How old must one be to enter the seminary?
There is no certain age to start preparing for the priesthood. Some people go to high school seminaries, others enter seminary after high school, after college, or after working for a number of years. Church law requires that a man be at least 26 years of age to be ordained a priest. In the Diocese of Dallas there currently is no age limit on when a man can be accepted to the seminary. However, careful consideration regarding health, finances, and future years of priestly service must be taken into account prior to the acceptance of an applicant. How does one join a religious community? The formation program involves several stages. While these vary from community to community in name, length of time, and format, the following outline gives a general view of the formation process: Contact: A person of high school age or older who is interested in religious life can join a program of contact with a religious community. This is usually a very flexible program.
There is no certain age to start preparing for the priesthood. Some people enter the seminary after high school; others transfer into the seminary from college. Some come after completing college, or after working in a profession for a number of years. The Archdiocese of Los Angeles does not have a “cut off” age; however, when a man reaches an age between 45 and 50, it starts to become problematic to accept him into the seminary. We judge each man on a case-by-case basis.
