Age Limits

[Gemma]

Needing some help here folks. . .

I'm needing to compile a list of communities who have 17 as their youngest age, which is the lowest permitted by Canon Law.

We are seeing a resurgence of interest in youth for religious life--some very young, in fact--and I'd like to have such a list.

Blessings,
Gemma

[laetitia crucis]

[quote name='Gemma' date='21 August 2009 - 06:06 AM' timestamp='1250806015' post='1953385']
Needing some help here folks. . .

I'm needing to compile a list of communities who have 17 as their youngest age, which is the lowest permitted by Canon Law.

We are seeing a resurgence of interest in youth for religious life--some very young, in fact--and I'd like to have such a list.

Blessings,
Gemma
[/quote]

The [url="http://www.ssvmusa.org"]Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara[/url], the [url="http://www.ivevocations.org"]Institute of the Incarnate Word[/url], and the [url="http://www.marymediatrix.com"]Franciscans of the Immaculate[/url] allow entrance at 17; however, one must be 18 to become a novice.

[agnes88]

The Trinitarians of Mary http://www.trinitariansofmary.org/Welcome_English.html

The site says they have a pre-convent program, probably in Mexico, which I think starts at age 14.

[cmaD2006]

The Discipulos/Discipulas de Jesus de San Juan Bautista in Argentina allow postulants to be very young (younger than 17), with parent's permission. However as others have said per canon law you must be 18 to enter the noviciate, so these candidates remain postulants for years (and do finish their high school studies in the process).

[Sr. M. Faustina]

[url="http://http://www.sistersofcharity.com"]Sisters of Charity of Our Lady, Mother of the Church[/url]
Our Community's age requirements are 18 - 35; however, each candidate is looked at on an individual basis. So, it is not impossible for someone younger than 18 or someone older than 35 to be admitted to the Postulancy.

In His Peace,
Sister Faustina, SCMC

[InHisLove726]

[url="http://db.religiouslife.com/reg_life/irl.nsf/org/166"]Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Alexandria, SD[/url]

[url="http://www.sistersofmary.org/article.php?id=129"]Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist[/url]

[url="http://db.religiouslife.com/reg_life/irl.nsf/org/386"]Benedictine Sisters of Mary, Queen of the Apostles (accept as young as 16!)[/url]

[url="http://db.religiouslife.com/reg_life/irl.nsf/org/115"]Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Clearwater, KS[/url]

[url="http://db.religiouslife.com/reg_life/irl.nsf/org/19"]Sisters Oblates to the Blessed Trinity[/url]

[InHisLove726]

[url="http://www.cmswr.org/member_communities/Franciscan%20Sisters%20of%20the%20Immaculate%20Conception.htm"]Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (candidacy can begin at 15!)[/url]

[url="http://www.cmswr.org/member_communities/ISOLMC.htm"]Institute of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mount Carmel[/url]

[Gemma]

I knew I could rely on you guys/gals!

To reiterate: canon law says the lowest age acceptable is 17.

When a community states 18, its because their statutes/constitutions state such an age.

Accepting aspirants that young is not the big deal. The big deal is accepting the person into formal formation, and that cannot happen until they are 17--unless it's like the St Cecilia postulant who entered at 16 because she would turn 17 very shortly afterward.

Thanks again. I shall pass this list on.

Blessings,
Gemma

[Gemma]

[quote name='Sr. M. Faustina' date='21 August 2009 - 12:02 AM' timestamp='1250823756' post='1953600']
[url="http://http://www.sistersofcharity.com"]Sisters of Charity of Our Lady, Mother of the Church[/url]
Our Community's age requirements are 18 - 35; however, each candidate is looked at on an individual basis. So, it is not impossible for someone younger than 18 or someone older than 35 to be admitted to the Postulancy.

In His Peace,
Sister Faustina, SCMC
[/quote]

Link doesn't work, dear Sister!

Blessings,
Gemma

[InHisLove726]

[quote name='Gemma' date='21 August 2009 - 07:03 AM' timestamp='1250852627' post='1953751']
Link doesn't work, dear Sister!

Blessings,
Gemma
[/quote]


[url="http://www.sistersofcharity.com/"]http://www.sistersofcharity.com/[/url]

Edited August 21, 2009 by InHisLove726

[Sr. M. Faustina]

[quote name='Gemma' date='21 August 2009 - 07:03 AM' timestamp='1250852627' post='1953751']
Link doesn't work, dear Sister!

Blessings,
Gemma
[/quote]

JMJV

Dear Gemma,
Sorry about that, thank you for letting me know. The website is: http://www.sistersofcharity.com

Blessings on your day!

In His Peace,
Sister M. Faustina, SCMC

[Sr. M. Faustina]

[quote name='InHisLove726' date='21 August 2009 - 07:44 AM' timestamp='1250855086' post='1953757']
[url="http://www.sistersofcharity.com/"]http://www.sistersofcharity.com/[/url]


[/quote]

JMJV

Thank you for filling in the missing information. As soon as I read the other reply, I logged on and posted the website. Then I continued looking... God bless you.

In His Peace,
Sister M. Faustina

[Sr Marianne]

Dear Gemma,
Hello. I am curious as to why you would want to know about communities who take women at such a young age. Are you very young?
I was full of desire to enter at 16yrs old but was advised to finish school and have at least a year of life after school before applying to enter. I did enter at 19yrs old and can now see how very important that 3 years was. I am now 38 and have been a Franciscan Sister for 19 years.
There is a fervour and urgency with youth - I know, I have experienced it. That enthusiam and generosity is a wonderful gift but I would say 2 things about entering very young:
-- there is a danger of a lack of maturity that will have repurcussions later, maybe much later in religious life
-- if God is calling the call will not go away! People do not need to worry that a vocation will fade / disappear of they do not enter immediately. Keep in touch with the Sisters and faithful to your prayer life and God will certainly not abandon you. There should be an enthusiasm but also a calmness and peace that accompanies the decision to enter.

I would be wary of entering too young. Of course everyone is different and will be considered individually - our Congretation advises 18 - 35, and whilst exceptions can be made for slightly older women I don't think we'd consider going any younger. We do have a candidate programme for those in serious discernment with our Congregation and some may be younger.
Hope this helps,
Sr Marianne, UK

[Gemma]

[quote name='Sr Marianne' date='23 August 2009 - 07:50 AM' timestamp='1251024658' post='1954846']
Dear Gemma,
Hello. I am curious as to why you would want to know about communities who take women at such a young age. Are you very young?
I was full of desire to enter at 16yrs old but was advised to finish school and have at least a year of life after school before applying to enter. I did enter at 19yrs old and can now see how very important that 3 years was. I am now 38 and have been a Franciscan Sister for 19 years.
There is a fervour and urgency with youth - I know, I have experienced it. That enthusiam and generosity is a wonderful gift but I would say 2 things about entering very young:
-- there is a danger of a lack of maturity that will have repurcussions later, maybe much later in religious life
-- if God is calling the call will not go away! People do not need to worry that a vocation will fade / disappear of they do not enter immediately. Keep in touch with the Sisters and faithful to your prayer life and God will certainly not abandon you. There should be an enthusiasm but also a calmness and peace that accompanies the decision to enter.

I would be wary of entering too young. Of course everyone is different and will be considered individually - our Congretation advises 18 - 35, and whilst exceptions can be made for slightly older women I don't think we'd consider going any younger. We do have a candidate programme for those in serious discernment with our Congregation and some may be younger.
Hope this helps,
Sr Marianne, UK
[/quote]

Dear Sr. Marianne,

No, I'm not a teen. I am the 45 year-old married Coordinator of Cloister Outreach. http://cloisters.tripod.com/ We have been a clearninghouse of information on the cloisters for 20 years now, and have just recently entered into the promotion of emerging charisms as well, which includes diocesan hermits. (Each hermit is their own charism).

We also started the formal formation of our Reparatrix Anchoresses of Our Lady of the Cloister (Cloisterite Hermits) on November 21. http://cloisters.tripod.com/cloisterites They are a "diaspora" community, which means they will be living the Cloisterite charism in their own homes under canon 603. We are an official project of the Diocese of Charlotte, NC.

Part of Cloister Outreach's purpose in life is to observe trends in the vocations world. Case in point: in Advent 2008, we noticed a huge surge of interest in the permanent diaconate. I am a former homeschooler, and we noticed trends of increased vocations from the homeschooling sub-culture. Since this was so significant, and since the homeschooled vocations were so much more "with it" and exhibiting great maturity for their age, we took it upon ourselves to start a yahoo group for their age group. We have about 8 on there presently, not including myself as moderator or my SD, who is a Dominican whose present assignment involves full-time formation.

One of our objectives as a vocation facilitation organization is to get the discerners focused. When they come to us, be they 16 or 76, they have the same needs: clueless as to the process; and lacking a spiritual director and structured prayer life. We tell them that the Holy Ghost works on attraction; and the Liturgy of the Hours can take the place of an SD until one is found. We are also devising "discerner practice" for them, since Third Orders don't take religious life discerners.

We see the youth being interested in vocations as a sign that God is hearing our prayers for our sick society, and that He is raising up young vocations to show their hedonistic classmates that there is a God, and He is Good.

HTH.

Blessings,
Gemma

[cmaD2006]

[quote name='Gemma' date='21 August 2009 - 07:52 AM' timestamp='1250851936' post='1953750']
To reiterate: canon law says the lowest age acceptable is 17.
[/quote]

Gemma:

Canon law says that the lowest acceptable age *for the novitiate* is 17. (canon 643). That implies that you *can enter* the postulancy (and presumably would enter the postulancy) any time before this.

And on another note -- I don't 100% agree with having postulants so young ... I met professed sisters who were 19 or 20 who really weren't ready for vows and yet they were professed. If you can enter the novitiate at 17, and canon law says (if I read it correctly) that a novice may be a novice only for 2.5 years then theoretically speaking a novice that young would have to enter first profession at no later than 19.5 years.

I do realize that there may be a candidate who is spiritually mature at 17, but in my opinion its not just the spiritual maturity; the person needs a certain maturity as a whole especially if the person will be ministering to the laity (i.e. active or contemplative/active) community.