The First Years of Formation

Postulancy

When a young woman asks to join the sisters of Saint Andrew, a time of postulancy is proposed. This lasts from six months to two years.

It is a time for sharing in the life of a community and participating in its mission.

It is a time for getting to know one another, discovering the place of personal prayer in daily life and how the liturgy shapes our relationship with Christ and with others.

A time for reading and discovering the Scriptures in more depth, as well as an introduction to Ignatian spirituality.

A time to confront one’s own desire with the reality of life at Saint Andrews.

The postulant has regular meetings with a sister who is responsible for her spiritual accompaniment.

When she feels she is ready, she may ask to join the novitiate.

Noviciate

During the liturgical celebration of her entry into the novitiate, the novice receives the cross of Saint Andrew, which from then on she will wear as a sign of the Congregation.

The novitiate is a ‘time apart’ which lasts from two to two and a half years. Priority is given to deepening spiritual life, to discovering the place of religious life within the context of the Church, and to the process of discerning a vocation with the Sisters of Saint Andrew.

Life in the community of the noviciate, together with the spiritual accompaniment of the novice mistress, allows the novice to get to know herself better. She will discover her gifts and aptitudes for apostolic life as well as how to recognise her weaknesses.

The novitiate includes a 30 day retreat following the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius, as well as several “experiments”, activities which take place outside the formation community and offer a different cultural or social experience.

The novice whose desire has been tested and affirmed during the course of the novitiate may ask to pronounce her first vows.