"Speak, lord, your servant is listening"
-1 samuel 3:10
If you are just beginning to think about priesthood and wondering how to discern, please check out our Discernment page for helpful tips. The information below will help give an idea out how the official application process works.
Once you feel you have discerned God's call in your life and spoke with your pastor and/or spiritual director, you may feel that it is time to apply to the seminary. This process takes time (up to a year or more) based on your background and readiness. The application process is a period of discernment on the part of both the applicant AND the Church.
REWRITE: Emphasis on MUTUAL journey**
Within the Archdiocese of Newark, a man will enroll in the Aspirancy Program for a period of 6-18 months before he is considered for an official application as a seminarian.
Applying to seminary
1
meet with vocation director
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After serious commitment and dedication to the Aspirancy Program, you will meet with the Vocation Director. If you, the Vocation Director and your assigned mentor have all discerned that you should apply to seminary, you may being the formal application process.
2
submit application for review
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Your application will be reviewed by the Archdiocesan Seminary Admissions Board
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Upon completion of your application materials, which include interviews and subsequent screenings (background, mental, and physical health), the Priestly Vocations Board and the Archbishop will decide on the applicant's acceptance.
3
apply to seminary/academy program
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Once accepted, you will apply to the appropriate seminary and academic program.
You do not need to be 100% convinced that the Lord is calling you to priesthood in order to apply. Applying does not mean that you will definitely be ordained a priest...Many men feel called to enter the seminary to CONTINUE their discernment. Whether a man is ordained a priest or not, he leaves the seminary a more well-formed Christian gentleman.
