Inside the Novitiate - Part 3
Inside the Novitiate - Part 3
Before professing First Vows, SVD candidates spends a year in novitiate—set apart for prayer, discernment, and self-discovery. In this series, three novices share how this sacred year is shaping their journey toward religious life.
Part III: Ready to Say Yes
Vuong Minh Vu has been discerning a religious vocation with Divine Word Missionaries for years. At first, he looked for a dramatic sign from God to signal that he was on the right path – a burning bush, an angel, a voice from heaven – anything to help him know for certain that he was meant to become a Divine Word Missionary Priest. The flashing neon sign never came. Instead, Vuong received many ordinary moments that slowly revealed the way God was leading him.
There were times when he struggled, questioned himself, and wondered if he was cut out for religious life. Despite those doubts, he remained in formation — praying, living in community, and continuing to desire to follow Christ as a Divine Word Missionary. “No angel appeared — but I didn't walk away either,” he said.
This realization helped Vuong feel prepared for the final step of the novitiate year: professing First Vows of Poverty, Chastity and Obedience alongside two fellow SVD candidates in July.
Learning to Let Go
When Vuong first arrived at the Novitiate House, the silence was uncomfortable. After spending five busy years at Divine Word College learning English and earning his undergraduate degree, the slower pace was jarring.
In time, however, he realized that the silence wasn’t empty – it was revealing. With far fewer distractions, he was left alone with himself.
He stopped trying to manage every moment of his interior life. Instead, he discovered that life continued even when he stopped trying to control it. Surrender gradually replaced control. It wasn’t always easy or clear, but Vuong started to loosen his grip a little. "The year slowly lived something into me," he said.
When Prayer Becomes a Relationship
As Vuong released control, his prayer life changed as well. During the novitiate year, prayer became less theoretical and more real. It was no longer simply a task to complete or an obligation to fulfill. Instead, it became an invitation to be present with God — even when prayer felt dry or distracted. Rather than seeing those moments as failures, Vuong learned to accept them as part of an honest relationship with God.
“Prayer has slowly moved from something I manage to something I live in,” Vuong said. Prayer isn't reserved only for quiet moments in church, he said. It is meant to become part of ordinary life.
Living the SVD Charism
After years of learning about the SVD charism, novitiate gave Vuong the opportunity to begin living it. Novices live in community with one another, but also among the elderly members of the community at a place in Chicago known as The Residence. There, they have the opportunity to learn from SVD missionaries who have dedicated their lives to service.
Now, the charism is no longer simply information about interculturality, mission, and the Society's identity. It is expressed in community life — in the way missionaries pray, serve, share, and live together. It is shaping the atmosphere of Vuong’s daily life. Little by little, he’s being formed inside of it.
With consistent encouragement, guidance and a touch of humor from Novice Master Fr. Tim Lenchak, SVD, Vuong says he’s felt seen and heard. Fr. Tim’s international background helps him bring a wide perspective to formation, helping the novices learn to think beyond one cultural lens.
Ready to Say Yes
Early in his religious formation, Vuong expected to wake up one morning feeling fully free of doubts and weaknesses – ready to profess vows. Instead, he discovered a quiet confidence that God is patient enough to keep forming him through prayer, community life, study, ministry, and even his struggles.
As his profession of First Vows drew near, Vuong realized the vows were not the finish line. They were simply another step in a lifelong journey of formation.
"I am ready, not because I have become perfect, but because I am willing to continue saying yes," Vuong said.
Looking back, Vuong said God's affirmation of his vocation has been less like a lightning bolt and more like a quiet companion faithfully walking beside him throughout the novitiate year. “That quiet, steady presence has become the confirmation I needed,” he said.