Questions and more questions

Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Becoming a Jesuit

We have compiled some questions and answers here. The question for vocation often leads you into many dreams, which can also become very confusing. With practical answers you can regain your grounding. Questions that we are often asked are collected and answered here for you.

Application

  • Who do I contact when I am interested in the Jesuit Order?

    You get in touch with the contact person who is responsible for interested parties in your country. Here you find out who this is.

    Important information: This contact is not binding for you. Your interest is sufficient to allow you to ask us questions so that you get some impression.

  • Which application criteria do exist?

    Put quite succinctly: Catholic (at least for three years), male, unmarried, high school diploma or completed vocational training.

    Furthermore, it is important to know that we have a basic age limit of 40 years for entry into the novitiate. It is not a matter of acquiring new skills, but of practising a whole way of life. The older one gets, the more difficult this becomes for both sides. However, for convincing reasons, our limit for the age of entry can also be a “breathing” upper limit.

  • Is there an application deadline?

    Yes and no. Before the application process is formally opened, it is necessary to get to know each other. To do this, you get in touch with your contact person. In this way you can get an impression of the Society of Jesus, our fields of work and the actual life in a community. Additionally, you also get to know some Jesuits personally. If both sides can imagine a more intensive examination of your question of vocation in the novitiate, then the contact person will pass you on to the novice master. This must be done in the year of entry by June 1st at the latest. The time in which you are in contact with the contact person is not limited. You take the time you need.

  • How does the application process?

    Four interviews with Jesuits are carried out in the application process. Along with the usual application documents (CV, letter of motivation, certificates, etc.) a psychological and medical report, as well as a police clearance certificate have to be given in. At the end of the procedure, the Provincial will use all these documents as a basis for his decision on admission.

  • When does the novitiate start?

    The novitiate starts once a year in mid-September.

Money And Personal Belongings

A preliminary remark about money: During the novitiate, the practice is stricter than in later religious life, because the novitiate is about learning a new style of dealing with money and common property. Later, it is more (but not exclusively) in the responsibility of the individual Jesuit how to use material goods because it is assumed that he acts according to the principles of the Society of Jesus.

  • What will happen to my savings?

    When entering the novitiate, all private bank accounts are to be put on hold and their administration is placed in trustworthy hands. Even after taking the First Vows at the end of the novitiate, this remains the rule. Only at the end of the formation, before taking the Last Vows, one has to consider to whom to give up, give away or donate one’s possessions. Of course, this can also be done before the novitiate, but since the novitiate is a probationary period, it is advisable to wait. Normally, you do not give the money to the Society of Jesus itself, so that both parts are mutually free.

  • What can I take with me to the novitiate?

    Basically, just the necessary goods like clothes, a laptop or a computer and just a few personal items.

  • May I take my car or my racing bike with me?

    You are not allowed to bring your car or an expensive racing bike to the Novitiate. (After the vows you can use the latter for sport activities.) However, ordinary city bikes are permitted.

  • Do I get money during the novitiate?

    Yes, everyone receives an advance of €50 per month, but there is no obligation to spend it in full. ☺

  • What happens when I need a new winter jacket?

    First you talk with the novice master about additional expenses of this kind. Then you can approach the treasurer who is in charge for administering the money of a community to ask him for the necessary money to buy the jacket. You get what you need and don’t have to worry about it.

Insurances

Family and Friends

  • How often do I go home during the novitiate?

    During the novitiate, the classic time for visiting the family involves a few days over New Year. In total, you only go home once a year. This seems strict, but the point is to feel at home in the Jesuit Order. That needs time and presence.

  • What is it like when, e.g., someone in the family dies or gets married?

    If you want to go to a celebration or a funeral in the family during the novitiate, you discuss it with the novice master. Later in religious life, the superior (head of the community) is the right person to discuss such matters with.

  • Can family and friends visit me in the novitiate?

    Yes, parents are allowed to visit. We are cautious about friends visiting. However, this can be discussed with the novice master. You have to imagine that if all novices receive frequent visitors, there may be no peace and quiet in the novitiate house. But it is important for the time of decision-making.

  • How are visits generally regulated in the Jesuit Order?

    There is no rule.

  • What about contact with friends and family?

    It is good and important to maintain relationships outside the Order as long as they do not become an emotional substitute home next to the Society of Jesus. Then something would be askew and out of order. But fundamentally, healthy relationships with family and friends are important for the success of religious life.

Miscellaneous

  • Do Jesuits drink alcohol?

    Yes. There are no rules about stimulants. The standard is one’s own sanity.

  • Can a Jesuit become a godfather?

    As a rule, Jesuits do not assume the office of godfather. However, in consultation with the superior, the answer can be affirmative in individual cases. In the past, the office of godfather was a safeguard – if something happened to the parents, the godparents would step in. Of course, that is not possible for a Jesuit. But a Jesuit should be able to accompany a young person on their path of faith.

  • Do Jesuits vote?

    Of course, because voting is a civic duty. However, we Jesuits only have the right to vote, because Catholic clergy are not allowed by Canon law to stand as candidates for political office.

Do you still have questions?

At an information weekend (see Dates or Zukunftswerkstatt Frankfurt), real Jesuits will be available to answer your questions. There you can delve into the FAQs and other questions as you wish.