Common Vocation Questions

Are you curious about religious life or discerning a vocation to the Poor Clares? We’ve compiled the following FAQs to give you more information. Feel free to contact us with additional questions (864-834-8015 or vocation@poorclaresc.com); we are always happy to help!

Contemplative life is a life-long journey to God through prayer and worship; it involves turning from everything that could distract you from the journey. Contemplative nuns like the Poor Clares are concerned less with themselves and more with God and all those whom God loves.

Prayer is essential for all Christians, but contemplatives are called to make their whole lives a prayer, not only in solitude and silence but also in community.

Like any vocation, the contemplative vocation contains its share of mystery. It requires mutual discernment between a religious community and the individual.

God’s call usually becomes clearer over time; it is a persistent tug of your heart, a deep desire that grows stronger. In discerning your vocation, you seek to discern God’s will for you and to subordinate your own will; this often requires taking some risks as you explore different types of contemplative and religious life.

If you were to ask Poor Clare nuns to explain their vocations or describe why they came to the monastery, you would hear several common phrases. These phrases express subtly some of the signs of a contemplative call.

We offer a word of caution here. Even if all the statements below seem to fit your feelings at this moment, you must ground your discernment in a deep, ongoing desire to be a contemplative nun in response to God’s call. “I should”, “I ought to”, “I must” won’t do!

  • I am happy at this moment and in my present situation.
    Being content with your current life and situation is an important starting point in discerning God’s call to a contemplative community. Monasteries are the wrong places to run away from an unhappy, unhealthy situation.
    Contemplative life is a journey inward and forward, not an escape. The structure of cloistered life requires maturity, openness of heart and spirit, and acceptance of what is. Those exploring this life should see it as it really is, not as they hope, imagine, or would like it to be. Monasteries are not “perfect” places, and Poor Clares are not superhuman or perfect either.
  • I want to give myself totally to God.
    If you ask a Poor Clare nun why she joined a contemplative Order, she would say that her primary reason was her desire to give herself to God. This desire is indispensable.
  • There are many things I could do with my life to help others, but this seems right for me.
    We all want to give our best to whatever we do. Once we recognize our gifts, we usually set out to use them for the service of others.
    A woman experiencing a call to contemplative life seeks to use her gifts to serve God’s people. Her desire to give herself totally to God is accompanied by a yearning to give everything for all people everywhere.
  • I feel drawn to a simple life where there are other people who have the same Christian values.
    Simplicity is a key feature of Poor Clare life. We follow the Gospel by living a simple life in community, and, indeed, our monasteries  – and our habits – have a simple, unpretentious look about them. A life in community affirms the person, and we give to one another what rank, education, or position cannot: the promise of love and the support to grow.

A woman exploring a vocation to our monastery should:

  • Be a woman between the ages of 25-60
  • Be a practicing, mature Catholic with a desire for a life of prayer in community
  • Enjoy good physical, mental and emotional health
  • Be able to spend some time in our Monastery as you discern your suitability to our way of life before applying for admission.
  • Be a U.S. Citizen or have a green card
  • Be free of debt or able to be free of debt before entering our community
    Note: if you have student loan debt, we can put you in touch with organizations, such as the Labouré Society, which may be able to help you.

If you are thinking about religious life, we encourage you to contact us to talk about your questions.

We recommend that you:

  1. Review the practices and advice on our Tips for Discernment page.
  2. Seek advice from someone who knows you and is familiar with contemplative communities.
    This might be your priest, spiritual director, or someone you know who is in religious life.
  3. Reach out to us (vocation@poorclaresc.com or 864-834-8015) and to other Poor Clare monasteries.
    Most communities have a vocation director who can explain more about our life and answer any additional questions you have.  Each monastery does have its own process for helping candidates discern the call to contemplative life, and communities also may have different requirements for candidates.