Holy Myrrhbearers Monastery
About Monastic Vocation
On June 5, 2007, our Sister Eugenia was tonsured a Schema Nun and given the name Mother Katherine. Father Juvenaly from St. Tikhon's Monastery in South Canaan, our Trustees, and many guests joined us on this joyous day.
What Are the Steps To Becoming a Nun?
Postulant
The postulant stage is the first formal step toward becoming a nun. During this time, a woman begins living the daily life of the monastery, joining the sisters in prayer, worship, work, meals, and community life.
She has not yet made monastic vows, so this remains a time of prayer and discernment. With guidance from the Abbess and the sisters, the postulant learns the rhythms and responsibilities of monastic life while considering whether she is called to continue to the next stage as a novice.
Novice
The novice stage is the next step in monastic life, when a woman begins a deeper period of spiritual formation and preparation. She takes on a fuller role within the monastery, following its daily rhythm of prayer, worship, work, and community life while learning more about the responsibilities of becoming a nun.
A novice has not yet made her final monastic vows. This stage gives her time to grow in faith, obedience, and commitment while continuing to discern her calling under the guidance of the Abbess and the monastic community.
Ryassafore Nun
The Ryassafore stage marks a deeper commitment to monastic life. At this stage, a nun is formally clothed in the riassa, or monastic robe, and continues growing into the life of prayer, obedience, service, and community.
A Ryassafore nun has made a serious commitment to the monastic path but has not yet taken the full vows associated with the Great Schema. She continues her spiritual formation under the guidance of the Abbess while taking on greater responsibilities within the monastery.
Tonsure to the Schema
By being tonsured to the Schema, a woman chooses to live as a nun for the remainder of her life in obedience, chastity, poverty and stability. She is instructed again during the service about the meaning of the life of an Orthodox nun and asked questions clearly concerning her will to live this life in obedience to the call of Christ, to her abbess and to all of her sisters, accepting all that will come for the rest of her life as from God's hand.
To all of this she responds "Yes." Prayers and tonsure are followed by being clothed in the monastic habit or Schema which for us means the mantia, or the monastic cloak. Mother Katherine is our shepherd, and we think she was secretly hoping to receive a sheepskin (the early form of the Schema given by fourth-century monastics in the Egyptian desert), in place of her mantia... May Christ bless His servant!
