Formation -

Stages of Initial Formation

Then, formation continues with the religious community to which you are called. Every religious community provides a formation program appropriate to its charism (spirituality and mission in the Church).As a religious family, we were founded by St. John Bosco and St. Mary Mazzarello in Mornese, Italy, on August 5, 1872. Now we are more than 10,700 Sisters in 96 countries. John Bosco envisioned us as a living monument of his gratitude to Our Lady for her daily care and protection. Our charism, or specific gift to the Church, is youth ministry, particularly for the poor and marginalized young people.

The “primary objective of the formation process is to prepare people for the total consecration of themselves to God in the following of Christ at the service of the Church’s mission” (Vita Consecrata, 65). Therefore, our formation program is designed to help you grow in the understanding of God’s call; in friendship and love of God, Mary, and the Church; in greater self-awareness; and in integration into our Salesian way of life, to render you capable of a free response in love and joy.

Until perpetual vows, these phases are not binding. They are a gradually deepening discernment to see if you are called to live with and among the young as a contemplative-in-action in the spirit of St. John Bosco and St. Mary Mazzarello. This journey is always made with a formator/Animator (superior) and lived in community, where you will be engaged in our community life, prayer, and ministry, and complete the necessary studies.

During the years of initial formation, you will be able to enjoy home visits and open communication with family and friends, just as a perpetually professed Salesian Sister does, in prudence and an evangelical spirit.

Every religious community has a formation program which is divided into stages. The Salesian Sisters follow the formation program described below:

ASPIRANTATE

POSTULANCY

NOVITIATE

TEMPORARY VOWS

PERPETUAL PROFESSION

Period of Assessment and Guidance (Aspirantate)

Aspirantate

A time for a young woman who expresses a desire to become a Salesian Sister to assess her vocational choice and through experience, to ensure that she possesses the qualities required to live Salesian life. The length of this initial period of formal discernment with the community depends on each individual’s needs.

Postulancy

The journey continues with Postulancy, a time of immediate preparation for the Novitiate. It is a time of spiritual growth and ministry experience. The young woman become familiar with the life, spirituality and ministry of the Salesian Sisters. The Postulancy lasts for 10 months.

Novitiate

The Novice enters a time of real initiation into consecrated life in the Church as a Salesian Sister. By means of serious study of religious life, of theology, and through ministry experience, the Novice learns to center her life in Christ, living and learning the spirituality of St. John Bosco and St. Mary Mazzarello. The Novitiate lasts for 2 years.

Temporary Vows

The novice makes her first vows as a Salesian Sister and commits herself to love the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience for a temporary period. The Sister freely chooses to unite her life in Christ, giving herself in service to youth in the spirituality of the Salesian charism. The time of temporary profession can last from six to nine years.

Perpetual Profession

After six to nine years of temporary vows, the Sister makes perpetual vows. She promises to live her life as a Salesian Sister forever. She will spend her whole life in the service of the Church bringing Christ to the young.