If you are looking for a sense of direction and purpose in your life, consider if the Spirit may be guiding you to the Spiritans. Spiritans have been proclaiming the Good News and serving those in need for more than 300 years. We are called to serve others in a mission of dedicating our labor and our lives to God. Come, join us, and find a balanced, holistic life of purposeful mission, community, and friendship.
You don’t have to discern God’s call for your life alone. If you think joining the Spiritan community might be right for you, fill out the form below or contact our Vocation Director.
Spiritan priests proclaim the Good News and serve those in need through pastoral work, education, refugee ministry, healthcare and social economic development.
Spiritan Priests live in community and take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.
Spiritan brothers commit to vowed, consecrated life and live in community with priests as equals, serving alongside them in both missionary and apostolic work, such as education and parish ministry.
Spiritan brothers are called towards a particular charism and religious life, not the priesthood.
Religious brothers can serve in many positions aligned with the Congregation's charism and needs, including teachers, brothers, lawyers, engineers, outreach ministries, administrators, and vocation roles.
Lay Spiritans are single or married people of all ages who experience a call to live their lives in deep embrace of Spiritan spirituality and make a commitment to share in Spiritan Mission, prayer and community life.
Lay Spiritans enter into a process of discernment and eventually make a commitment in front of the community. Lay Spiritans pray together regularly, have mission commitments of their own, and hold leadership positions in the province.
Lay people are also active in Spiritan Friends groups around the country. The laity is integral to the Spiritan mission in the U.S. and worldwide.
Learn more about Becoming a Lay Spiritan.
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Vowed religious life offers a special kind of holistic, balance driven by love.
Letting your deep love for God and the world He created guide your physical, mental and spiritual life, changes everything. It is a sacrifice born out of the love of God.
Spiritans are sent on missionary appointments all over the world. In every new place they learn the language and and walk beside the people there. While doing this, they are also building a tapestry of authentic, deep, life-giving friendships.
Loneliness is endemic in our culture today. 42% of adults age 18 to 34 say they “always” feel “left out.” Religious life takes a countercultural approach to community. Much like the early church, Spiritans live together in community with “One Heart and One Spirit,” supporting each other through all of life’s ups and downs.
The way to find out if you have a religious vocation with the Spiritans begins with conversation, opportunities to meet our community, and periods of reflection.
If this continues to lead you to becoming a Spiritan, you would begin a 3-step formation process that takes 5-10 years.
After taking a few months to take care of your personal business (leaving your job, moving out of your home, handling personal affairs), you are invited to move into our community at Laval House located on the campus of Duquesne University and begin to live with other students like yourself interested in joining the Spiritans. You spend this time working towards your undergraduate degree as well as deepening your ministerial experience by volunteering in prisons and hospitals, tutoring and working in parishes, and helping in other places where there is a need. During this period, you will enter into spiritual direction that will help your discernment process through prayer and dialogue.
During this year, you will grow in your understanding of the Spiritan vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and discover if you are ready to commit your life to the Spiritan Congregation as a professed member. The Novitiate year could take place in a community outside of the U.S., for example, in Canada, Ireland, or Vietnam. You will be with other men who are discovering more about the Spiritan life and will have the chance to meet Spiritan missionaries from all over the world. This is a year for spiritual reflection and a time to learn more about the mission and history of the Spiritans. At the end of the Novitiate experience, you will have reached a decision about whether or not to take temporary vows and commit to live in a Spiritan community for three years
This period can vary in length. At this point, you will be working toward your master’s degree in theology/divinity. During this period, you will also spend two years overseas doing hands-on ministry experience in another culture. The first part of your time will be spent learning the language. During the second year, you will take part in the missionary work of the local Spiritan community. Where you spend your overseas experience is decided jointly by you and your Spiritan advisor. When you are overseas, you will have a mentor, a Spiritan living and working with that community, who will help you adjust and reflect on your experience. When your overseas missionary work and studies are completed, you will move toward your final vows and ordination for those called to the priesthood. In your final year of study, after you have taken final vows, you will engage in dialogue with the Spiritan leadership in Rome and local leadership of your province regarding your mission appointment. During this exciting time, you will have the opportunity to learn about the many needs of the Congregation and opportunities to serve as part of our international Congregation.