Vestition with the habit St. Dominic : Nineteenth class of the province of St. Albert the Great, Saturday, August 30, 1958


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VESTITIO.J WITH TEE HABIT OF ST. DCMINIC

Nineteenth Class

of

The Province of St* Albert the Great

Saturday, August 30 f 1958

St* Peter Martyr Priory

Winona, Minnesota



"For you have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you 1,’

Bro. Terence O’Meara, O.P.
Bro. Stephen Shimek, O.P.

Bro. Jeremiah Walsh, O.P.
Bro. Clement Risley, O.P.

Bro. Gabriel Stephen, O.P.
Bro. Hilary Cramer, O.P.

Bro* Mel- Buechele, O.P.
Bro. Christopher Bumphy, O.P.

Bro. Quentin Barnett, O.P.
Bro. Finian Turner, O.P.

Bro. Louis Poirier, O.P.
Bro. Luke Wilkinson, O.P.

- Bro. Alfred Wilder, O.P.
Bro. Felix Stephany, O.P.

Bro. Qrananuel Boysen, O.P.
Bro. Alphonsus Heyl, O.P.

Bro. Celestine Weisser, O.P.
Bro. Qwen Farrell, O.P.

Bro* Bemardine Babbo, O.P.
Bro. Thomas Cleator, O.P.

Bro. William Kramlinger, O.P.
Bro". Cletus Patrick, O.P.

Bro. Ignatius Gutierrez, O.P.
Bro. Innocent Kovacec, O.P.

Bro. Norbert Wietlispach, O.P.
Bro* Frederick Huber, O.P.

The object of the year’s novitiate spent under the
care of the novice Master must be the forming of
the mind of the novice by means of study of the
Rule and Constitutions, by pious meditation and
assiduous prayer, by learning what concerns the
vows and virtues, and by such practices as may
help him to root out vices and cultivate virtues.

from the Dominican Constitutions



Today the Dominican Order rejoices for she is
about to receive nsw members into her ranks, the
same ranks made ilLustrious by such great saints
as St. Dominic, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Albert
the Great, St. Pius V, and St. Peter Martyr*

This joy, however, is not on the part of the
Order alone, for the young men about to receive the
Habit of St. Dominic are also joyful. They have
heard the call of Christ— "Come follow Me"—and they
are about to answer that call. This is, for them, a
beginning. A beginning in the life of perfection to
which they have been cabled by Christ Himself. It
is not without its sacrifices, for during this year
of novitiate they must laarn to abandon all things
so that they may advance in their love for Almighty
God. But how can these t lings be called sacrifices
when the reward is Christ Himself?

The parents of these young men also share in
the joy of this occasion, for their son has been
called by Christ to follow Him. They have sacrificed
much for their son, and now they are about to re-
ceive their reward as thoir son takes his first
step toward one of*God ! s greatest gifts—His priest-
hood .

let us all rejoice as the Choir sings the
Canticle of praiso—The Te! Deum—for God has called
and they , have ans rered.



THE VESTITION CEREMONY

After a ten day preparatory retreat the postulants are
vested with the entire Dominican Habit. At a sign from
rthe novice master, the postulants enter the sanctuary.
There they lie prostrate on the floor with their arms
outstretched in the form of a cross. While prostrate,
the prior asks them, ffWhat do you seek?" They reply,

‘ l, God f s mercy and yours." Then they kneel and the prior
^explains briefly the Dominican life, with its obligations
of striving for spiritual perfection through the ob-
servance of the three vows and the other monastic
‘obligations. He closes with the question, "Do you desire,
"therefore, to observe all these insofar as you are able?"
They answer,' "We do," and the prior prays, " ,fMay the Lord
perfect what He has begun." »

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The choir begins the hymn to the Holy Spirit, "Veni
Creator," and the actual vesting begins. The first
garment is the white toga-like garb called the tunic;
next the belt with the fifteen decade rosary. Then the
long scapular is placed over the shoulders and upon
this a short cape with a hood called a "capuce". A
long black cape with a hood is then placed on the
shdulders to* complete the habit.

Wh6n all are vested, they again lie prostrate on the
floor and the prior reads the prayers. When he has
finished he blesses each novice as he kneels before
him. As the choir sings the "Te Deum" the new novices
receive the kiss of peace (a welcoming gesture) from
the prior and the community.

After this the novices return to the sanctuary where
the prior gives them their religious names, and in the
name of the Church and the Order, informs them that the 1

novitiate year has now begun.
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The ceremony ends with a procession of the novices
from the chapel.



L A U D A R E

BENEDICERE

PRAEDICARE