Smyth Hall on the Loras College campus . . .
Any job that has a "future" takes a lot of hard work, study and enthusiasm. The same thing is true in the Dominican life. The years of preparation in the Order are designed to develop a solidly holy and a thoroughly learned son of St. Dominic, a worthy brother of St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Albert the Great, St. Peter Martyr, and many others. For us our love of God and his truth must overflow into zeal for souls. And that takes time - that is just what happens during the years as a Dominican student brother.
For those who have not yet entered college, or who are lacking in sufficient knowledge of Latin and other basic courses, the Province of St. Albert the Great conducts at Smyth Hall (on the Loras College campus at Dubuque) a pre-novitiate school to help you prepare for admittance to the Order.
Here, under the direction and guidance of Dominican Fathers, you get your first taste of what it is to be a Dominican. Together with the other fellows you begin to acquire a Dominican outlook, and find out how wonderful community life can be. It is a good way to prove to yourself whether or not you have a vocation, and at the same time get your college education.
After a year or two at Smyth Hall, you will be better prepared to begin your own Dominican life. With a good idea of what is expected of you, and what you can expect of the Order, your entrance into the novitiate will be blessed with a determination to give yourself generously and completely to God, Who is never outdone in generosity.
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