Candidate to the Sister of St.Mary of Namur



Do you think you might want to be a Sister of St. Mary? Could God be calling you to dedicate your life to Him in religious life? If you answer "yes," the rest of this section might be for you.

Interested women are invited to OLV Center, 909 West Shaw St., Ft. Worth, TX 76110. To contact our sisters call 817-429-4009.



First, a candidate should be a practicing Catholic for a reasonable period of time. She should have received the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation.

Secondly, a candidate should be able to show that she is free to enter religious life. We choose to dedicate ourselves to God with undivided hearts, so we commit ourselves by vow to live chastity in celibacy. We also choose a simple lifestyle, sharing all goods in common. We are open to discerning the will of the Lord in communion with our sisters. And we are open to living and sharing life and relationships in community.

Thirdly, it is preferable that a candidate be 18 to 40 years old. We do accept older women but they usually face a more difficult adjustment to life in the convent.

To live our vocation of a Sister of St. Mary, it is important that you have these qualities:

1. an active faith or at least a real desire to grow in faith and to know the person and mystery of the Lord Jesus more intimately;
2. a firm will; balanced personality; sufficient health. We require a physical examination by a medical doctor, a personality profile, and other aptitude tests as discerned. You need to be able to show that you are able to participate fully in our life and ministry.
3. a desire and esteem for a simple life;
4. a readiness to serve others and to love them to the point of self-sacrifice;
5. a respectful concern and preference for the least of all and for the suffering.

If you wish to inquire further, you should consider the formation program. If not, then the Lord may have a different call for you in His world.