NOVITIATE
To Enable The Young Woman To Deepen Her Christian Identity In The Church And To Respond To Her Religious Missionary Vocation In The Congregation By Establishing A Personsal Relationship With Christ And To The Living Of The Evangelical Counsels According To The Charism And Spirit Of The Congregation Lived In A Community.
Novitiate formation aims at blossoming the whole person with an emphasis on one’s growth in union with God. It includes human, spiritual, congregational, community and apostolic formation.
Novice is enabled to deepen her self- knowledge, acceptance and better integration of strengths and limitations. They get ample occasions for housekeeping, marketing, budgeting, gardening, games, yoga, recreational activities, cultural programs, outings, sex and value education. They are also enabled to integrate the distorted areas of their past life in order to experience the joy of inner freedom which will enable them to make a free and mature decision for their commitment to the Lord.
Novices are introduced to a fuller way of perfection by prayer and self denial. They are instructed to contemplate on the sacred scriptures. They are introduced to different methods of prayer with special emphasis to Ignatian method of contemplation. The atmosphere of silence prevailing throughout the day creates an awareness of the presence of God in and around.
To help the novice to imbibe the spirit of the congregation and its particular Charism, she is oriented to a deeper study of origin, development, Constitution, Charism, foundational spirit of our congregation, life of our patron, founder and predecessors through input sessions, discussions, exhibitions, quiz, elocution, dramatics, prayer services, personal reflections and applications to life.
Community life plays vital role in the formation of an individual where we live together sharing the same vision and mission. Living together with people of varying cultures, temperaments, abilities and aptitudes gives them a foretaste of religious community. A reflective study on Blessed Trinity the model of all communities, early Christian community and our founding community brings the novice to a better understanding and the implications of community living.
Contemplating on the compassionate Jesus, a deeper study of the missionary spirit of our founder and predecessors, one month of Live-In experience and weekly ministries gives them the fore-taste of the mission. During their community experience they are given opportunities to get directly related to the apostolic activities of the congregation. They actively get involved with pastoral activities of our parish and when opportunity arises are sent as volunteers for frontline ministries.
Inter-novitiate programs are planned by a team of formators coming together at the beginning of every academic year. Experienced resource persons are invited to animate these sessions and the expenses are shared. Every year five to six courses are organized on inter-novitiate level viz., Personality Development, Discernment, Psychosexual Integration and affective maturity, conscience formation, Challenges to Religious life, consecrated life etc. It’s a great ambience for them for free and spontaneous interactions with the novices of other congregation. Christmas is celebrated meaningfully in the gathering of all the formation houses in the neighborhood.
To foster a sense of patriotism and respect towards various cultures novices are encouraged and guided to celebrate national events and festivals like Independence Day, republic day, teachers day, foundation day of the community, Onam, Pongal, Karma, Deepavali, Ugadi etc. These celebrations provide opportunities to display their skills, talents, knowledge and team spirit. Every celebration is evaluated to ensure that everything is done with a purpose to draw out the growth producing elements.
To facilitate our novices to embrace their ability to see God’s glory in nature novices are given input sessions, seminars on greening the cosmos and caring for the mother earth. World environment day is celebrated meaningfully with prepared liturgies, work experience, garden meals, creative group presentations on related topics etc. We also teach them about the waste management and compost manure. All these sensitize them of the threats posed to the world’s natural resources and the need to play their part in preserving nature.
Monthly and yearly responsibilities given to individuals are assessed periodically through questionnaires, open and spontaneous group sharing to affirm them and to make them aware of their potentials for further growth and development. The suitability of every novice is discerned with peer group, self and staff evaluation every year. The report of the same is sent to the General and Provincial councils.
