Stage 7: Moral Certitude - Stage 7 is not really a stage of discernment so much as an end to discernment. This woman is no longer asking God if she should become a nun; rather, she has achieved moral certitude that this is God’s will for her.
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Stage 6: Consistent Peace - Stage 6 of discernment can be associated with the period of the novitiate. This woman has been in monastic formation for two to four years and has grown tremendously in faith, prayer, knowledge, and generosity.
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Stage 5: Monastery Discernment - Stage 5 can be associated with the time of aspirancy (sometimes called pre-postulancy) and postulancy, the first two to four years of monastic formation.
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Stage 3.5 - When In Doubt…: A woman sometimes reaches a point of discernment where she simply does not know what to do next. She is between stage 3 and stage 4 and seems to have reached a stalemate.
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Stage 4: Discernment Shift - A woman in this stage is moving quickly towards surrender and resignation to the will of God.
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Stage 3: Assessment Period - A woman in stage 3 realizes that this attraction to religious life will not go away, even though she has tried to avoid it.
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Stage 2: Latency Period - A woman in stage 2 has now been thinking about religious life for some time.
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I thought I would share with you the 7 Stages of Discernment that Fr. Brett A Brannen talks about in his book To Save A Thousand Souls: A Guide to Discerning a Vocation to Diocesan Priesthood.
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In our Passionist tradition, we understand “mourning” as a compassionating love for Jesus Crucified, just as Our Lady had for Him as she stood at the foot of the Cross. So, even though black is a color of mourning, it is meant to remind us that we are to compassionate Jesus Crucified and console Him in our daily lives, by a life of love and virtue.
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The cloistered life is very important in the world, even today, because cloistered nuns are meant to be signs pointing to the life of the world to come, to remind humanity that this present world is passing away and we are all meant to be journeying to the Heavenly Jerusalem.
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It is good to fast for several reasons. We are strengthening our wills so that we don’t just give into every craving of our bodies. We are also acknowledging the primacy of the spiritual dimension. Life is not just about food and material pleasures. Fasting ultimately is meant to raise our minds and hearts above earthly cares and turn them to God.
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Question #3: If Jesus has saved us by His Passion, death, and Resurrection, why is it necessary for us to take up our Crosses?Paragraph 1521 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “Suffering, a consequence of original sin, acquires a new meaning; it becomes a participation in the saving work of Jesus.”
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As we journey into this Lenten season which culminates the the Church's celebration of the Paschal Mystery in the Triduum - a real high-point of the liturgical year for everyone but especially for us as Passionists - we would like to share with you a letter from Fr. Joachim Rego, CP, Superior General, to the worldwide Passionist Family.
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Question #2: If Jesus has died for the salvation of mankind, can we sinful people do anything for our own salvation or that of other souls? Yes, Jesus did die for the salvation of mankind. He redeemed us by His Blood. That was something only He could do since, being God, His Blood had infinite value.
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Question #1: If God, the Holy Trinity, is love, why was the suffering of Jesus in His Passion and death on the Cross necessary for the salvation of mankind? God could have “snapped His fingers” and saved us. Did the Father will that Christ suffer instead? With the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), we can affirm that God is love.
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January 25th brought us the annual celebration of a Gaudeamus Day in honor of our superior, Mother John Mary. Gaudeamus Days are always full of laughter and extra time for sisterly companionship, and this one was no exception. There was plenty of joy and hilarity to be had. And well there should be: gaudeamus is, after all, Latin for "let us rejoice!"
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A friend of the community once quipped that a postulant is a half-baked nun, while the key word of aspirancy is being "poured out" - like batter! It's an apt analogy for the process of discernment and formation, perhaps even better since our newest smiling face in the monastery has already been enlisted for a few baking projects.
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This year's Christmas photo has two unfamiliar faces--both of whom are not Passionist Nuns! Mother Fernanda Barbiero, SMSD, is the Holy See's General Delegate to the Passionist Nuns, and Fr. Floriano Fabii, CP, is our General Assistant. Both were here in September for an Assembly of the Passionist Nuns from the USA, Korea, and the Philippines.
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As we enter the last few days of Advent, the spotlight shines on Mary, the privileged daughter of God who was first to receive the Son at His coming into this world. Among the Gospels read at Mass this week, we hear the story of the Annunciation to Mary, her Visitation to her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, and Our Lady's hymn of God's glory, the Magnificat.
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As the season of Advent progresses, it draws us not only into silence, but into a spirit of wonder. There is a certain natural wonder we encounter, even among those who approach Christmas in a more secularized manner. Think of the amazement and delight so evident in children as they admire the trappings of the season.
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