Postulancy Year

The Postulancy year is a time of discernment for men who are somewhat sure that they are being called to the Capuchin Franciscan religious life. The word "somewhat" because it is difficult to have more certitude without having first experienced Capuchin life firsthand, which is what the Postulancy year allows one to do. When a person applies to the Postulancy program, he is not committing himself for life. Rather, he is taking a year to come and live in a Capuchin friary, and to participate in friary life. The Postulant attends daily Mass, Morning Prayer, meditation, Evening Prayer and meals with the friars...

Novitiate Year

After completing the year of postulancy, if an individual believes God may be calling him to a Capuchin vocation, then he applies to the next step of formation: the novitiate. The novitiate is a very structured one year period of seclusion and intense prayer in which the novice enters more deeply into the process of discernment. Because the year is geared toward prayer, there is a very limited amount of ministry and the novice has few obligations outside of the daily novitiate schedule. This freedom from responsibilities allows the novice to give himself completely to the practice of prayer and to seek to hear the call of the Lord in the deepest recesses of his heart...
Post-Novitiate Year

Based upon the recommendations of the Novice Director and after the consideration of the Provincial Council, the novice receives permission to make temporary profession of vows. The vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, which the novice has prayed about and studied over the course of the novitiate, are taken for a three-year period. However, initial formation does not conclude with the profession of temporary vows, but rather continues throughout the period in which the friar remains in temporary vows. After the profession of temporary vows the newly professed friar begins the post-novitiate year...