, etc.) you are interested in, I could help you find some orders. Please let me know! 🙂
 
Sister Mary Martha (of the blog “Ask Sister Mary Martha”) comments that back in the day there were “house nuns”. These were the ones who didn’t really fit the teaching bill, but still had a genuine vocation. Their duties would be the general upkeep of the convent.

Though they were not engaged in the external works of their order, they still lived to the full the fundamental charism of all religious life - the pursuit of divine perfection. St Therese of Lisieux was a “house nun” after all.

These days I’m sure people would be all offended at calling someone a “house nun”, how it mocks their intellect or something. The fact is, however, is that every job can be made holy by the end it serves. If, like St Therese, someone launders the habits for Christ, then it is holy work.
 
If you are looking for active Carmelites, I would recommend my future (God-willing) community! They are the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus. We have different provinces, and I am looking at the Northern Province (I’ve already applied; I’m spending 6 wks with them starting Saturday!) in Wauwatosa (Milwaukee), WI. I’ve never seen a high school diploma or GED listed as a requirement, but I would still contact Sr. Maria Giuseppe (the Provincial Superior) to make sure.

carmelitedcjnorth.org/

I’ve also been to the St. Louis (Central Province) convent as well. They are a little bit different in their formation and requirements, but ultimately have the same goals:

carmelitedcj.org/

They have Provinces in the Southwest (California, Texas) and Canada.

Southwestern Province
carmelitesistersdcj.org/

Canadian Province
carmelitesistersdcj.ca/

You could also look at the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart in Los Angeles, CA. I don’t see a diploma or GED listed either, but again, contact them to be sure.

carmelitesistersocd.com/

If you need to look at cloistered orders too, I could research some for you, but it would have to be in a few days because I am leaving on Saturday and I’ll have limited internet access. 😃 Let me know! God bless!
 
Toribus said:
Sister Mary Martha (of the blog “Ask Sister Mary Martha”) comments that back in the day there were “house nuns”. These were the ones who didn’t really fit the teaching bill, but still had a genuine vocation. Their duties would be the general upkeep of the convent.

Though they were not engaged in the external works of their order, they still lived to the full the fundamental charism of all religious life - the pursuit of divine perfection. St Therese of Lisieux was a “house nun” after all.

These days I’m sure people would be all offended at calling someone a “house nun”, how it mocks their intellect or something. The fact is, however, is that every job can be made holy by the end it serves. If, like St Therese, someone launders the habits for Christ, then it is holy work.
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St. Therese was a cloistered Discalced Carmelite nun bound by solemn vows. She was NOT a “house nun!”

What the sister was talking about were the coadjutrix/lay sisters who did the “grunt work” so the other sisters could attend to their apostolates. The lay sisters made simple vows, or in some cases, just promises.

Vatican II did away with coadjutrix sisters–said it was healthier for the regular sisters to do housework. Although I agree with my Church, that is one thing I didn’t agree with–doing away with the lay sisters. There are young people who have stated at various places on the internet that they are feeling called to this particular vocation, and they’ve never heard of it before. That should be significant.

The reason why there were “Mothers” in the convent was to designate the “choir nuns” from the coadjutrix sisters. There was supposedly something unequal about that, so that was another reason why the job was suppressed.

If you really want to read about a “house sister,” I would suggest Sister Josepha Menendez (sp?) and The Way of Divine Love. She was a coadjutrix sister, and there are lovely descriptions of her at work in her own words in the book.

HTH.

Blessings,
Cloisters
 
I’m sorry I am not fully informed about the history of the women’s orders, from what I had read I thought they were comparable to the cooperator brothers that we once had in the Order of Preachers (such as St Martin de Porres).

Cooperator brothers were men who felt called to participate directly in the life and apostolate of the Dominicans, but did not have the intellectual rigour necessary for priestly training (it was much harder then than it is nowadays). Since the Dominicans are an order of Preachers - a job once reserved for bishops - most of them were expected to go on to Holy Orders.

Those who could not remained cooperator brothers, wearing a slightly different habit (black scapular instead of white), and doing the jobs around the priory. However, in all other things they were full members of the order. They ate, prayed in choir, and lived in the same quarters as the clerical friars. Like in monasteries, they also assisted their priest-brothers at Mass.

This particular life within the Order was never formally suppressed, but effectively killed in the 60s by the general council. They made some small changes which seemed to have reasonable arguments (eg removing the distinctions between the habit of cooperator brothers and clerical friars, since they are both equally Friars Preachers) but by eliminating the distinguishing factors quashed all future vocations. It’s a great pity.
 
Toribus said:
I’m sorry I am not fully informed about the history of the women’s orders, from what I had read I thought they were comparable to the cooperator brothers that we once had in the Order of Preachers (such as St Martin de Porres).

Cooperator brothers were men who felt called to participate directly in the life and apostolate of the Dominicans, but did not have the intellectual rigour necessary for priestly training (it was much harder then than it is nowadays). Since the Dominicans are an order of Preachers - a job once reserved for bishops - most of them were expected to go on to Holy Orders.

Those who could not remained cooperator brothers, wearing a slightly different habit (black scapular instead of white), and doing the jobs around the priory. However, in all other things they were full members of the order. They ate, prayed in choir, and lived in the same quarters as the clerical friars. Like in monasteries, they also assisted their priest-brothers at Mass.

This particular life within the Order was never formally suppressed, but effectively killed in the 60s by the general council. They made some small changes which seemed to have reasonable arguments (eg removing the distinctions between the habit of cooperator brothers and clerical friars, since they are both equally Friars Preachers) but by eliminating the distinguishing factors quashed all future vocations. It’s a great pity.
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Sounds like that politically correct nonsense so prevalent back then. Brothers can’t be equal to priests–they aren’t ordained! But we should remember what Jesus said about power–don’t lord it over others.

The Carthusians have donate brothers. I should think there would be a great similarity between donates and cooperators.

At any rate, I am admittedly perplexed by the omission of this particular vocation. I will be blogging about it sometime in the future. If those who are feeling called to do housework in a convent while living under simple vows make their presence known–and have one particular contact point–they have a greater chance of Rome bringing it back.

Blessings,
Cloisters
 
margarita_maria said:
Hi I am new here and this is my first post. I was wondering if a person has a sincere desire to serve Christ and alot of experience such as from volunteering etc. But due to circumstances did not make it all the way in High School to earn a GED and finds it very hard to learn in the classroom after a few years.

Does this stop me from pursuing my vocation, many orders want education, I have everything but this and wish it wasnt an obstacle to my vocation I love Jesus so much and just want to be His Bride.

Any suggestions…thank you.😊
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Margarita,
Some things you might do to see whether or not it would be a hinderance is :
  1. Speak to a priest or spiritual director or vocations liason for your diocese.
  2. I might discern if you did have a vocation? then perhaps try to find an order that did not have a high school education as a prerequisite.
While most orders might wish you to have a ged? ( Or diploma) Others might be willing [if you have verified you have a vocation]… might be willing to help you with finishing the ged or might even forgo that requirement.

Again I would discern the vocation… see if there are any other reasons that might bar you from religious life… then perhaps see if you can find a community??

You might find a sister from a community or apostolate that appeals to you and see if they might have suggestions??

I hope that you might find answers to your questions…

blessings of peace and all good!*
 
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