Vocational Discernment
And you, God, always faithful,
be honored, all your joy,
all your love;
find yourself in you
rest in affliction,
advice in doubt,
refuge in injustice;
e patient in the tribulation,
its abundance in poverty,
its food in deprivation,
its remedy in the disease.
May in You find everything,
since it loves you above all.
(From the prayer of consecration)
What does being a nun mean?
The commitment to live in a community gives monastic life a special meaning. A nun promises to follow Christ in a particular community, a particular monastery, a particular way of life, and she binds herself to other sisters with whom she will have to share everything. Stability is a source of spiritual richness, and it also helps turn the monastic community into a family where the interpersonal relationships are stable and founded on sincere love.
Vocational Discernment
“Master, where do you live?” “Come, and you will see” (Jo 1:39)
The young women who wish to become part of the community spend a period of prayer and general living together with the community, in order to discern the authenticity of their life.
Once this discernment is made, she is accepted as a Postulant, and some time later she begins her novitiate, and time of testing in which the young woman is helped by an experienced nun to become a member of the community and to see whether or not her character is suited to this type of life and to the routine of the community. On the other hand, it is a time of intense formation. During the novitiate, the young women learn to live like nuns in prayer, work, and sisterly fellowship.
The juniorate is the period of between three and nine years that starts with the taking of simple vows, and goes on until the profession of solemn vows. It is still a time of learning, basically biblical and theological studies, but it is also a time of gradual insertion into the community. At her Solemn Profession, the young woman recieves her nun’s habit, as a sign of her total and definite consacration to God, and she becomes a full member of the community. Those young women who are interested in getting to know monastic life can ask for information at the following telephone: +34 973 330 266 or by vallbona@monestirvallbona.cat
