Formation in the Catholic Church

Ministerial formation (or simply formation) is the personal preparation that the Catholic Church offers to people with a defined mission, such as the priesthood or membership of a religious order such as the Society of Jesus. Such formation involves a program of spiritual and academic training. In the case of priestly formation, the typical location concerned is the seminary either operated by a diocese for the purposes of training diocesan/secular clergy or operated by a religious order for the purpose of preparing its members for priestly ordination.