Only A One-year Novitiate?

[Digitaldame]

[quote name='VeniteAdoremus' date='23 August 2009 - 10:35 PM' timestamp='1251059727' post='1955095']
I also like the longer novitiate... I know I can use it!

I asked a Dominican friar this over the summer, and his answer was that boys tended to be much better educated than women, so they needed more formation to make up for their limited catechism knowledge.

Another possible explanation is that novices should be under the care of the novice master, and if you want to send your brothers to a university or house of studies as soon as possible, it's better to have them in vows.
[/quote]

Can't speak for the men (though one does notice that some male Benedictines, for example, seem to zip through from postulancy to First Vows remarkably quickly and some communities of monks seem fairly relaxed about people leaving during First Vows). We have a two year novitiate (one year canonical), not because women are less well-educated (most are very well educated!) but simply because a cloistered life does take some getting used to (and women are "more" cloistered than most of their male counterparts). We want people to be able to make a really infomed decision about vows. We'd much rather people left before making vows than during, because vows mean something and it is always sad if someone decides after the first year as a Junior that monastic life is not for her. Having said that, people are individuals, and if it becomes apparent it isn't right for someone to be in community, the community must do everything it can to help the person concerned.

[Jennifer G.]

[quote name='DominicanPhilosophy' date='02 August 2009 - 06:45 PM' timestamp='1249249516' post='1939132']
<!--quoteo(post=1938904:date=Aug 2 2009, 11:46 AM:name=VeniteAdoremus)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (VeniteAdoremus @ Aug 2 2009, 11:46 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1938904"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Hm... interesting! I also thought they had just the three years of temporary vows (like my future community).

Is this to make sure they all have some experience "in the field" before they make final vows? (Because the sisters without a teaching qualification spend four years getting that, plus the novitiate year?)

By the way, I love referring to them as "first year black veil" or "second year black veil". Sounds like martial arts ranks <img src="http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/ninja.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="ninja.gif" /><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->[/quote]

So if the order wore a black cinture belt, would that be their "black belt"?