CAN ANY ONE TELL ME A LIST OF CONGREGATIONS THAT ACCEPT LATE VOCATIONS PLEASE.
GOD BLESS

We may need more information to help you. What age? Male or female?

I AM A LATE VOCATION AND WILL BE 40 ON THE FEAST OF MOUNT CARMEL. YES I AM A MALE AND HAVE DONE MY ONE YEAR DIPLOMA IN SACRED THEOLOGY WITH SPECIALIZATION IN MARIOLOGY.
THANKS AND GOD BLESS.

I WOULD BE OBLIGED IF THE CONCERNED REVERENED WOULD CONTACT ME ON FIRSTTABERNACLE@CATHOLIC.ORG ( all caps ). I could give more details as and when asked for.

I would think that they all accept "late" vocations. The usual advice is to seek direction from a priest.

Some orders do have maximum age cutoffs.

My understanding is that men's communities are less likely to have age cut-offs than women's communities. Further, a number of communities will consider people who are older than the age limit if they have reason to think the person may have a genuine vocation to their community.

I second the suggestion to talk to a spiritual director if possible. You should discern first whether/where God may be calling you, what charism, what type of community, etc. Then you can look at individual communities and think about things like age limits.

In my experience, monastic or contemplative communities had more concerns about age than active ones.

I think most active and even some contemplative orders will accept a 40 year old man, but it is usually done one a case to case basis I think. Isn't there even seminaries in the US for late vocations?

I think Holy Apostles in CT is sort of aimed at older vocations. There might be another.


eta - I just realized I probably shouldn't have posted since I don't know enough about seminaries or anything. Fr Horton or someone can correct me.

sometimes called "Holy Fossils"...

Our diocese uses Sacred Heart Seminary in Hales Corner WI, which also specializes in late vocations.

The US Dominican have a cut-off of 35 for the normal recruiting channels, but one can go through the Prior Provincial if over 35, better be a good salesman. Fr Mullady OP (teaches at Holy Apostles) says there are many bishops who will ordain a man of any age, as long as he foots the bill for his own seminary formation.

That's how I remembered the name.

Many different congregations, and many Dioceses accept late vocations. Certainly the Diocese of Owensboro in Kentucky does. We had a Priest ordained a year ago in May who was 45 (he is assigned to my Parish). He had been a teacher and sports coach for a number of years before entering the Seminary.

The Diocese of San Diego in California was one of the very first to actively seek late vocations. My Pastor in Escondido, CA was a retired Navy Captain, with 7 children. His wife died when he was in his late 40's, and he went to Seminary and became a Priest. I believe he was 53 or 54 when he was ordained.

San Diego began seeking older candidates (delayed vocations) in the 1950's. This was a program begun under Bishop Buddy, and it has never stopped.

If you truly have a call, you can and will, find somewhere that will accept you. I know of religious communities that say they are recruiting men in their 30's, that will actually accept men into their late 40's, 50's and even older, if they have adequate insurance coverage, and retirement funds.

The Trappists will never turn anyone away, if they truly feel the call, unless the person has a mental illness, or is in significant debt, etc. They are NOT looking for people running away from the world.

What is a late vocation?

Someone who discerns a call to a religious vocation -- in particular to priesthood or to religious life (i.e. to a religious order like the Franciscans or Benedictines, i.e. a nun or a brother) -- at a relatively later point in life than normal. (I'm being vague because I'm not sure where the cutoff for a late vocation would actually be!)

Not true. When I was seeking, I contacted Fr. Groeschel's Franciscan Friars and the minute they heard my age, that was it! He may have problems getting by his age. Just letting you know.

Active orders do often refuse people because of age, I'm not denying that....but monastic orders are usually even more strict on it. When I was visiting monasteries during my discernment, they explained that the shift and change of lifestyle from a layperson to a monastic lifestyle is more drastic than it is for that person to change to an active order's lifestyle and this change just gets harder and harder as one gets older and more set in their ways.

It is hard for an older person to get into any religious order, but from what I was told it is even more difficult to get into a contemplative one. That could have just been the case with the orders I visited though.

The term often gets used for anyone who didn't go straight from college (at the latest) into formation. I would guess that at least as many do something else for a few years, so "late" could now start to kick in around 30 or so.

For a second there I though Dominicatella was back...