The Lord’s call
When Jesus calls someone to become a brother of Saint John, he draws that person interiorly towards this particular community and gives him the desire to become one of its members. Jesus alone can do this.
Discerning a vocation is therefore something first of all personal, something you need to begin thinking about on your own preferably with the help of a spiritual director. Nonetheless, no matter where you are in your discernment, we would be happy to meet with you and help you discover our particular way of following Jesus in the footsteps of Saint John the Beloved.
Our life has four main aspects: prayer, fraternal life, study, and mission. We live a life of silent prayer and fraternal communion but we are also sent into the world as witnesses to God’s love and to the truth that his Word and love bring to all men.
If you feel that this form of religious life could be attractive to you, we would recommend that you get to know the brothers and their life together better. The best way to do that is through visiting either our Formation House or our Mission House both located in Cebu City. You could have personal meetings with the brothers and visit and help out on our apostolates. If you’re not ready to make the trip to Cebu, you may also have an online meeting with the Vocations Director or another member of the vocations team to see what is the best next step for you.
Whom should I contact?
If you wish to meet the brothers, inquire about entering the community, or have questions about your vocation, we encourage you to contact the Vocations Director, Fr. John of the Cenacle.
Phone number: 09399653283
fr.jeanducenacle@stjean.com
Delve a little deeper
What is our charism?
The Congregation of Saint John is an apostolic religious institute founded in 1975 on the day the apostolic constitution Evangelii Nuntiandi was promulgated. We have received God’s call to follow Christ by living religious life in the spirit of the beloved disciple, Saint John the Evangelist.
Our life in community is built upon four pillars: prayer, community, study, and apostolate. We desire to be engaged in the evangelical mission of the Church – be it through taking on missions entrusted to us by the bishops or by developing missions specific to our community – and so be available to the callings of the Holy Spirit. Our main apostolate consists in human and Christian formation. In various ways in the different priories and through our life of prayer, of mission in common, and of brotherly cooperation, we desire to make of our community life a place of welcome where each person can discover the love of Christ and walk with him.
What is a religious?
A Brother of Saint John is a religious. ‘Religious’ means ‘fastened to’ or ‘bound to’ (from the Latin religare). A religious is someone who has received a call from Jesus to bind themselves to Him through vows and the common life.
He is thus bound to, or ‘fastened to’ God, by following Jesus in poverty, chastity and obedience, and by keeping His new commandment to “love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13 :34-35). In order to live this relationship with God and with our brothers and sisters, we rely on the Church, founded by Jesus upon Peter and the apostles.
What are the 3 vows?
We take three vows: the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. Life according to these vows corresponds to “that form of life which he, as the Son of God, accepted in entering this world.” (Vita Consecreta, 16)
That is why, as we make this promise to live according to the three vows, we rely upon God’s mercy and the help of our brothers (Cf. Rite of Profession). We desire to unite ourselves as closely as possible to Jesus, choosing to live the form of life he himself chose in his earthly life and seeking a “gradual identification with the attitude of Christ towards the Father” (Vita Consecrata, 65).