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Novices |
From Start to Finish:
the new novices and simply professed flank the solemnly professed in the center.
The Purpose:
Here men are put to the test like "gold tried in a crucible." Here no man can last unless he is prepared whole heartedly to humble himself before God. (1,17)
A man's true worth is revealed when things are difficult. Event do not make a man weak - they only show what stuff he is made of. (1,16)
-- Thomas a Kempis (Imitation of Christ)
27. The novitiate provides for a deeper introduction into and practice of the Religious life. During this time the novice gets to know the spirituality and work of our community.
-- The Constitution of the Austrian Congregation
The candidates petition to be admitted to the novitiate.
The novitiate at Stift Klosterneuburg normally begins with the reception of the candidate by the provost and the community just prior to the first solemn Vespers of the Solemnity of St. Augustine on August 28th in the Chapel of St. Leopold.
The candidate is expected to attend a pre-clothing retreat which is held the preceding week. This gives the candidates an opportunity to meet their fellow candidates as well as prepare spiritually for their first steps in the community.
At the clothing or investiture, the candidate receives the habit and his name in the community. Receiving a new name upon entrance in the community is customary for many or even most religious orders. The new name serves to remind the novice that he has embarked upon a new step in his relationship with God. Moreover, it also points to the fact that he is receiving a new start in life. What has gone before his entrance in the community is left behind. What matters henceforth is the present and the future, not the past.
One may petition the provost to be allowed to continue to use his baptismal name.
Learning or the simple knowledge of facts can be good and instituted by God, and then there is no fault to be found with it, but a good conscience and a holy life must always be preferred. (Imitation of Christ 1,3)
-- Thomas a Kempis
As Thomas a Kempis, who was a Novice Master for the Windesheim canons, argues above, formation in the novitiate consists in activities and studies, with a preference, always for a growth in charity and a holiness of life.
Since the purpose of the novitiate is to acquaint the novice with the life and work of the canon, the means used are diverse and numerous. Most important is the daily rhythm of the life in community, including prayer and meals. These two are the Augustinian pillars upon which the common life founded.
On the way to God together...
Novitiate Activities
Divine Office
Stir your affections and collect your thoughts, that you may recite the
Divine Office with greater care and devotion than any other prayers, in the sure
knowledge that since it is the prayer of the Holy Church, there is no vocal
prayer so profitable to your regular use as the Divine Office. Therefore
put away all heaviness, and by God's grace you will transform a duty into a
delight, and an obligation into greater freedom... There is no possibility of a
mistake in this form of prayer for anyone who will patiently and humbly
persevere in it.
--Walter Hilton Can.Reg.
Liturgical prayer is the prayer of the Church. It is the voice of the Bride speaking to the Bridegroom and is is of such a mysterious nature that it becomes on earth the beginning of the sole occupation of the elect in Heaven.
-- Adrian Grea C.R.I.C.
The Divine Office or Liturgy of the Hours is celebrated three times daily in common, with a total of five offices prayed. <click here for the Horarium>. Each day the canons offer together this Sacrificium Laudis according to the Roman Rite. It is recited in German, except for Sunday Vespers, when it is offered in Latin.
The novices and other juniors (those who are in simple vows) are responsible for organizing the liturgy and supporting the community's celebration of it. The position of klein Hebdomadar or "Little Hebdomadarian," as well as the lectors for the Office of Readings, are undertaken by either the novices or juniors for a week at a time.
Dom
Maximilian serves as Thurifer during Solemn Vespers
Novices and Juniors moreover serve at Solemn Vespers (Sundays and Holy Days) as either lector and thurifer.
Daily Mass
Every day in the Mass you should of your own free will offer yourself to God as a pure and holy offering with all your powers and affections, from the very depths of your heart.
--Thomas a Kempis
81. The liturgy, the mystery of the Eucharist in particular, is the center of
our religious life. The Eucharist is the effective and visible sign of our
communion with God, with each other and with the Christian community.
-- The Constitution of the Austrian Congregation
Daily a Chapter Mass is celebrated in the Stift. This is the Mass of
the canons, offered in the name of the Chapter. This Mass normally follows
Matins and Lauds at 6:30 a.m.. The novices and juniors take turns serving
and cantoring, if the Mass has hymns. On Sundays and special occasions the
Mass is held later and the novices and juniors assist through the various
ministries open to them.
Master of Ceremonies
Since the provosts of Stift Klosterneuburg enjoy the privileges of a Lateran
Abbot, solemn liturgies at the Stift are often pontifical character. This
means that the provost, though not a bishop, is permitted to use pontificals
(i.e., miter and crozier) during the liturgy, and impart an apostolic blessing.
Therefore, novices are taught how to serve as a Master of Ceremonies.
Through participation in these solemn liturgies as well as through instruction
from the official Master of Ceremonies of the community, the novice
is taught how to guide the liturgy reverently and smoothly.
While familiarity with the rites of Church and knowledge of the rubrics is
indispensable, it is not everything. One must as well have a sense of the
liturgy, its purpose and the roles to be played within it. Therefore, it
is a matter of managing all the participants in the liturgy in such as way as to
make it possible for participants to celebrate the divine Mysteries attentively
and prayerfully.
In addition to assisting at the Stift, the novice may serve as Master of
Ceremonies for the provost at the celebrations of the Sacrament of Confirmation.
Normally these occur on Sundays and other feast days during the Easter season at
the Stift's parishes.
Common Meals
As St. Augustine taught in his rule, the common table of the community is
the other center of the life of the canons. It makes evident the reality
of the striving for one heart and one mind as brothers on the way to God.
Novices normally join the rest
of the community for lunch following Sext at 12:30 and for dinner following
Vespers and Compline at 7:00.
The meals begins with a blessing. Thereupon the soup course is served in
silence during which a novice or junior reads something that is to nourish the
intellect together with the body. Once the first course is finished,
then the canons are free to converse, feeding their hearts through conversation
and humor. The novices and juniors are responsible for clearing and
setting plates as well as generally assisting as it becomes necessary.
Following the closing blessing at evening meal, the community spends additional time together in
recreation. This is less formal than the meal and gives the novice a
chance to meet other members of the community with whom he might not otherwise
have contact. Since seating is assigned at the table by seniority, these
opportunities can be invaluable to integrating into the community.
Breakfast during the Study Week at Mariazell
Personal Prayer
True prayer is the ardent desire of the soul, the burning love of a soul for God, and no care or occupation can interrupt it.
-- Serafino da Ferma (C.R.L.)
While the canons pray, worship and eat together, no genuine relationship with
God can exist without a personal relationship that applies the Gospel to the
specific circumstances of the life and vocation of the novice.
The novice will find he is given abundant time to pursue his relationship with
God. Assigned a stall in the Sacellum (choir chapel), he can leave his Bible, Missal, spiritual reading, rosary and so
forth in the chapel to pray before the Blessed Sacrament.
Novices are encouraged to make good use of this special time in the novitiate to
grow in their self-knowledge and knowledge of God. In this respect,
frequent and faithful confession is expected of the novice. Possible confessors are numerous.
In addition to personal prayer, days of reflection as well as a retreat are part
of the canons' annual calendar, events in which the novices always participate.
The novices moreover gather daily for a period of mediation before Sext and
weekly adore the Blessed Sacrament praying for vocations for the abbey.
Hospitality
One of the marks of the canons is the long tradition of hospitality.
Guests are treated with honor. The Stift welcomes many visitors, some of
whom stay with the community to participate in the worship and common life of
the canons.
To ensure that guests receive worthy hospitality, there are many details to
which the community members must attend. For this reason, the novices
often partake in this good work. Novices assist in a variety of ways, the
most important of which is the time and effort offered to guests to ensure their
stay is comfortable.
Dom Daniels leads a tour through the Stift
Personal Study
The novitiate also affords the novice the precious time to pursue
personal study of topics that interest him and that might be helpful to the
community. There is a junoriate library at
his disposal as well as the Stift's main library. Also the novice may use
one of the three computers available in the juniorate library to find helpful sources on the
internet.
Leisure and Sports
Novices are encouraged to keep up any talents, musical, artistic, etc., they
bring with them to the Stift. Time and support for these are available.
There is an outdoor pool for
use in the summer as well as many possibilities for hiking and walking.
Also Vienna and the surrounding areas are extremely good for
biking. There are numerous bike trails along the Danube and in the city
itself. The Stift sits just minutes away from these trails.
Excursions
The novices participate in various day trips during the year, depending on the
calendar of the Stift. In years past this has included a pilgrimage on foot to Mariazell,
the famous Austrian Marian shrine, and visits to Hungary and the Czech Republic.
This autumn the Chapter will travel to southern Poland to visit sites connected
with the life of the Servant of God John Paul.
Dom Bruno and Dom Daniel in the gardens of Neustift.
Moreover the novices may, with the permission of the Novice Master and on a limited basis, visit Vienna or other nearby places as well as the numerous abbeys and religious houses of Austria.
Finally, the novices annually take a week long holiday together in the winter time. In years past the destinations include Rome, Tunisia, Egypt, Malta and Cyprus.
Novitiate Courses
In addition to living in the community and experiencing the rhythm of the canonical life, novices attend in-house courses taught by members of the community or by outside professionals.
Liturgical Courses
Gregorian Chant
The novices receive lessons in Gregorian Chant. These consist in a weekly
private lesson and a juniorate practice. The purpose of this
course is to introduce the novices to chants found in the Vesperale and Graduale
Triplex, which are used for Vespers and Mass on Monday mornings respectively.
Liturgy
The course gives the novices an overview of the Divine Office and
provides practical guidance on how it is celebrated by the canons of
Klosterneuburg.
.JPG)
Dom Meinrad cantors the Litany of the Saints
Community Courses
Rule of St. Augustine
The Novice Master teaches this foundational course weekly to offer the novices a
vision of the vocation of the canon as expressed by St. Augustine, the Father of
the Order and Law-giver. In addition to reading the Rule, the Novice
Master gives an extensive commentary that places the Rule in the context of the
Church today as well as the community at Klosterneuburg.
Canon Law of the Novitiate
This brief course informs the novices of the way in which Canon Law conceives of
the novitiate and the way in which this is realized at Stift Klosterneuburg. He
is told his rights and obligations as a novice as envisioned and set down in the
Church's law.
Constitution of the Austrian Congregation
This extensive course reviews the entire constitution of the Austrian
Congregation with commentary and applications proper
to the life of the canons of Stift Klosterneuburg.
Art and History of Stift Klosterneuburg
Through weekly meetings and frequent excursions throughout the Stift, the novices
are introduced to the rich cultural patrimony of this august religious
community. This provides the novices with a living artistic and cultural link
with their spiritual forebears.
Intellectual Courses
History of the Canons Regular
This course takes the novices on a journey through the growth, development and varied experiences of the
canons regular throughout their long history. The purpose of this course
is to introduce the novice to the entire canonical family of congregations and
houses that have spanned the centuries.
Life of St. Augustine
This course offers the novice a chance to become acquainted with one of the
great personalities of Christian history. In addition to reading
selections from the Confessions, the novice also reads St. Augustine's homilies
on the common life.
History of Austria
From pre-history to today, the purpose of this course is to acquaint
non-Austrians with the history and culture of this fascinating land.
Language Courses
German
Learning German is of paramount importance. A program best suited for the
particular needs of the novice is therefore arranged.
German language studies should be started as soon as possible. It is
possible to arrange to arrive early at the Stift and begin language studies
prior to the clothing.
Public Speaking in German
In order to communicate effectively in German, both in the liturgy and in
personal conversation, this course is given for all novices, whether they are
native speakers or not.
Latin
The purpose of this course is to fulfill university requirements for the study
of theology.
Greek
The purpose of this course is to fulfill university requirements for the study
of theology.
The Goal:
The purpose of the novitiate and means
through which this purpose is reached are ordered to the goal of the novitiate:
the discernment of God's will and the novice's vocation.
The simple profession of Dom Albert
At the end of the novitiate, the novice decides whether or not he wishes to make the profession of simple vows, which last three years and prepare for solemn profession. For its part, the community votes at this time on whether or not to admit the man to simple profession.
