Joining The Military Before Religious Life?

[KarenJoanna]

I am a 22 year old girl, and I was planning to join the Navy before religious life since I have debts to pay and a student loan etc. I know it will make me a better person and will make me appreciate my life more and my family, so some sinful habits of mine are going to go away if I join, at least for the most part. However, I don't know if I should join because it could get in my way of my spiritual life. I think if I join I am not going to be able to go to mass every week, or have time for prayer like I intend to. I want to go to mass everyday and to the blessed sacrament and have a good prayer life, but in the military that will probably be hard to do. I feel called to join the military but then I think that if it won't allow me to have time to be with God, then maybe God isn't calling me there?? What do you think? In part, my bad habits would go away if I join, but in another, I won't have a lot of time for God if I join.

Edited February 24, 2015 by KarenJoanna

[Luigi]

Do it!

 

The military has chaplains, not all of them Catholic, of course.

 

1. You may or may not always have access to Mass, but that has always been true for all US military personnel. Talk to a priest about it, but I'm pretty sure you're exempt from the Mass requirement when no Mass is available.

 

2. You may not have as much time for prayer as you prefer, but you will no doubt have more opportunity for sacrifice.

 

3. By your own admission, it will make you a better person - by helping you eliminate some bad habits, but also in ways that you probably can't even anticipate at the moment - broaden your horizons, instill discipline, improve that get-'er-done attitude, and I don't know what all. Orders want "better persons."

 

4. It will (help to) resolve your debt issue.

 

5. You will develop knowledge and skills that will probably be transferable to religious life one way or another - you'll be more valuable to your order because of your service experience.

[Spem in alium]

Agreed! Do it. :) One of my Sisters was in the army in her country before joining the convent. She said to me that her mother once commented something along the lines of, "Yesterday you were cleaning your gun, today you're praying the Rosary." I think it really developed her as a person, and spiritually too.

 

God is present with us, every day and in every moment. We just need to seek Him out. :)

Edited February 24, 2015 by Spem in alium

[beatitude]

KarenJoanna, it's difficult to give advice in your case as you have written in the past that you suffer from scrupulosity/OCD. and your posts in the Q&A forum have suggested that you experience this quite severely. Where are you with that now? Going into a military environment isn't going to make scruples go away. If anything, a very rigid environment that places a heavy emphasis on attention to detail and obeying orders is going to make them worse. In your position I would consult with a good spiritual director on this decision, and a psychologist if possible.

[superblue]

Hey Karen, I would suggest staying out of the military for a number of reasons, too many to list off hand, but to think that the military is the best option for paying off debt and it will make you a better person..... is debatable ..

 

There are so many other ways to pay off debt so if you haven't signed the dotted line with uncle sam I would suggest exhausting all other options in that regard first.  Then consider the contract you sign with the military, usually it is a 8 year contract, from what I last remember, that means so many active duty, the rest is what ever....  And to think the military is going to help get rid of what ever sinful habits you might have,,, that is a giant risk to take thinking that, specially if the time you spend on active duty turns out to be a negative experience and leads to depression, things can triple in problems....  Joining wouldn't so much interfere with your spiritual life, it would probably strengthen it,  because of the enormous hardships, unfairness, and problems the military puts on people in general , one needs a good prayer life even if one can't make it to mass on a regular basis.. You will have plenty of time for God, praying to overcome basic training if you enter, advanced training for your job, etc...

The thing is, you probably have a great big heart, and unfortunately their are too many people in the military who could careless and will go out of their way to trample on people like ourselves who do have big hearts.  An one needs an extremely big support line in family and friends to get through those times, because with out that, it leads to major problems that I have gone through my self and witnessed in others...

" bad habits " don't just go away because we join the military , or a club, or a religious life.  Bad habits go away with patience, perseverance , time,  all of this in constant trust and prayer in Christ / God and which ever saints we choose to help fight along side us on our journey to be a better person....

Discipline can be learned through various journeys , earning a college degree, going to adoration on a set schedule for a year, to think that joining the military is going to make you more valuable to an order; I would suggest otherwise, a college degree, a solid prayer life, volunteering in an area of your liking, is just as strong a sign of discipline an commitment as the military. 

 

 

Slow way down before signing the dotted line with uncle sam, and talk as often as possible with a spiritual director, and it may take reaching out to a religious order of your choice and just finding sisters to talk with... maybe not in terms of joining them but with figuring all of this out.

 

 

It is very, very , very easy to join the military, and extremely hard to get out once you are in. Your life can and will change in ways you didn't see coming when you join. The rules of the military are not the same as the rest of the world. Don't let some recruiter who's only motivation is getting people to sign the dotted line fool you into thinking that it is the right decision for you.

 

VS joining a religious order, who will test you in a better way, and will work with you every step of the way... and teach the kind of discipline we seek, with love an charity. not negative reinforcement .

 

 

Slow down and keep praying.

 

Love and Peace in Christ

[KarenJoanna]

Thanks to everyone! I will slow down and maybe become an emt first and see if it works out. I have a lot of years to decide If I want to join anyways.  I am glad I got people's opinions on the matter. Anyways, it's  not liek I can join soon. I have weight to lose so I have lots of time to think about it and pray about it.