savvy Posted June 3, 2012 Author Share Posted June 3, 2012 [quote]Well they sound wonderful! How many times do they allow family visits, since they are not strictly enclosed? [/quote] I am not sure. During the novitiate, however, they do not allow any contact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmaD2006 Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 Savvy ... I suggest at least a month. For one community I did a live in while working at the same time for a month. It worked -- because it brought on a number of tensions that made me realize that the community was not right for me. This particular community expected me to hold a job during postulancy, and unluckily my job at the time (and now even more so) is such that it is quite incompatible with the demands of religious life. Why -- because if the job says "jump", you have to jump. I visited the 2nd community I entered (this 1st live in -- I never entered). I spent about 3 weeks (two locations). I really wished I had spent at least a month straight with them before entering. The 1st community ... I visited I think 3 times. And I brought my mom along on the 3rd visit so that she would know where I would be. That 1st community -- I made a good discernment in entering, and a good discernment in leaving. So ... Savvy stay as long as you possibly can. It will help loads, especially since you will get a better feel for who the community really is the longer you stay (you stop being "a visitor", not 100% though). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneLine Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 Savvy, Try to stay with the community as long as possible. Include some time that is 'normal time' and some that is more 'intense' time (major feast days, community celebrations) so you get a sense of what a quiet and a busy time would be like. Maybe others will disagree with me, but I would NOT use my live-in as an opportunity to learn a language. The time you would have to dedicate to your school work and the grammar and vocabulary memoriazation would be time AWAY from the discernment experience. I would think there would be other ways to focus on the language.... ideally before you go for the live-in, or some before, some after. My 2 cents..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juchu Posted June 4, 2012 Share Posted June 4, 2012 (edited) I second the language thing... I am myself in the place that I have to learn another language for the community, but I started only now as a postulant with lessons (by a sister). My first live in were 7 weeks (lent+Easter) and even though I knew the community quite well as a volunteer before it just took me time to get "used" to everything. And during this time I was just happy that I had sisters that would translate for me or that speak my language... There was so much going in inside me that irregular french verbs would not be the most appropriate thing to think about.... I did a french crash-course before though, and after that first live-in I did some french at university. I visited the Monastic Communities of Jeruaslem in Strasbourg for a three day visit with a friend three years ago. Since most of them work part-time I could see you theortically having time for that language course... What do the sisters say about it? Was it their suggestion? Otherwise the visit was really nice, we took part in the liturgy and helped a bit in the kitchen. We also walked around with the sisters in the city and got to talk a lot. They were really a dynamic bunch. Enjoy your visit! Edited June 4, 2012 by juchu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savvy Posted June 4, 2012 Author Share Posted June 4, 2012 Thanks for the suggestions people. The sisters do want me to learn French. The community is French and they live in French-speaking Montreal. I will start will level 1 in French here in Toronto, before I go visit in September. And then depending on what the community decides and what progress I have made with the language, I will continue learning it during my visit. They have a french language centre about a 7- minute walk from where they live. Yes, the schedule will have to be worked out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savvy Posted June 4, 2012 Author Share Posted June 4, 2012 [quote]I second the language thing... I am myself in the place that I have to learn another language for the community, but I started only now as a postulant with lessons (by a sister).[/quote] What community is this? [quote]we took part in the liturgy and helped a bit in the kitchen. We also walked around with the sisters in the city and got to talk a lot. They were really a dynamic bunch. Enjoy your visit! [/quote] Yes, I did these things too, including help cut fabric for their veils. I am so glad I met them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now