Join Us
There are multiple ways to join Voluntas Dei Institute: United States District:
Priests and celibate laymen are invited to discern a vocation as members to live the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the Institute according to our Constitutions and the Canon Law of the Church.
Married couples are invited to discern a vocation as associate members by their commitment to the evangelical counsels: poverty, chastity, and obedience. We are the only secular institute whose Constitutions invite married couples as associate members.
Single women and single men can be spiritually affiliated to the Institute.
THE PATH TO FORMATION
Formation in Voluntas Dei is understood as a lifelong process of growth, discernment, and deepening commitment. Members move through a series of stages, each designed to help them understand the spirituality of the Institute and discern their vocation more fully.
A brief period as an Observer may come before formal formation begins.
Aspirancy lasts from six months to two years.
Probation lasts two years.
This is followed by a multi-year period of Vows for vowed members, or Commitments for married couples.
The final stage is Stability as a vowed member, or becoming a Committed Member for married couples.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
-
No. One of the distinctive qualities of Voluntas Dei is the variety of vocations represented within the same spiritual family. Priests, deacons, celibate laymen, married couples, and spiritually affiliated men and women share in team life and the spirituality of the Institute while living those commitments according to their own state of life.
-
Being part of Voluntas Dei means learning to recognize and live God’s will in the ordinary circumstances of everyday life. Members remain rooted in their homes, professions, parishes, ministries, and communities, bringing the spirituality of the Three Fives into their relationships, work, prayer, and service.
This vocation is also lived in community. Members gather with their local team each month for prayer, formation, reflection, and fellowship, supporting one another as they discern God’s presence in daily life. Each year, members also participate in a five-day retreat, providing dedicated time for prayer, renewal, and deeper formation in the spirituality of Voluntas Dei.
-
The team is at the heart of life in Voluntas Dei. In the United States, members gather regularly for prayer, formation, conversation, reflection on Scripture, and discernment. It is a place to share how God is moving through the realities of everyday life and to support one another in living the spirituality of the Institute. The USA formation materials describe monthly team meetings as a primary means of ongoing formation.
-
A secular institute is a form of consecrated life in the Catholic Church whose members live their vocation in the midst of the world. Rather than withdrawing from ordinary life or living together in a religious community, members remain rooted in their homes, professions, ministries, parishes, families, and communities. Unlike religious communities, which are typically organized separately for men or for women, a secular institute can bring together people from different states of life within one spiritual family. In Voluntas Dei, priests, celibate laymen, married couples, and spiritually affiliated men and women share a common spirituality and mission while living out their vocation in the circumstances of everyday life. Their daily lives become the place where they seek God’s will and witness to Christ.
-
No. Secularity is essential to the Voluntas Dei vocation. Members are called to remain actively engaged in the world and to bring Christ into the places where they already live and serve. Priests may belong to Voluntas Dei while remaining incardinated in their dioceses, and lay members continue their professional and family lives.
-
Becoming part of Voluntas Dei is a process of formation and discernment rather than a single decision. The formal path includes a period of observation or candidacy, followed by Aspirancy, Probation, Profession or Commitment, and eventually Stability. Each stage allows both the individual and the Institute time to discern the vocation gradually, with the support of a team and ongoing formation.
-
Formation unfolds over several years. Aspirancy generally lasts between six months and two years, followed by a period of Probation of approximately two to four years. Those who continue then enter a period of Profession or Commitment. After five full years of Profession or Commitment, members are eligible for permanent membership through stability. Formation continues throughout a member's life.
-
Yes. Voluntas Dei is an international secular institute with members and communities around the world. The United States District is one part of that larger Institute, united by a shared spirituality, charism, and commitment to discerning and living the will of God.
While our website focuses on the life and mission of the United States District, we are connected to the wider international Voluntas Dei community through the Institute’s Central Administration.
-
Reaching out begins a conversation, not a commitment. You do not need to have that answer before reaching out. Discernment is precisely that: a process of prayer, conversation, experience, and listening. An initial conversation can simply be an opportunity to learn more, ask questions, and see whether the spirituality of Voluntas Dei resonates with the way God may be calling you to live. A member of Voluntas Dei can answer your questions, learn a little about you and what has drawn you to the Institute, and help you explore an appropriate next step.
For more information regarding vocations, please email:
vocations@voluntasdeiusa.org
or fill out our contact form here.