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The Novitiate
Initiation into the Religious Life
97. The novitiate is a time of initiation in the requirements of Marist religious life1. The novice, helped by the Master and his team, discerns God's will for him and tests his motivation and aptitudes in light of the commitment that he is contemplating. By living the evangelical counsels, he sets out to follow Christ2 in the manner of Mary. He experiences the kind of life lived in the Institute and learns to live according to the Constitutions.
The choice of topics in the study of Church doctrine is designed to deepen his faith and to bring him to a loving encounter with God.
This time of formation prepares the novice for his religious profession, seen as a response to God's call.
97.1 The novice is not to be engaged in work or studies that do not contribute directly to his formation. (c 652, 5)
Human and Christian Formation
98. The novice works at developing both human and Christian virtues. He schools himself to sacrifice1 and to a complete self-giving to God and to people.
He begins to live in intimacy with God, helped by spiritual reading, by meditation, and by sharing reflections on scripture. The celebration of the Eucharist, of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and of the Liturgy of the Hours gives him additional spiritual assistance.
By having someone to accompany him on his journey to God, the novice is encouraged to open his heart and to interiorise gospel values. He grows to be more sensitive to the action of the Holy Spirit in his life2.
Marist Formation
99. In the person and work of Marcellin Champagnat, the Marist spirit is clearly revealed to the novice, who tries to make it his own and to give it his heart's allegiance.
He takes as model for his community living the simple life of the first Brothers. Manual work, carried out in the spirit of these first followers of Champagnat, adds its own contribution to a balanced formation1.
A thorough study is made of the Constitutions, seen as the application of the Gospel to Marist life.
The Novitiate House
100. The novitiate, under the direction of the Master of Novices, is made in a house established by a written decree of the Brother Superior General1. The novitiate lasts at least eighteen months or, at the most, twenty-four months. For it to be valid2, twelve months are to be spent in the novitiate community.
An absence that goes beyond three months, whether continuous or not, makes the novitiate invalid. An absence that goes beyond a fortnight has to be made good3.
100.1 The novitiate house is to be set up in surroundings that are favourable to attaining the goal of this period of formation. It is to be a simple and hospitable place, suited to quiet reflection, to prayer, and to life in community.
100.2 The Brother Provincial can authorise the group of novices to live, for a certain period, in another specified house of the Institute. (c 647, 3)
100.3 In particular cases, the Brother Provincial can prolong the time of novitiate, but not for more than six months. (c 653, 2)
100.4 The way in which an inter-provincial novitiate is to be conducted is agreed on by the Brothers Provincial concerned.
Periods of apostolic Activity
101. With the consent of the Brother Provincial, the Master of Novices can organize one or more periods of apostolic activity outside the novitiate house1.
101.1 At least six months are to be spent in the novitiate before any apostolic activity is undertaken. This work must end at least three months before first profession.
101.2 To ensure the success of these periods, care must be taken to see to the following:
1. the kind of work engaged in is in harmony with the aim of the Institute, and is adapted to the age and maturity of the novice;
2. the community receiving the novice understands the objectives of this stage of formation, and contributes to them;
3. this stage is made under the direction of the Master of Novices.
Final Stages of the Novitiate
102. As the novitiate draws to a close, the novice writes to the Brother Provincial, asking to be admitted to profession. The novitiate ends with temporary profession1 preceded by a retreat.
102.1 Three months before the end of the novitiate, the novice, in his request to be admitted to profession, gives an
account of his life-experience. He sets out
the reasons that lead him to give himself to
God in the Institute. Along with this
request, a report is submitted by the Brother
Master of Novices and his team.
102.2 The Brother Provincial fixes the
duration of the retreat and the place
where the first profession is to be made.
102.3 The Brother Provincial can admit to profession a novice in danger of death.
The juridical effects of this profession
lapse if the novice recovers.
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