At last the time came when the door of the convent was opened for me – it was the first of August [1925], in the evening, the vigil [of a feast] of Our Lady of the Angels. I felt immensely happy; it seemed to me that I had stepped into the life of Paradise. A single prayer was bursting forth from my heart, one of thanksgiving.

(Diary, 17).

The postulate is the first trial stage of the religious life. It opens with an internal ceremony, usually preceded by a day of recollection. In our Congregation the postulate usually lasts 10 months (it cannot exceed 12 months). The postulate is primarily aimed at the gradual introduction of postulants into religious life; at complementing and extending the scope of their religious knowledge; at forming them in the culture of community life in accordance with good principles of education and manners; at the development of the practice of natural virtues; and at allowing the postulant a closer look at the life and apostolate of the Congregation. This aim is served not only by lectures and time spent studying, but also by prayer and work in the Community.

Translated by Orest Pawlak