Holy Orders is the sacrament by which Christ ensures that the sacraments will be celebrated and the good news of salvation will be announced. Through the laying on of hands in Holy Orders, men are ordained bishop or priest for roles of leadership in the Church.
How are Redemptorists different?
St Alphonsus Ligouri, founder of the Redemptorists placed a special emphasis on bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer to the poor. The Congregation began as a response to the spiritual needs of the abandoned, poor people living in the rural, mountainous areas outside the city of Naples and grew rapidly after that.
Today the Redemptorists work by preference with the poor as well as in retreat houses, pastoral care, parish mission preaching, overseas missions, publications and the media. Their solid formation makes them well sought-after as confessors and retreat leaders.
What is Redemptorist training like?
Those who will be priests would have an undergraduate degree, spend some time in postulancy (living with a Redemptorist community), have one year in novitiate and spend four years studying theology. Redemptorist Brothers do not require the same academic training but they would spend some time in postulancy and make a one-year novitiate.
