Vocational Glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Apostolate: The labors, the “work” done for the mission of the Church by lay, religious and priests. This is often also referred to as the ministry of the person or religious congregation.
Apostolic Religious Life: The most well know form of consecrated life, and that, which is the prototype for the other forms, is apostolic religious life. In this form, men (priests and brothers) and women (sisters) pronounce publicly the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, live in community, and share a common commitment to ministry.
Archdiocese: The archdiocese is the principle diocese, headed by an archbishop, in a regional cluster of dioceses.
Bishop: a bishop or archbishop is the spiritual leader of a geographic area called a diocese or archdiocese. A bishop or archbishop is the primary teacher of doctrine and leader of worship and other ministries. Bishops meet together to guide the church.
Breviary: A book or books containing the official and public prayer of the Church, known as the Liturgy of the Hours (also called the Divine Office): that is, a set form of prayers, hymns, and readings to be prayed at various times of the day.
Brother: A man who is a member of a religious order, but is not ordained. A Brother takes the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. He usually lives in community and is involved in the congregational ministry.
Candidate: A candidate is a person who is in the initial stages of becoming an ordained minister or entering an institute of consecrated life. In religious communities, a candidate is sometimes called an aspirant or postulant.
Canon Law: The official body of laws for Catholics of the Roman or Latin rite, contained in a work called the Code of Canon Law.
Celibacy: In general, the unmarried state of life; in Christian teaching, celibacy is a vocation in which one freely chooses to be unmarried “for the sake of the Kingdom.” This vocation may be lived out in all forms of life, and is required for those entering religious life or the priesthood.
Charism: Each religious community has a charism — a purpose or mission, and a spirit defined by the community’s founder; a spiritual gift given to an individual or groups for the good of the Church. For example, a religious order might exist to serve the poor (purpose) in a spirit of humility. Some communities have an apostolic charism, meaning an active ministry in the world. Other religious orders are contemplative, focusing mainly on a community life of prayer.
Clergy: A general title referring to those ordained: priests, deacons and bishops, whether part of the diocesan organization or a religious congregation.
Cloister: An enclosed place in a convent or monastery that is only for members of that group. The term is sometimes used to describe a type of congregation by calling them “cloistered.”
Community: This term applies to a group of people bound by common interests, a shared identity, and living with each other. Religious congregations and orders strive to create community around the charism and basic spirituality, and often by living in solidarity with the people who they are serving.
Consecrated Life: Consecrated life is a vocation, a call from God, to conform one’s life more closely to Jesus Christ through living as he did in poverty, celibate chastity, and obedience and dedicating oneself to God for the salvation of the world. Consecrated life includes religious priests, brothers, and sisters, members of secular institutes, hermits and consecrated virgins. Within this general description, there are many variations on exactly how consecration is lived out, both individually and communally.
Contemplation: A form of quiet mental prayer, very affective in nature in which one rests quietly in the love and presence of God.
Convent: A building where members of women’s congregations live.
Deacon: An ordained minister in the Church. This may be a first step to priesthood (temporary diaconate) or the final place of ministry (permanent diaconate) for a male member of the Catholic community. A layman may be married or single, but may not marry after the diaconate ordination. Deacons assist and preach at liturgical celebrations. They may baptize, preside at marriages and funerals and minister in other ways. They may have jobs outside the Church, in addition to serving as deacons.
Diocese: A specific geographical area of the Catholic community that is under the authority of a bishop.
Diocesan Priest: A man who desires to bring God to people and people to God through the sharing of word and sacrament. As a servant-leader, a priest is called to proclaim and celebrate the Good News among God’s people. He usually is incardinated into a particular diocese and serves a parish community, though he may also serve as a teacher, hospital or prison chaplain, campus minister, and administrator of various diocesan programs and offices. A diocesan priest makes a promise of obedience to the bishop and to his successor as well as a promise to live a life of celibacy.
Discernment: A prayerful process through which we try to discover God’s desire for us in the circumstances of our lives. It is a way of listening to the voice of God in our experiences, in Scripture, and in the Church. Discernment is a means to sorting through the movements in our hearts and making the best choices among alternatives. Vocational discernment is a mutual process done in dialogue with others.
Divine Office (See Breviary)
Evangelical Counsels: “Evangelical” means “Gospel.” Thus this term means a way of life based on the Gospel through the practice of 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. The term is usually understood to mean the three vows or bonds of poverty, chastity, and obedience as professed by those who choose to live a consecrated life.
Chastity: Members of religious communities choose to share love and friendship with all of God's people and not make a commitment to one particular person. This enables the religious to love everyone with the love of Jesus.
Poverty: Members of religious communities live simply and hold all things in common, sharing with the community his or her talents, money, and material goods in order to better minister to others and support the community
Obedience: Members of religious communities listen to God's will as it is made known to them through prayer and their community, so as to serve the needs of all through the charism, or ministry, of the community
Formation: The process of education and spiritual development that takes place during the early months of years of joining a religious or secular institute. Those entering the diocesan priesthood are involved in formation during their seminary years. Ongoing formation continues throughout the life of the ordained minister or those called to apostolic or consecrated life.
Laity: All members of the Church who are not ordained are considered the laity. Technically, even members of religious congregations are considered laity.
Lay Minister: A lay minister participates in the mission of the Church as a person who serves the Church and God’s people in fulfillment of his/her baptismal consecration. Some lay ministries are exercised in the name of the Church and require particular competencies, education and delegation.
Lectio Divina: A method of reading and praying scripture and other prayer material that is reflective and leads to a deeper affective prayer experience.
Liturgy: The public worship of the Church, including the Eucharist, celebration of Sacraments, and the Liturgy of the Hours. The word means “work of the people.”
Missionary/Missioner: The whole Church is responsible for spreading the faith to those who do not know Christ. All Christians are called to undertake missionary work either in their home country or other lands. More and more, the term “missioner” is used to refer to those who do missionary work. A Missioner, who can be a priest, deacon, religious or secular institute member, married or single lay person is sent by the Church to be a minister of the Gospel, often among the poor and oppressed. He/she may commit a designated amount of time or a whole lifetime to the missions. Some religious institutes and societies of apostolic life are founded specifically for missionary ministry and have both lifelong vowed members as well as associates who dedicate a specific amount of time to the missionary apostolate of the particular institute.
Meditation: A more “active” form of mental prayer, often used with Scripture, where one imagines oneself as part of the “scene” and interacts with Jesus, then brings the insight and experience to their current life.
Monastery: A House of religious men or women of a congregation which is monastic in its life style. Members of these communities generally live a life that is more focused on quiet prayer and works within the community rather than outside apostolic works.
Monk: A member of a monastic community such as the Benedictines, Trappists, etc., under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience according to a specific rule.
Monsignor: An honorary ecclesiastical title granted by the Pope to some diocesan priests
Novice: A person who has been admitted into the life of particular religious institute. Before novices make a permanent commitment to an order or congregation, they begin a period of intense spiritual formation, called the “novitiate.” The novitiate is an opportunity for the novices and members of the institute to grow in an understanding of their vocation to the vowed life and to their institute. They also deepen their understanding of prayer, Scripture, liturgy, Church history, and the nature of the particular institute. The novitiate is between one and two years in length, depending on the background of the congregation.
Novitiate: Probationary period preparing a person for first or temporary vows.
Nun: A woman who is a member of contemplative and often cloistered community.
Orders: communities of women or men who share life in common. Often also referred to congregations.
Ordination: Ordination confers the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Through ordination a man becomes a deacon, priest, or bishop. The laying on of hands and the consecratory prayer are the essential elements of ordination.
Perpetual Profession: Final vows in a religious congregation which commit to lifelong consecration and incorporation into the congregation. This comes after a designed period of temporary vows.
Priest: A man who, through the Sacrament of Holy Orders, is ordained for the service of the people to God. He celebrates the Eucharist, administers sacraments, preaches and performs pastoral functions.
Province: A geographical area 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: A way of following Christ and serving the people of God characterized by the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience; by life lived in community, ministry and prayer.
Scholastic: A member of a men’s religious order who has completed his novitiate but has not yet been ordained.
Secular Institute: Institutes in which lay people who do not join religious congregations strive to live the consecrated life. These people do make the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience according to the constitutions of their institute.
Seminary: A place where candidates for priesthood (called seminarians) pursue their academic, apostolic, personal and spiritual formation.
Sister: A woman who is a member of an apostolic religious community. They take vows and serve God according to the charism of their communities. Sisters are not married and work in many different jobs, according to the needs of the religious community and/or the needs of the local area.
Theologate: A course of study at a Catholic graduate school of theology (major seminary) required for ordination to priesthood. Theologates number 46 in the U.S.; 36 are largely diocesan and 10 are largely religious in enrollment.
Vocation/Call: Every person is created by God out of love and is called to live in relationship with God by loving God, self, others, and all creation. Through Baptism and Confirmation all Christians are called to follow Jesus Christ. This call to follow Jesus leads people to one of the four paths in life: single life, married life, the consecrated life, or ordination to the diaconate or priesthood.
Vows: A vow is a free and deliberate promise that is made to God in the Church. Members of religious institutes make public vows of poverty, celibate chastity, and obedience. Members of secular institutes make private vows or sacred bonds of the evangelical counsels according to the constitutions of their particular institute.
A special note of ‘thanks’ for the contributions to the bibliography by many members of the Life Awareness Team of the Los Angeles Archdiocese and the Third Continental Congress on Vocations for the source of many of the Glossary terms.