noviciate
Novitiate
Two Years for Decision-Making
The novitiate is a kind of probation or training period to clarify whether a novice has a vocation to Jesuit life. All the novices of the Central European Province (encompassing Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Sweden) life, pray and work together in the novitiate in Innsbruck for two years.
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The Programme of the Novitiate
The two-year formation period of the novitiate takes place between high tension and boredom. It offers many opportunities to settle into the special lifestyle as a religious: the challenging social and spiritual experiments (e.g., at schools or a pilgrimage without money) require resilience and a willingness to experiment. At the same time, the novices discover and develop their personal creativity. Of course, there are also quieter phases that take place in the novitiate house. Many facets of the Society of Jesus can be learned, tried out and practised here: community life, Ignatian spirituality and personal prayer. Topics such as the Jesuits in history and nowadays as well as practical activities in the service of the Church are also not to be missed. During the two years, each novice is accompanied by experienced Jesuits in order to achieve a responsible decision on how to follow Jesus – as a Jesuit or on a different path.
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The Novitiate Community of the Central European Province: A Presentation
Who wants to become a Jesuit nowadays? Allow us: We are a group of young men and together with our novice master, his socius (assistant) and three other Jesuits we form the current novitiate community at the Jesuit College in Innsbruck (Tyrol, Austria). We come from different European countries in Europe: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, Lithuania or Latvia. What unites us here is our desire to become Jesuits.
It is not only our nationalities that make us different, but also our educational backgrounds. Some of us have completed their studies, others have already worked professionally. Our different biographical backgrounds and personalities also shape the breadth of our exchange, ensure a vital community and are reflected not least in our spirituality.
Here in the novitiate, we learn with and from each other what it means to be a Jesuit and how to become more and more Jesuit. It is a lifelong task which must be combined with exercise. Living together in everyday life helps to get a realistic impression of each other and of how we can work and be a community as Jesuits today.
Novizen berichten
Vocation story