There are lots of these too! I don't know why the Nashville Dominicans should be thriving, when most female religious orders are selling up. Is it the habit, orthodoxy, a strong sense of identity, the sense of being a bride of Christ or just the joy that attracts women to this congregation?
h/t Deacons Bench
6 comments:
Thank you for that, Father - I watched it all the way through - very encouraging.
Not related: something interesting:
Religion Law Blog
(By a papist lawyer)
There are lots of good active religious congregations in the States, but all of them have a very steady life, a real habit and a real charism. There is, in addition, the fact that the Catholic family has not taken such a beating in the US as it has in the UK and elsewhere, and therefore vocations are encouraged. Most of our vocations seem to come from converts these days.
These are simply the fruits of Faith, its not complicated imo.
I would guess that it's the strong sense of purpose and grounding. They have their priorities right. They know that none fo their mission will bear fruit unless they are grounded in God's grace, so of supreme importance is each nun's dedication to prayer life. And tested, well proven, prayer life at that -- liturgy of the hours, daily Mass, etc. I imagine rekki or however you spell it would be as welcome as a burp during wedding vows.
2nd is they know what the order is trying to do: teach young people -- it's not some nebulous "political grass roots activism." Those sorts of things are best handled by laymen rather than religious, as a rule of thumb. Some orders take on that task and its like reaching out to touch an elephant in the dark.
I do wish, however, if the Vatican is going to address problems in what IS wrong with some nuns, they wouldn't lie about it and be more straightforward. "We think you people may have gone off the beam with reiki/Buddhist nonsense, and we want to find out if its true of your particular congregation" would be a lot more honest and straight up than saying "we're investigating the health and well being of US nuns" and then turn around to "investigate" ONLY the non-traditional orders. While it's true, I think, that in congregations where nuns have gone off the deep end (and some have fallen into outright error, mischief, and promoting potential heresy) they ought to be more forthcoming about it. A structured life as much as the Dominicans have isn't necessarily for everyone, and it is a tougher road to travel, and I think divisions are more likely to occur in orders who percieve their mission to be "political grass roots action" [and I think, frankly, some of those Maryknoll ninnies fall into this category] - but they are not all on the road to hell. I refer to the news article here.
All of the above, Father!
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