How do I know that I have a vocation to the Lay Dominicans?

You experience a deep intimacy with God in prayer, and strongly desire to share what you have received with others.

St. Thomas Aquinas in his Summa Theologiae talks about the goodness of “contemplating and handing on the fruits of contemplation.” In prayer, we may find ourselves drinking deeply from the fount of Truth. However, we also feel a burning desire to share what we have received from the Lord–whether through public speaking, writing, teaching, or even through artistic means. We want to share His goodness to people in whatever way we can.

You appreciate the intellectual life, the pursuit of Truth, and the work of study.
Dominicans don’t have to be carbon copies of St. Thomas Aquinas or any of the great intellectual giants of the Faith. However, the work of study is a part of our charism. It is the other main avenue, besides prayer, in which we contemplate the Truth, in order to share it with others.

You desire a like-minded community to accompany you, and to which you can make a gift of self.
Vocations are not cultivated in isolation and are all about giving ourselves for the good of the other. In a Lay Dominican fraternity, we recognize the importance of community and strive to cultivate it: through monthly fraternity meetings, periodic celebrations with the friars and sisters, and group apostolates that further our mission of preaching the Gospel.

Even though you don’t feel a pull towards religious life–or have made a different vocational commitment already–you desire a sense of structure, community, and accountability in serving the Church with your gifts and talents.

Lay Dominicans make promises of obedience to the Master of the Order–the successor of St. Dominic–through their local fraternity president. These promises (which are not under the pain of sin) to follow our Rule of prayer and frequent the sacraments are meant to bind us together as one and give us the grace to fulfill our calling as preachers.

This involves a degree of sacrifice, especially of our time. However, it is a sacrifice that we feel is worth making, for the good of the Order.  

The Order, through its leadership, discerns that you are fit for this commitment.
A vocation is not a one-way street; the Church must also make the discernment to affirm the person’s desire to live out this particular way of life.