Get on board …
For a long journey!
The journey of your LIFE!
You seek meaning for your life?
You wonder which path to take?
If your heart helps you discover Jesus who is inviting you to follow him, put on your walking shoes and follow the path … all the way to the WELLSPRINGS OF THE HEART.
Once this vocational journey is over, you may wish to pursue your search … Then, COME AND SEE!
The "COME AND SEE" is a time to observe. That's what Jesus said to the first disciples: "Come and see." You come to live with the Sisters for a few days. It is a time to get to know one another through socializing, through common prayer, through sharing meals, etc. Then, you return home to reflect and pursue your discernment.
Here are a few good questions to ask yourself:
- Do I have a living faith in the Risen Jesus?
- Can I take time to reflect, to meet the Lord in prayer, to become aware of what I am living in my inner garden?
- Do I enjoy good physical, mental and psychological health?
- Am I reasonably able to accept others and their differences?
-Can I live peaceably in a group?
- Can I live a simple lifestyle, free in the face of marketing pressures?
- Am I able to dialogue in order to seek the common good?
- Do I respect and love the disadvantaged? Am I ready to help them discover their dignity?
If, after this stage, you feel called to go further, you can ask the Congregation to move to the next step which is the PRE-NOVITIATE.
The PRE-NOVITIATE: This is a period which can vary in length from 9 months to 2 years and which supports some continuity in your search for God's Will. With the help of a spiritual guide, you learn to recognize God's activity in your life, you put your desire of religious life to the test, you seek out signs of your calling to religious life, your motives, your ability to decide freely. As you become more open to consecrated life, you continue to develop your human and your Christian life. At the end of this period, you should see more clearly the path on which God is calling you.
Then, you are ready for the next stage: the NOVITIATE. It is a time for learning - in theory and in practice - how to live an apostolic religious life in the way of Elisabeth Bruyère and her daughters, the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa. It is a time to be initiated into community life and the life of prayer, a time of formation on the meaning and commitment of the vows, a time to deepen the spirituality and charism of the Congregation, a time to discover your self, your strengths and limitations, a true time for growth! This stage lasts from 1½ to 2 years. The Novitiate leads to the consecration of oneself to the Lord.
TEMPORARY COMMITMENT: In response to the Lord's call, you then make a temporary commitment to follow Christ as a Sister of Charity of Ottawa. You profess the vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience which you will renew annually for a period of time that could go from 3 to 9 years. During this time, you pursue your formation while living the mission according to the Congregation's charism of compassion.
FINAL COMMITMENT: The last stage in the vocation journey is the final YES. This is done by professing final vows. A definitive bond exists now with the family of Elisabeth Bruyère, the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa. The new final professed commits herself to go to the poor through education and service. She becomes a collaborator in building a world of love, justice and peace.
You may think that this is the end. But, NO: all of one's life is a constant renewal of that first YES … all of one's life aims at re-kindling the love of the first days…formation is a life-long process.
Have a safe trip! Sail on … sail on … heaven has joined us together.
Let us join hands to build the Kingdom of God!
You want to know more? You want to walk this vocation journey?
Call Sister Bibiane Lavictoire at 613-241-2710
or reach her on
her e-mail at: bibiane.lavictoire@gmail.com
or scolavictoire@yahoo.ca
