Memory Notes:
Interview assess if the candidate has the skills that support the beginning of a vocation.

Be clear on your criteria on who comes through the door. If you want a future ‘raise the bar.’ Standards attract standards. Do your homework.
 

When looking at candidates think ‘skills’. Assessment for what? Who are we and what do we do in the Church. The skills needed for each community are different. Be clear on what is core about being a Christian Brother.
 

Q. What does it take to do what we do?
A. An identifiable spirituality. A clear ministry. A link with lay people.
Some places for Congregations to look for their identity.
1. Chapter 1 of our Constitutions. Look particularly at the descriptive adjectives. What would this aspiration look like in practice?
2. Your heroes – your ideal Christian Brother. What made him so great? What skills did he have? Take a look at those who were not so great. What makes him problem members?
3. What do you do in the Church? What do you say No! to? That will tell you something about who you’re looking for.

Sources of Vocations:
1. Good modelling.
2. Specific Invitation – “I think you’d make a good Christian Brother”
3. Internet.


The Interview:
[First Impressions: If positive then candidate is four points positive. It will take 8 negatives to obliterate those 4 positive points.]
 

The Key to interviewing prospective candidates is F.D.I.C.
F. = Frequency; D = Duration; I = Intensity; C = Conditions.

For example if exploring a candidate’s generosity (mercy, forgiveness, service, compassion): What’s the frequency with which you hear generous behaviour taking place? “Insight does not change behaviour. Behaviour changes behaviour.”

How long has that generosity been going on? How important is it to them? What difference is it making to themselves and others? In what circumstances- When? Where? With whom are they generous?

Making a Report: Base the report on Evidence.

1. Respect – Listen to each person’s behaviour.
2. What are you observing that makes you conclude what you have? What did you find when you explored that issue?
3. A Behavioural based report is re-viewable. Evidence/Behaviour allows others to assess your advice/conclusions.
4. It’s criteria based. Criteria to support accepting a candidate. Criteria need to be both negative and positive – not enough NOT to have something. Give one primary reason for rejection. If you’re going to accept somebody, articulate the gifts you have identified and that you welcome in the community.
5. Behaviour is not esoteric – it mightn’t suit the Jesuits but could suit the Franciscans.
6. It’s learning based. How is the candidate changing because of his experience? “What have you learned? How have you changed by your experiences of the last 5 years?
7. Behaviour is cross-cultural in nature. There’s no built in bias. All cultures have behaviours.
8. It is gender-biased free.

A Candidates Faith history:
Statement: “ I have a Vocation.”
Q. What’s the evidence in your life to support that belief? What church do you see yourself serving? What’s your ecclesiology?
Values: Look at your diary, how do you spend your free time? Your money? Has this candidate got the values of Jesus in their behaviour?

The Values of Jesus (5):

1. Enthusiasm for the coming of the Reign of God. Open to all who are open to the Reign of God. Has the candidate fire in his belly for the Good News?
2. Evidence of Conversion of heart: To whom did you make the most recent apology in your life? Can you be wrong? What in life would you do differently?
3. Reverence of Persons: Jesus’ respect for people is profound. “Love one another as I have loved you.” How does the candidate speak of people in his life? Friends, fellow workers, pupils?
4. Jesus talks about prayer – without ceasing. What evidence of prayer is there in the Candidates life?
5. Loving service reciprocated. As well as being able to give the candidate must also be able to receive.
 

Four ways to make recommendations to leadership.
1. Acceptance of Candidate.
2. Rejection of Candidate.
3. Acceptance with conditions
4. Delayed decision. “One day this Candidate might do well but not now”. Make suggestions e.g. get a job; become an active member of an active faith group; establish a network of friend not religious.

Sexuality/Intimacy.
Do psychological assessment before Candidate comes for “Give a Year for God” programme.
Sexuality is the second last question asked in interview.
Talk to Candidate in terms of Church expectations of celibacy life style.
First question is around knowledge: “Where did you learn your first things about sexuality?
Second question is around asexuality: No sexual arousal, attraction, not wanted in Formation.

Candidates from Dysfunctional families.
“That which is normal and that which is abnormal is a matter of degree and not of kind.” “Abnormal behaviour in an abnormal situation is normal.”
Formation is not the place to learn intimacy skills. Candidates need to do that before entry.

Heterosexuality/masturbation/homosexuality/lesbianism:
Ask about intimacy experience. Ask about marriage. Ask about being in love and how it was communicated.
Masturbation:
a) Is M part of your life experience? Ask FDIC questions. Look for Obsessive Compulsive Behaviour. If the Candidate is OC then they need to get some help.
b) Fantasy – The primary indicator of sexual orientation is fantasy.
Are you ever surprised by what pops into your mind when masturbating?

Three things needed in lifelong commitment:
Exclusivity, Fidelity & Commitment.
Fidelity – a function of choices and behaviour.
Commitment – The ability to make a lifelong commitment. Might be the most difficult ask. Ask is candidate able to follow through on commitments so far?

Homosexuality:
If a Candidate says they are “gay”, there are four Areas to gather information.
1. The area of Attraction.
2. The area of Arousal – arousal more intense than attraction.
3. Experience – sexual experience with someone of own sex.
4. Orientation –in their bones, does the person know their attraction is to their own sex?

In the USA roughly 2 - 3% of males are gay under at least 1 of above 4 criteria. The above 4 are not sequential or hierarchical.

Myths about Homosexuality and Religious Life.
That gay men or women shouldn’t be accepted. Celibacy is the same for all of us. [Ray thinks this is not true.]
Three main skills gay people need for celibate commitment.
1. That your integrity as a gay person is not intrinsic on your “coming out of the closet.” You should be free to share your orientation or not.
2. One would do well as a gay person to think of yourself in ways other than your sexual orientation.
3. The ability not to take on a feeling of duplicity because of the assumptions other people make about you.

Confidentiality and Other Ethical Issues.
1. In interviewing a candidate ask whose agent am I? The Provincial’s or the Candidates?
When working as a Formation Director or a Vocation Director you are always the agent of the Provincial and you can’t be a dual agent. The Candidate can’t tie your hands, the information given you belongs to the Provincial.
Formation Directors can’t be Spiritual Directors.
An Immersion Community can either be an agent for the Provincial or an agent for the Candidate but not both.

2. Fiduciary trust (Automatic trust) Comes with any role with which there is power and authority, e.g. doctor/patient; lawyer/client.
Anyone with Formation, Vocation work automatically has FT. First duty is to do the best that you can for the candidate. Second duty is to do no harm. Very important not to abuse the trust placed in you. Don’t ask questions that are none of your business. No such thing as adult relationship where FT is in operation. Good question to ask self: What’s not my business?

3. Confidentiality (Limitations):
a) Whose agent are you? You can’t promise confidentiality until you’re sure whose agent you are.
b) Before you share private information (information that’s others property) ask yourself who has the right to know, who needs to know? Both need to be in place before you reveal private information about another.
c) The candidate doesn’t owe you confidentiality.

Information about a person’s sexuality is passed on to higher authority if it is relevant to the decision you are making as an interviewer. If you have no doubts about a person’s suitability don’t include them.