Glossary of Terms

This glossary of terms will help you understand the vocabulary of a call to the priesthood and religious life.

Apostolate: The "work" done by lay people, religious and priests to minister to the spiritual and material needs of the people of God. It is also referred to as the "ministry" of the person or religious congregation.

Apostolic Religious Life: A form of consecrated life, a lifestyle where men (brothers and /or priests) and women (sisters) pronounce publicly the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, live in community, and commit themselves to a ministry and mission, according to the charism of its founder.

Breviary: A set of books containing the Liturgy of the Hours* or "Divine Office" which every priest, religious, and some lay persons pray at various times of the day. In addition to prayers, breviaries include psalms, religious readings, and hymns.

Brother: A religious brother is a lay member of a men religious community. He takes the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience and is involved in the congregational ministry. A brother is not ordained to the priesthood. 

Call/Vocation: An inclination toward a particular way of life, which Christians see as a call from God. Through baptism and confirmation a person is called by God to follow Jesus in a life of holiness and service. Such a call may be lived out in different life styles: in marriage, as a single person, or as a priest, brother or sister.

Candidate: A candidate is a person who is in the initial stages of becoming a religious priest, brother or sister. A candidate is sometimes called an aspirant or postulant. 

Celibacy: The unmarried state of life that one assumes as a religious (or priest) in which he/she freely chooses to abstain from marriage and any sexual relations in order to be totally dedicated to the service of God and the
community.

Charism: The term charism comes from the Greek, charis - grace. It is a special gift granted by God to an individual or groups for the good of the entire Church. It is the particular faith vision handed down by founders to inspire the life and ministry of their communities. 

Chastity: A vow taken by members of religious orders (diocesan priests do not take vows but promise) to remain celibate and refrain from sexual relationship as expression of total commitment to God and the Church.

Clergy/Clerics: Status of those who received the priestly ordination, priests, deacons and bishops. 

Cloister: A cloister (from Latin claustrum) is an enclosed space in a convent or monastery. The cloister is especially important for contemplative communities, where seclusion from "the world" is an essential element of their
vocations.

Community: A group of people living together, bound by a common spirituality and charism. They share time and talents and strive to live a life of holiness both as individuals and as a group. 

Consecrated Life: A call from God to imitate Jesus who was poor, chaste and obedient to the will of the Father. Consecrated life includes religious priests, brothers, and sisters, members of secular institutes, hermits and consecrated virgins.

Contemplation: A form of quiet prayer focusing on the loving presence of God within the person. St. Teresa of Avila said, "Prayer in my opinion is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us".

Convent: The home of a community of men or women religious.

Deacon: From the Greek, deacon means "assistant, servant." As ordained ministers deacons assist the bishop and priest in the Eucharist. They may preach, baptize, preside at marriages and funerals and minister in other ways. The Diaconate may be a first step to the priesthood (temporary diaconate) or the final place of ministry (permanent diaconate) for a male member of the Catholic community. Laymen may be married or single, but may not marry after the diaconate ordination. They may have jobs outside the Church, in addition to serving as deacons. 

Diocesan Priest: A man who has been ordained to a diocese. At the ordination, a diocesan priest makes a promise of obedience to the bishop and to his successors as well as a promise to live a life of celibacy. Also see priest.

Diocese: A group of parishes in a particular geographical area that is under the jurisdiction of a bishop. An Archdiocese is the chief diocese of an ecclesiastical province and is presided over by an archbishop. 

Discernment: The act or process to discover God's desire for us at a given time or a particular circumstance of our lives. It entails listening to God in all the ways God communicates with us: in prayer, in the scriptures, through the Church and the world, in personal experience, and through other people. Vocational Discernment is discovering whether God is calling to religious life, marriage, priesthood, the single life, or another ministry.

Divine Office: See Breviary. 

Evangelical Counsels: "Evangelical" here means contained in the "Gospels." To practice the evangelical counsels is to live a life based on the Gospel, which is living out the virtues of poverty, chastity, and obedience. All Christians are called to the practice of these Gospel virtues as appropriate to their state in life. Those who are called to religious life profess the three vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience as a way to follow Christ and to be free to serve the Church and minister to the world.

Formation: The process of education which introduces candidates to religious or priestly life. Formation involves spiritual, apostolic, doctrinal and practical elements to help the candidates and the young professed to assimilate and deepen the particular charism of the order. Formation of those called to the diocesan priesthood takes place during their seminary years. Ongoing formation continues throughout the life of the ordained minister or those called to apostolic or consecrated life. 

Friar: The term comes from the Latin frater and means brother. A friar is either an ordained or lay member of a mendicant community, such as Dominicans, Franciscans, Carmelites. ("Mendicant" historically denotes the community's reliance on the freewill offerings of the faithful. They also were itinerant.)

Holy Orders: This is the sacrament conferred on those Catholics who have been called by God and chosen by the Church for service as deacon, priest or bishop.

Laity: Laity comprises all members of the Church who are not ordained. Technically, even Sisters and brothers in religious congregations are considered laity.

Lectio Divina: Latin for "Divine Reading". It is and ancient method that lets God speak to you through scripture. This methods calls one to read, ponder, reflect and finally pray from God's Word. Also see Meditation. 

Liturgy: The word comes from the Greek, meaning "the work of the people" In Catholic tradition Liturgy is the public worship of the Church, including the Eucharist, celebration of Sacraments, and the Liturgy of the Hours.

Meditation: A form of mental prayer, often used with Scripture. It involves three elements: reading of a biblical passage; reflecting on themes and images of that passage and their relevance to one's current life experience; prayer as response to the passage and one's own reflection. 

Mission: It means "being sent". The Mission of the Church is to proclaim and give witness to the Kingdom of God. The Church is called to spread the Good News of the Gospel and establish Christian Communities all over the world, communities of faith, service and worship. When referring to a religious orders, mission refers to the purpose or goal of a community.

Missionary/Missioner: Through Baptism all members of the Church are responsible for spreading the faith to those who do not know Christ. The term "missionary/missioner" more often refers to a person whom the Church sends to be minister of the Gospel among peoples of other cultures, often among the poor in foreign lands. A missionary can be a priest, a religious brother or sister, or a lay person. Some religious institutes and societies were specifically founded for missionary ministry. As a historical development, the missionary spirit is attracting other people (diocesan priests as well as lay persons) not belonging to these missionary communities. They join the missionary works for short or long term experiences. There are also lay missionary organizations that prepare and sent out missioners. 

Monastery: A building or complex of buildings that houses religious men or women who live according to the monastic tradition of the Church whose life is more focused on quiet prayer and work, often in partial or complete seclusion from society.

Monk: A member of a monastic community such as the Benedictines or Trappists, living in a cloister and devoting himself to contemplation and prayer and work. Novice
This word means "new". It is a person who is new to the community and is engaged in the process of initial formation.

Novitiate: A special period of preparation (one or two years) prior to taking vows. In this intensely spiritual time during the initial formation, with the help of a formation director, the candidates (novices) discern their vocation and come to a decision whether they are called to religious life. Spirituality, Prayer, Scripture, Church history and the particular charism of the community are part of the formation during novitiate. 

Nun: It is often used to describe a religious women. The term refers to those religious women who are members of contemplative and often cloistered orders.

Obedience: Members of religious communities listen to God's will as it is made known to them through prayer, dialogue with the superiors, and their community. The aim is to better serve the needs of all through the charism of the community. Jesus serves as the model for obedience to God. 

Orders: This term refers to religious communities, or congregations.

Ordination: Liturgical celebration of receiving the office of deacon, priest, or bishop. The laying on of hands and the consecratory prayer are the essential elements of ordination. 

Poverty: Members of religious communities live a simple lifestyle and hold all things in common. They share their talents with the community as well as money, and material goods in order to better minister to others and support the community.

Priest: A man ordained for the service of the people to God through the Sacrament of Holy Orders. He celebrates the Eucharist, administers sacraments, preaches and cares for the pastoral needs of the community. A priest may belong to a diocese or to a religious community. 

Profession: Act of consecration to God by making vows of poverty, chastity and obedience which incorporate a person in a religious community. Profession is normally made initially for a certain time (simple or temporary vows), and then later for life (solemn or perpetual vows). Profession can be simple (temporary) or solemn (permanent or perpetual).

Promise: A promise is a sacred and public commitment made by a person without assuming the obligations of the religious state. Members of a Society of Apostolic Life make promises of chastity, obedience to the superior. A diocesan priest promises celibacy, for the sake of the Kingdom of God, and obedience to the bishop of his diocese. Province
A regional or geographical subdivision of the Church or of a particular religious order.

Provincial: The superior of the communities of a religious order within the particular province. 

Religious life: Refers to the vocation of those who dedicate themselves to God by taking the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience and sharing in a communal life of prayer and service in a religious community.

Secular Institute: An institute of consecrated life in the Church. Their members profess vows of poverty, obedience, and chastity but live in the ordinary circumstances of the world, either alone, in families or in communities. Each secular institute bears the unique charism of its founders and traditions and nurture communion among its members through annual retreats, meetings, and friendships. 

Seminary: A place where candidates to the priesthood (called seminarians) pursue their spiritual, apostolic, personal and academic formation. The academic education may be conducted in the seminary, but most often it takes place in separate colleges or schools of theology. Also see Theologate.

Sister:  A vowed member of an active, uncloistered religious community. A sister serves God in the spirit of the charism of her community and works in many different ministries, according to the needs of the Church, the religious community, and society. 

Theologate: A four-year program at a Catholic graduate school of theology for seminarians who have completed their philosophical training. Such course of studies is required for ordination to priesthood. At a theologate, seminarians study theology as well as practical aspects of priesthood.

Vocation/Call: An inclination toward a particular way of life, which Christians see as a call from God. Through baptism and confirmation a person is called by God to follow Jesus in a life of holiness and service. Such a call may be lived out in different life styles: in marriage, as a single person, or as a priest, brother or sister. 

Vows: A free, deliberate and public commitment before the Church and the legitimately appointed superior to offer oneself to the service of God in a particular religious community. Most frequently the vows are to poverty, chastity and obedience, but some congregations take additional vows. Members of secular institutes make private vows or sacred bonds of the evangelical counsels according to the constitutions of their particular institute.