The Houston Dominicans have three groups of Dominican Family members, all in different stages of their commitment to the Dominican way of life.

The first group in the Dominican Family has gone through the two-year formation process and became committed Dominicans for one year at the May 2010 Commitment Ceremony. For these Dominicans, this year was spent revisiting the pillars and living out the Dominican life. For example, Dominican Family members joined the sisters in the Advent Morning Praise and Brunch and were paired with prayer partners; members participated in a morning of service to the Houston immigrant community at Casa Juan Diego in March; members joined the sisters in Lenten prayer and study to participate meaningfully in the season; and in April members joined the sisters at the Villa for conversation and community time. For these 44 Dominicans, the next step was discernment and then recommitment for one, two or three years at the April 30, 2011 Commitment Ceremony and Eucharist.

The second group of Dominicans met six times this year as part of the second year in the formation process. With much excitement, the 29 men and women in this second group made their commitment and joined the ranks as Dominicans at the April 30th ceremony (pictured right). After the ceremony, members and their family and friends enjoyed a reception together at the Villa.

The third group of Dominican Family began the two-year formation process last fall. After the initial meeting, each meeting focused on one of the four pillars. Each meeting started with prayer in the Villa Chapel and then moved to the Meeting Room for discussion. We are so excited to have this group of 40 women and men exploring the Dominican charism.