When's the best time to go to Seminary/Novitiate?

[hamburglar]

I have been discerning a call for the past two years, and I finally think that God is calling me to be a Priest, Monk, or Friar.

I am currently halfway through my first year in college. I have made some good friendships with other that are discerning a call to the Priesthood. I am good friends with one guy that is also in his first year of college, and will be leaving after this year to go to seminary through his home diocese. My RA, who is a Junior, has become a good friend of mine, and he is probably going to go with the Jesuits. I have another acquaintance, who is a senior, who is going with the Vincentians.

Now, I have been throwing around the possibilities of Carmelite, Benedictine, and Diocesan Priest. But now, when should I leave for the seminary/novitiate? Obviously, I need to talk with some people, which I have already sorta begun.

After I decide which particular vocation in the Church God is calling me to, when should I “enroll”? I don’t want to go through 4 years of college, then go 6-8 more years of seminary when I could just do like 8 years of seminary if I were to leave now.

What, besides pray, shall someone such as myself do, and when?

 

[BarbaraTherese]

What a joyful matter to be pondering!!!

Being an Aussie I am not at all sure how old you might be going only by your education level. My advice would be to contact the Orders that interest you and have a chat with them and then take it from there letting the situation unfold.
I have a feeling that Canon Law states the youngest to be accepted into a noviciate is 17years…but others may be more helpful in that as I am not at all familiar with Canon Law really.
As well as that I would have a talk with my parish priest and weight up his advice too…I think most Orders if not all do require a statement from one’s parish priest. When I entered a strictly enclosed monastic community, I was a bit concerned at first because my parish priest did not know me very well at all. He was willing however to put it in writing that I was regularly at Mass for the years he had been my parish priest, and also at any spiritual purpose meetings in my parish and seemed to have a quite active prayer and spiritual life. He was not even my regular confessor. The Order did accept this and of course I did have at least two in depth meetings each over an hour or an hour and a half with the Mother General and also the prioress and novice mistress before I entered. I also needed my Baptismal and Confirmation certificates.

But I should think the different Orders may differ and one would need to discern their requirements before being accepted into postulancy. And for sure most Orders nowadays have an introductory term, usually of some 6 -8 weeks, where one lives in the community and their way of life prior to formal acceptance into postulancy. This enables them to have a closer look at you, and of course you to have a closer look at them before any sort of official matter takes place.

If you decide on the diocesan priesthood, then the person to contact would be your Diocesan Vocations Director.

God bless you and may He grant you all the Graces to discern and follow His Call to you for your future and may you know every Peace, Joy and fulfillment in following it. I hope others will be able to give you all the information you need at this point…Barb