Intercultural Formation for Priests and Religious Coming to Minister in Canada

Print this page

Intercultural Formation Fall Session

A four week program for

Priests and Religious Coming to Minister in Canada

Initial intensive formation

October 18 – November 4, 2011

Follow-up-integration week

February 13-18, 2012

Main topics:

-  Dealing with a new cultural reality and developing tools to make the transition
-  Serving as pastor in Canadian parishes
-  Applying Canon Law to the reality of the Church in Canada (canonical legislation for Canada)
-  The Church in Canada
-  Tools for building good relationships in the parish community
-  Legal responsibilities and appropriate relationship boundaries in Canada
-  Highlights of Canada and Canadian culture (including multiculturalism and religious pluralism)
-  French, English and Aboriginal peoples in Canada
-  Norms, protocols and etiquette for Canadian living (also related to schools, health-   care services and social services)
-  Living in Canadian climates (especially in the winter!)
-  Gender roles in Canada
-  Visas and other immigration issues
- Second language support

Special attention will be given to helping candidates get to know the area in which they are ministering.

Tools will be given for ongoing skill-building, reflection and evaluation in between the initial session and the return in February, and ongoing support will be offered by Saint Paul University.

Registration deadline: September 8, 2011

Registration Form for Priests or Religious

Registration Form for Mentors

Registration fees: $2,100 for 4 weeks (lunch is included from Monday to Friday)

Room and board is not included.

For more information, please contact

Antoinette Bitar
613-236-1393, ext. 2418
abitar@ustpaul.ca

The candidates for this four-week formation program are international priests and religious who have been invited by a diocese or religious community to come to minister in Canada. The candidate must be proficient in one of the official languages of Canada: French or English. This formation program will be offered in both official languages.

Candidates must attend with a Mentor.¹ A mentor is someone appointed by the diocese or religious community to accompany the candidate through the transition process and to help prepare the community to receive the international priest or religious who will minister to them.

The mentor accompanies the candidate throughout the initial 3 weeks of formation, offers support during the weeks before the follow-up session, and attends the follow-up session with the candidate.

Experience strongly suggests that good accompaniment greatly increases the chances of a successful transition for the international priest or religious and the community in which the candidate will minister.

The mentor should be a well-established and recognized pastoral leader in the community in which the candidate will minister. Mentors will receive specific formation for their role during the 4-week program.

1. Role of the Mentor

The mentor takes the role of a companion and support – both a resource and a guide for the person in formation. The mentor accompanies the person in their learning and personal development, offering support in their journey into ministry in a new culture. With the mentor, the candidate is invited to share their lived experience, their history, questions, hopes and convictions. In the spirit of kindred support, the mentor raises questions that may help to clarify the significant issues and invite new learning and growth.