Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O Lord of hosts, my King, and my God.
I suspect there are actually quite a few real nuns left in Italy, quietly and un-glamorously doing the Master's work
and not appearing at all on Oprah.
~
8 comments:
Mark
said...
I have a female relative discerning a vocation to the religious life.
Would you ever consider doing a post about your experiences in discerning? Like what to look for, what turned you off, and what to beware of (without necessarily naming names of groups, of course)? It would be helpful.
I have done a bit of this. Just put the word "nuns" into the site search at the top left.
But yes, I've been vaguely pondering writing more about All That, since some of those issues are coming up again, though in a different way.
I actually collected a great deal of data on religious orders in the English speaking world and was intending to write a book at one point. In all I ended up with nearly 90,000 words just of notes.
(And if you imagine for a moment that I would hesitate to "name names" you must be new around here.)
Nuns aren't part of the esse of the church but a sign of its health. The big old orders started destroying themselves at Vatican II so they're all heretical and old/dying now. But under John Paul the Overrated ('drop all that old-fashioned stuff and be a charismatic', 'here's the Tridentine Mass back, just kidding' and 'and now, altar girls!') you started to see small, local conservative orders spring up. I can imagine that continuing under the phenomenal Pope Benedict only better (habits etc.). We won't see lots of nuns staffing schools and hospitals again (for which the framers of V2 will answer to God) but a few real nuns (like the US Marines' 'a few good men') in Benedict's smaller, sounder church fighting the larger culture.
The Catholic Register just had an article about the amalgamation of 4 area Sisters of St. Joseph here in Ontario.
Over the years when I speak with anyone who is in the first stage of discernment - I always tell them which orders in the area or in Canada NOT to contact. Meaning not a lot of choice - but at least their solid orders.
8 comments:
I have a female relative discerning a vocation to the religious life.
Would you ever consider doing a post about your experiences in discerning? Like what to look for, what turned you off, and what to beware of (without necessarily naming names of groups, of course)? It would be helpful.
I have done a bit of this. Just put the word "nuns" into the site search at the top left.
But yes, I've been vaguely pondering writing more about All That, since some of those issues are coming up again, though in a different way.
I actually collected a great deal of data on religious orders in the English speaking world and was intending to write a book at one point. In all I ended up with nearly 90,000 words just of notes.
(And if you imagine for a moment that I would hesitate to "name names" you must be new around here.)
"And if you imagine for a moment that I would hesitate to 'name names' you must be new around here."
LOL. :-)
I saw some real nuns in Israel.
(You jelly?)
Nuns aren't part of the esse of the church but a sign of its health. The big old orders started destroying themselves at Vatican II so they're all heretical and old/dying now. But under John Paul the Overrated ('drop all that old-fashioned stuff and be a charismatic', 'here's the Tridentine Mass back, just kidding' and 'and now, altar girls!') you started to see small, local conservative orders spring up. I can imagine that continuing under the phenomenal Pope Benedict only better (habits etc.). We won't see lots of nuns staffing schools and hospitals again (for which the framers of V2 will answer to God) but a few real nuns (like the US Marines' 'a few good men') in Benedict's smaller, sounder church fighting the larger culture.
— John Beeler
The Catholic Register just had an article about the amalgamation of 4 area Sisters of St. Joseph here in Ontario.
Over the years when I speak with anyone who is in the first stage of discernment - I always tell them which orders in the area or in Canada NOT to contact. Meaning not a lot of choice - but at least their solid orders.
Teresa,
you just have to tell someone, "avoid the ones with all the old ladies in cheap polyester pant suits".
..and comfortable shoes and the pin on their lapel.
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