Why are vocations exclusively for the young?

[exmundi]

I have searched through many religious congregations to find one that will accept a late vocation (i.e., for someone over 55 years of age). I have yet to find one that will accept a senior citizen as a candidate. What is the reason for this?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Depending on the work and charism of the order, the order may believe that an older person would not have the energy and stamina needed. Also, religious orders are responsible for the medical care their members need. Accepting as a new member someone who is a senior citizen just about guarantees that the order will be paying high medical costs for the member within the next ten to fifteen years. Since orders must be self-supporting, many cannot afford to do this for new members.

You do not say whether you are a man or a woman. If you are a woman, you might look into the Benedictines of Jesus Crucified, which accepts women who are physically disabled or in fragile health. They might welcome as a member someone whose only “handicap” is that she is older and does not have as many “productive” years as a young woman, particularly if it is possible she can spend ten to fifteen years helping to care for sisters with physical disabilities or poor health.

If you are a man, you might look into a third order for a religious congregation, in which you would be associated with the order in some way but would continue to live as a layman in the world.