Novitiate Newsletters

In this issue's main article, Fr. Dean explains the need for detachment in our spiritual life 

What is true obedience?  How can we avoid defect or excess in its practice?  Father Dean addresses these points in his article on obedience in this season's newsletter.

“God means earth to be a preparation for, or rather, the vestibule of heaven.” -– Fr. Edward Leen

“Now this is eternal life: that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.”

Many souls, through the aid of good works done for their neighbor along with faithful prayer, can reach a relatively high union with God.

The spirit of oblation is the soul of any worthy and acceptable sacrifice. May God inspire in the souls of our Catholic youth this desire to offer themselves to God, the Church, and souls.

Summer has ended and it is time for the harvest, a time to collect our thoughts as to how we spent our time in the sun. Did we spend time in silence?

The Novitite's Spring Newsletter helps one to understand the value and balance of work and commitment. Spring has finally arrived. In this season God has made His firm commitment to annually bring forth flowers, greenery, colors of all kinds and fresh life into our world. The beauty is outstanding. God is faithful to his commitments. It is a lesson for mankind.

Behind the act of pronouncing vows is something very simple but very beautiful – the desire to give oneself to God without any conditions. We are all called to give something back to God, from whom we have received everything. Religious give back to God just one thing: themselves. But this includes everything else. Religious life is a consecration to God of one’s person, whole and entire. In this Newsletter read about how the religious spends his life living and deepening his consecration through the vows.

The Work of the Novitiate is the formation of religious vocations, that is, religious brothers in particular. Father Kenneth Dean has been the Novice Master for the brothers for ten years, who held down the fort, since the departure of the seminarians, working to keep up the buildings and the spiritual life of the brothers. This first Newsletter gives a great insight of the work and vocation of the brothers at the Novitiate.