Oblates of St. Joseph
Contact
Fr. Sergio Perez
Vocation Director
544 West Cliff Drive
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
vocations@osjusa.org
osjusa.org
Dioceses
Fresno, CA Monterey, CA Sacramento, CA Scranton, PA
Mission
We are the Oblates of St. Joseph, priests and brothers dedicated to serving Jesus in imitation of St. Joseph. Like our patron and model St. Joseph, we strive to live humble, hidden lives, and to do even our ordinary tasks in an extraordinary way. As a religious congregation founded in 1878 by St. Joseph Marello, we consecrate our lives to God through vows of chastity, poverty and obedience. We live these vows in community as a family modeled after the Holy Family of Nazareth, and we embrace total fidelity to the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Qualifications
Be committed to the teachings of the Catholic faith and obedience to the Magisterium. Be dedicated in serving the youth. Be a practicing Catholic man. Be in a state of good mental, physical, and emotional health. Have a high school diploma or GED; a college or technical degree is a benefit, along with work experience. Be free of major debt. Be without any canonical impediment. Be teachable, hard-working, and open to living in a fraternal community life imitating the Holy Family of Nazareth. Be a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident.
Formation
Aspirancy: 6 months - two years. Consists of a sharing in the Oblate life with guidance by an Oblate who can help the candidate to learn more about our charism. He also begins to understand better the rigors of religious life. Postulancy: 6 months – 2 years as candidate learns more about the congregation, about our founder St. Joseph Marello, and the lifestyle for which he is preparing himself. Period to discern the Oblate life as a priest or brother candidate. Novitiate: at least "one year and one day." The beginning of the novitiate is marked by the reception of a crucifix as a sign of the life of self-sacrifice he chooses. He also begins to dress according to a distinct habit that represents the life of simplicity and discipline that characterize the religious life. Temporary Vows: the Vows of Poverty, Celibate Chastity, and Obedience are made for one year, renewed annually. A clerical brother may begin philosophy & theological classes in preparation toward ordination. A lay brother may begin specialization classes according to our apostolate and given more responsibilities. Perpetual Vows: eligible after at least three years in temporary vows. By this profession he becomes a member of the family of the Oblates of St. Joseph for his entire life. The brother who professes perpetual vows gives his life in service of Christ and his Church as an Oblate of St. Joseph.
Province
Holy Spouses USA Province
International
Yes, present in 16 countries.
Belated Vocations
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