Personal Introduction

Welcome! My name is John Roselle, SJ, and I took lifelong ("perpetual") vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience as a Jesuit on August 13th, 2011 after a two-year novitiate. I am now a Jesuit Scholastic for the Wisconsin Province of the Society of Jesus. I will study philosophy and theology for the next three years at Loyola University in Chicago. At the same time, I will do part-time ministry in some capacity with the poor. After that, I will likely teach for three years before finishing three more years of theology. Then, God willing, I will be ordained a Roman Catholic Jesuit priest! It's a long road, but a blessed, fun, and enriching one. This blog exists as a resource for friends, family, and others who are interested in my progress through the Jesuit process of formation. Every day is its own adventure, and I am happy to have you along with me to share in this. This blog contains my own personal thoughts and should not be taken to speak for the entire Society of Jesus. Feel free to contact me. God bless you!















Monday, June 13, 2011

How Do You Know When You're Ready?

Recently a college student I know who is thinking about the Jesuits asked me how I "knew" when I was ready to join the Jesuits. This is what I wrote.

"PFor me, it was a matter of being picked up and carried by the Lord in the midst of a dark and weak time in my life.  Indeed, St. Paul is right that His power is made perfect in our weakness.  Although I had been struggling a lot as I finished my second year of teaching on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation, it was accompanied with a deep joy and freedom to be able to take these steps.  I wasn't 100% ready, but the Lord gave me the grace to NOT have to be 100%.  I transcended a lot of my usual perfectionism, by God's grace, and I could go forward with the application in the midst of my incompleteness.  Does that make sense? 

If I may offer a word of wisdom: allow this time of anticipation (and perhaps some impatience) to really be a time of great preparation of your heart for what is to come.  Just as a couple needs to let the dating/courtship period expand their souls and deepen their bond for their future marriage (through self-discipline for example, in the practice of chastity), this time of "courting," so to speak, the Society of Jesus has the ability to aid you in laying the groundwork for the kind of Jesuit you most truly want to be.  Rhetorical/reflection questions: "what kind of Jesuit do you want to be?"  (in a word, a phrase, a pithy paragraph) and "how can your life-situation now, combined with an openness to God's infinite graces, assist you in becoming that kind of Jesuit?"

Also, you may listen to this song (just listen, no need to watch the video).  It is called "While I'm Waiting" by John Waller. You may relate to it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6X71sXagUY

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