Reflections of the Kingdom

  Reception : After being "received" into the Lay Fraternities as a "novice," you are given a small, all white (with no embellishments), scapular in place of the blessing and giving of the habit of the order.   This ritual "clothing" is to be worn at all times unless replaced by other approved "signs" that have been specially blessed.  A medal of St. Dominic or of St. Dominic with the Blessed Virgin is the preferred substitute.  In addition, the novice is presented with The Rule by which they are to begin living (see obligations below). Congratulations ... you're a novice.  Please pay your (prorated) dues.  Be sure to cross your T's and dot your I's while minding all P's and Q's because this is a probationary year.  You are not yet fully incorporated into the Order, which is achieved through profession (promise), so there are still things you can't do ... such as participate in the election of fraternity officers/council m...

  Back to School ... The first year in formation is primarily focused on the spiritual aspect of the diaconate; although there are some academic classes that provide brief introductions to the Old Testament (Fall Semester) and the New Testament (Spring Semester) to aid in interpretation and exegesis.  Classes were twice a week on Monday and Wednesday evenings; and we were initially expected schlep down to the Pastoral Center in Braintree until COVID threw the whole program into chaos and everything went 100% remote for this year.  This was a HUGE blessing since the wives were also required to attend ... only now by Zoom instead of trying to figure out how to manage all this with only one car from two different work locations.   It took a bit to ramp up though and many of the instructors in the other classes were a tad technically challenged ... Having some prior experience with asynchronous learning for my own Masters degree from the University of Phoenix, I have to ...