Veritas Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 + A friend just told me that the Martyrs of St. George are involved in a rather remarkable project! It seems they have a house in which young women discerning religious life may live. The house is located next to the Catholic high school and the LaCrosse Diocesen offices. The girls go to school and pray with the sisters during the week. They spend one weekend a month at the convent, and then go home the other weekends. The sisters also take them on nun-runs to visit other orders! Word is that there is room for 15 girls, but only six are there currently. I am also told that some are local girls and some are from out of state. Wow! Does anyone else know anymore about this?! www.altonfranciscans.org
magnificat Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 Yup! They've been doing this for at least 3 years now (I'm not positiveon how much longer before...). I think that they have more than 6 right now, but again, not sure. It's a pretty unique experience because it's not as if the girls have to even been strongly discerning with the Martyrs. There is one postulant and I believe a couple novices, though, who did live in the Formation House. Others have joined Poor Clare communities, Carmelites, etc. Others went on to college. It's a great experience, I'd think, for highschoolers who are discerning. I think their time home may depend on how far it is for them to go home. For example, one girl I met last fall is from the East Coast so she goes home once a month. PS--The Martyrs are awesome!!!
Veritas Posted April 13, 2006 Author Posted April 13, 2006 + Thanks! It is such a great idea -Must've been the Holy Spirit ! p.s. Note to all, I realize it's not exactly living "in the convent", but I hope you'll excuse the paraphrase for the purpose of brevity (since it's pretty close:). Thanks!
Laurentina1975 Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 Go everybody, Go everybody, go go go everybody!
AlterDominicus Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 (edited) Yes, wee, si! I visited the House of Formation: Mater Redemptoris Convent in LaCrosse in Feb., I'm in their March Veni et Vide newsletter, along with one of the most remarkable sisters I've met, Sister Mary Philomena. : : I may live there next year or the year after. Edited April 13, 2006 by AlterDominicus
Laurentina1975 Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 [quote name='AlterDominicus' date='Apr 12 2006, 09:13 PM']Yes, wee, si! I visited the House of Formation: Mater Redemptoris Convent in LaCrosse in Feb., I'm in their March Veni et Vide newsletter, along with one of the most remarkable sisters I've met, Sister Mary Philomena. : : I may live there next year or the year after. [right][snapback]945536[/snapback][/right] [/quote] I will pray you do! That's such an awesome thing they got goin' on there. Wish I coulda done that back in the day!
AlterDominicus Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 [quote name='Laurentina1975' date='Apr 12 2006, 08:14 PM']I will pray you do! That's such an awesome thing they got goin' on there. Wish I coulda done that back in the day! [right][snapback]945540[/snapback][/right] [/quote] Thank you Laurentina. I pray I do to, though Sister Stephania wants me to hang back an year, just because of all the family literal hell I've been going through, so its most likely I'll enter in my senior year there, if I do I pray MaryKate will still be there, I bunked with her when I was there, two beds in a room. Hey, if anyone has the March Veni et Vide newsletter, now or plans to get it later, I'll tell you where the picture is with me, and where I'm mentioned in the newsletter. :
jgirl Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 They started it in 2000. Sister M. Gianna was one of the first aspirants, and she entered the Martyrs in 2003. Sister Stephania was on the core team of my youth group and their last weekend before they left was my last weekend before I went to college. Sister Philomena is pretty cool. I met her when she was a postulant and again before she made first vows. She gets mad props for her accordian skills! Even if you just go one year, it would be a cool place to be.
alicemary Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 actually, this is not a new idea, but very old indeed. Pre Vatican ll this was the rage. Alot of the congregations had this, but decided that sequestering young girls was not such a good idea. I guess as long it is an integrated progam, it is ok, but personally I think it is too young an age.
Domine ut Videam Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 (edited) [quote name='alicemary' date='Apr 13 2006, 07:57 AM']actually, this is not a new idea, but very old indeed. Pre Vatican ll this was the rage. Alot of the congregations had this, but decided that sequestering young girls was not such a good idea. I guess as long it is an integrated progam, it is ok, but personally I think it is too young an age. [right][snapback]945885[/snapback][/right] [/quote] I'm very curious as to why you say that you think it is too young of an age. Because i was wondering if your reasons were that you think that these girls cannot know their hearts and what sorresponds with them; what they truly want at such a young age, you are wrong. Young people have EVERY capacity to know and judge their hearts, to determine their futures. Anyways I was just curious....if you could tell me why i would be really interested. Here is a quote in the meantime. "...when everybody insists that you are going to bury yourself alive while you are so young, when they tell you that you shoudl wait a little while longer, that you should carefully examine if you have a true vocation by knowing the world, etc., if love exists in your soul, let nothing detain you. Jesus is waiting for you. Then come and lose yourself in His divine arms..." -Yours in Christ Lauren Edited April 13, 2006 by Domine ut Videam
HisChild Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 [quote name='Domine ut Videam' date='Apr 13 2006, 07:23 AM']"...when everybody insists that you are going to bury yourself alive while you are so young, when they tell you that you shoudl wait a little while longer, that you should carefully examine if you have a true vocation by knowing the world, etc., if love exists in your soul, let nothing detain you. Jesus is waiting for you. Then come and lose yourself in His divine arms..." [right][snapback]945932[/snapback][/right] [/quote] St Teresa of the Andes
HisChild Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 [quote name='Domine ut Videam' date='Apr 13 2006, 07:23 AM']I'm very curious as to why you say that you think it is too young of an age. Because i was wondering if your reasons were that you think that these girls cannot know their hearts and what sorresponds with them; what they truly want at such a young age, you are wrong. Young people have EVERY capacity to know and judge their hearts, to determine their futures. Anyways I was just curious....if you could tell me why i would be really interested. Here is a quote in the meantime. [right][snapback]945932[/snapback][/right] [/quote] Yes, Lauren, no age actually is too young. There are young women here who aren't even in high school, who have known for a while to which vocation God is calling them. I mean, look at St Therese who wanted to enter Carmel at 15. . . I believe our Lord calls us from all time. Granted, there are some of those that He calls later, however. . . I have always thought that He calls us much earlier, but sometimes we don't 'hear' his voice until later. Maybe out of fear? Maybe out of distractions and 'noise' of the world. Those that believe we have to be a certain age in order to hear his voice, or in order to answer the call to religious life, usually are those who, like your quote, believe there must be some sort of 'living in the world' to be done in order to more fully embrace the religious life. I actually once spoke to my mother long ago about this and her response was that perhaps they (herself included) believe that if their children 'see the world' they will be attracted to all that it has to offer, instead, and put the call to religious life behind. Now that I'm older, she doesn't have that excuse or reason. LOL
jgirl Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 And actually, this house of formation is pretty good! The girls go to the Catholic high school with other teenagers, and I think they can participate in at least one afterschool activity. They definitely arne't sequestered, and as Magnificat pointed out, they aren't pushed into the Martyrs.
Laurentina1975 Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 Since when did "I" say age was an issue? You may want to re-read the posts. I never said anything about people being to young. I am all for it!
magnificat Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 I agree...I don't think it's too young, so long as the girl really wants to go there of her own draw towards religious life, not because of outside influences. Personally, I definately wouldn't have been ready or interested to do something like that in high school...although now, I'd love that enviornment. God works and prepares us for our vocations in different ways because of our uniqueness. He was definately preparing me to seriously discern and to discover my vocation while I was in high school, but not in a way that would have worked to go to a Formation House. For other girls, high school is when they are seriously discerning and He does reveal to some girls their vocation when they're teenagers. So I'd be hesistant to say that it's too young, particularly since they also are able to do some normal "teenager" stuff. And the girls I met who are in the Formation House are all bright, funny teenagers.
HisChild Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 [quote name='Laurentina1975' date='Apr 13 2006, 11:31 AM']Since when did "I" say age was an issue? You may want to re-read the posts. I never said anything about people being to young. I am all for it! [right][snapback]946202[/snapback][/right] [/quote] Lauren, Domine ut Videam, ALSO named Lauren (she mentioned that earlier in an introductory post on another thread, and she signed her post here also with "Lauren") was replying to a poster who stated that it might be too young. When I said "Lauren", I quoted her in my posts, thus clarifying who I was replying to (and agreeing with). God bless you.
Laurentina1975 Posted April 13, 2006 Posted April 13, 2006 There are a lot of Lauren's on phatmass these days. Thanks for the clarification, I was worried!
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