Many who graduate private colleges have student loans that they must pay off before they may join the seminary or religious life. I have personally known people whose entrance into religious life and the seminary were delayed, sometimes by several years, because of educational loans. In fact, there are some I am aware of who are so buried in student debt that they feel that they will never climb out of the hole and will not be able to do what they would like to do if they weren’t encumbered by these obligations.
Because I feel that this is such an important topic, I decided to do a few things to help those who believe that they are called to serve God in Orders or the Consecrated state and who are hindered by student loans. One thing I am planning to do is in the very near future, I will be hosting an interview with a person whose organization has done much to assist people pay off their loans in order to pursue a religious vocation or the priesthood.
What I would appreciate from you, dear readers, is if you are discerning a vocation and have personal debt, please send me your most pressing question(s)/comments on this subject HERE so that I can better prepare for this interview. Thank you in advance.
Therese