How God Uses Talents and Ambitions feat. Fr. Aquinas Beale

This episode is sponsored by the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm's mission program called Serving the Aged Lovingly Today (SALT). www.carmelitesisters.com/SALT-program It's also sponsored by the Carmelite Monastery of Baltimore: https://www.baltimorecarmel.org/

“(Religious life) was the last thing I would have thought I would have been drawn to. I had all these plans. And God had other plans for me! ”

If reading the above statement made you feel an instinctive cringe because you’re afraid God might suck you in and call YOU, you must listen! Listen to Momma Stacey and just. Click. The. Button. Do you think that in religious life you will have to let go of your talents and the things that bring you joy? Are you curious about the inner workings of religious life but don’t feel ready to visit orders yet? What do the different parts of the habit signify, anyway?

Too often we say, “religious life just isn’t for me.” But do we assume that too soon without truly exploring the question? Fr. Aquinas Beale thought he needed to make it through college and find a job before he could really put his future at God’s feet. He’s a gymnast, musician, super brainy millennial, and was ambitious to make his way in the world. He thought that religious life just couldn’t be a full, happy life for him. In the midst of all his busy-ness, God was calling him to be a monk and priest with the Dominican Order. He has had challenges but has been constantly surprised by how giving his life to God has fulfilled not only his dreams, but also dreams he never knew he had. Whatever stage of discernment you’re at, you’ll love his answer to my question at the end: “is there anything you want young men and women to know?”

Topics Discussed:

• What’s it’s like to live in community
• The difference between being called to the priesthood or being a monk
• Steps you take in discernment and in joining an order
• How you get your new name
• Pieces of a Dominican habit and what they symbolize

 Resources

• Dominican Friars' website
• Dominican CDs: In Media Ecclesiae, Gaudeamus, Ave Maria, Christ Was Born to Save: Christmas with the Dominican Friars
• The Hillbilly Thomists Bluegrass CD by the Dominicans
• Called by God: Discernment and Preparation for Religious Life by Rachel Collins