Get into the habit of wearing the habit!

[JCPhoenix]

acadian:

A link to the carmelites that Phoenix mentions (I’m assuming that LA means Louisiana, and not Los Angeles). Actually there are a few different listings when I google Louisiana Carmelites. These are down the road from me, though.

]

Actually I DID mean “LA” as in “Los Angeles”. There is an active Carmelite order. Mother Regina has been to my locale although I was not able to attend the event. They are HUGE and noted in many locations. I apologize in that I am not able to provide the link as I’m still rebuilding my recently rebuilt computer.

The LA (Los Angeles, CA) Carmelites are orthodox, active, wear the habit, and might be coming your way.

From what I understand, they are soon to expand to Minnesota (MN). Awesome!

www.religiouslife.com (should be there)’
or
www.CMSWR.org

 

[ChemicalBean]

Anima Christi:

Orders that wear the habit are usually younger and growing, while the ones that don’t are not. Usually orders that don’t wear habits are the ones who aren’t faithful to their order’s original calling and instead are into social justice, environmental justice, New Age, etc.

Ooooh. I’d be careful with that last statement there. It is true that most “un-in-habited” congregations are very concerned with social justice, environmental stewardship, etc. and that in general their numbers are not growing as rapidly as habited orders.

But if their founder’s original calling was to serve the poor, the marginalized, and cry out for justice and peace, etc., then they are absolutely being faithful to their original charism, habit or not! ALL Christians should be committed to social justice. (Faith without works is dead, right?) These apostolic religious are just as important as the contemplatives; they are every bit a co-worker in the vinyard of the Lord. They are realizing the Kingdom through corporal works of mercy. Perhaps the Lord is just not calling as many to serve in this way as before.

I agree that it is disheartening to hear of Sisters who practice and preach a non-Catholic, pagan spirituality. That said, it is all hearsay to me because I have never actually met one who was like that. (And most of the Sisters I know of are active religious).

 

[palmas85]

ChemicalBean:

Ooooh. I’d be careful with that last statement there. It is true that most “un-in-habited” congregations are very concerned with social justice, environmental stewardship, etc. and that in general their numbers are not growing as rapidly as habited orders.

But if their founder’s original calling was to serve the poor, the marginalized, and cry out for justice and peace, etc., then they are absolutely being faithful to their original charism, habit or not! ALL Christians should be committed to social justice. (Faith without works is dead, right?) These apostolic religious are just as important as the contemplatives; they are every bit a co-worker in the vinyard of the Lord. They are realizing the Kingdom through corporal works of mercy. Perhaps the Lord is just not calling as many to serve in this way as before.

I agree that it is disheartening to hear of Sisters who practice and preach a non-Catholic, pagan spirituality. That said, it is all hearsay to me because I have never actually met one who was like that. (And most of the Sisters I know of are active religious).

In the teaching order of the Sisters of Loretto, 1993-94 Directory the following were listed as the Sisters occupations. remember, this is a teaching order. Public school teacher, cosmetologist, receptionist for Apple Computer, Public school computer specialist, farm worker ministry, self employed family counselor, oncology program manager at a Baptist Hospital, fund raiser for Save Our Cumberland Mountains, clinical psychologist, staff attorney for a legal aid socirty, self employed law librarian, financial consultant, certified enneagram consultant public library employee, theraputic touch practitioner , area manager for World Bank Educational Products, self employed insurance executive, I think that means sales person, and the grand finale, one actually listed her occupation as resisting patriarchy.

I somehow doubt that this orders original charism included most of these occupations and goals. This order is not at all atypical from most accounts. I think that it is pretty clear why religious orders are in a LOT of trouble these days.

The above and other fascinating facts are in the book, Sisters in Crisis by Ann Carey. A truly eye opening look into the state of female religious in America, and why it has ended up where it is. Another must read is Unveiled, The Hidden Life of Nuns by Cheryl L. Reed who actually spent several years traveling around the country living with and interviewing hundreds of nuns and sisters of all types, from the strictly cloistered to the remnants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters in Los Angeles, which was the first order to have a sizeable number actually walk away from their vows and become secularized.

 

[buffalo]

I haven’t heard of any habited nuns referring to God as mother. :nope:

 

[Paris_Blues]

JCPhoenix:

Paris, look to the orders such as the Sisers of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, and the LA Carmelites (forget their name), and in Wisconsin, the Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus.

And if God calls you to do so, start your own, but wear the HABIT!

I was looking into this because I feel so drawn to Carmelite for some strange reason.

I’m not trying to be mean or sound disrespectful but really, if one is going to be a sister or a nun and doesn’t wear a habit, you might as well be a layperson serving.

 

[Teresa]

Good post…interesting thoughts. May I give mine? Speaking as a former nun: pre and post Vatican II. After Vatican II, the premise was that we were to modify the habit since some of the Sisters were doing work where the habit inhibited movement, etc. Being a young sister, you did not question anything. But looking back, habits had already been modified for those sisters doing more physical work. For example, the nurses did not wear the stiff celluloid collars and headbands, they were made of a softer, pliable material. The missionary sisters also had a modified habit, they wore white and lighter weight material, softer headresses too. As I said, we didn’t question. After I left the Order, married and had my son, I ran into some sisters that I knew. These nuns had eliminated the habit totally and were wearing street clothes. My son, who was about 2 - 2 1/2 at the time, was a little “bratty” towards the sisters when they talked to him. I repremanded him and told him that these women were “Sisters, just like we see in Church”…he looked them up and down and said to me, “Mommy, they are not!” Out of the mouths of babes. It is sad that many Orders have gone to the opposite end of the spectrum, even losing the sense of community by living by themselves. Thank God for the rising up of some traditional orders. One of the most tragic outcomes of all this changing post Vatican II was the removal/elimination of the sisters from the CAtholic Schools.
Peace and blessings.

 

[Paris_Blues]

Or this

 

[ComradeAndrei]

Ooooh. I’d be careful with that last statement there. It is true that most “un-in-habited” congregations are very concerned with social justice, environmental stewardship, etc. and that in general their numbers are not growing as rapidly as habited orders.

But if their founder’s original calling was to serve the poor, the marginalized, and cry out for justice and peace, etc., then they are absolutely being faithful to their original charism, habit or not! ALL Christians should be committed to social justice. (Faith without works is dead, right?) These apostolic religious are just as important as the contemplatives; they are every bit a co-worker in the vinyard of the Lord. They are realizing the Kingdom through corporal works of mercy. Perhaps the Lord is just not calling as many to serve in this way as before.

I wonder how the sisters of the old days could serve the poor, take care of the sick, etc. while wearing the old habits? Probably because they performed their service to the poor and worked for social justice in the holy boundaries of the Church. Those that stray far from holy Truth whither, while those that stick with conventional Catholicism grow. Go and bear fruit…

 

[ChemicalBean]

palmas85:

In the teaching order of the Sisters of Loretto, 1993-94 Directory the following were listed as the Sisters occupations. remember, this is a teaching order. Public school teacher, cosmetologist, receptionist for Apple Computer, Public school computer specialist, farm worker ministry, self employed family counselor, oncology program manager at a Baptist Hospital, fund raiser for Save Our Cumberland Mountains, clinical psychologist, staff attorney for a legal aid socirty, self employed law librarian, financial consultant, certified enneagram consultant public library employee, theraputic touch practitioner , area manager for World Bank Educational Products, self employed insurance executive, I think that means sales person, and the grand finale, one actually listed her occupation as resisting patriarchy.

I somehow doubt that this orders original charism included most of these occupations and goals.

Your information about the Sisters of Loretto is interesting, but not altogether surprising. Here’s a few thoughts that came from a conversation a while back with a pre/post VII sister about religious life today.

If the reason for their foundation was solely to teach masses of children for free in Catholic schools, then they will naturally die out because they are no longer needed for that. The model for education has long ago changed. Schools are bigger with more shared resources. We expect the teachers of our children, particularly in private schools, to be academically well-qualified (knowing what they teach) and professionally skilled in teaching methods (knowing how to teach). Although some sisters fit this bill, surely not all in their community do. More importantly, there are now plenty of well-qualified, lay professionals to teach in Catholic schools, and those sisters who are not gifted with teaching ablilty are needed more badly somewhere else. The same can be said for all the “nursing” orders.

I think what’s cool about religious communities in general is that their vocation is not so much a calling to “do” as to “be.” They are free to attend to the needs of the current times, and then what they do catches on to the rest of us. Hopefully, we catch onto their Christian witness as well. Way back then, it was education and health care for the masses. But because they put the structure in place (Catholic schools, hospitals), all that stuff is still readily available, and they are free to move on to other ministries.

This is probably why we are seeing more Sisters as social workers, counselors, therapists, legal agents, lobbyists, naturalists, etc. because these people are badly needed. If one day you wake up, lose your job and then lose your home and file for bankruptcy, and then out of frustration your marriage dissolves and you lose your children too, and consequently you get depressed, etc. think of how much more you need a Sister to be one of these than a teacher or a nurse!

Our world is a lot more individualistic, and so they probably have to live that somewhat to reach out to a hurting world (smaller living arrangements, etc.) Once these needs are being readily met, God will probably move them to do something else or put them out of business.

 

[moira]

buffalo:

How about these Sisters? THe habit is extremely important to them. And they are growing.

http://www.sistersofmary.org/introduction.jpg

They are indeed growing and a wonderful group. The two nuns on the right in the first row in the picture of professed sisters are my two nieces who happen to be sisters in blood as well as sisters in the convent. They are Sr. Mary Margaret and Sr. Mary Catherine and are fantastic young women.

 

[Paris_Blues]

For those of you who are searching for communities, check this out (I think ALL of the ones listed here wear the habit which is a good habit to get into! ):

Communities

 

[SnorterLuster]

Paris Blues:

I was looking into this because I feel so drawn to Carmelite for some strange reason.

I’m not trying to be mean or sound disrespectful but really, if one is going to be a sister or a nun and doesn’t wear a habit, you might as well be a layperson serving.

You might also look into these sisters.

oksister.com/

This second link is a Carmelite vocation discenment survey and links to the various Carmelite convents.

baltimorecarmel.org/Vocation%20Discernment/discernment%20flow%20chart.htm

 

[Paris_Blues]

And the interesting part is, after this thread went up, I’ve started to hear more about it on EWTN! It’s as if I read their mind or they read my mind!

But seriously, why does the Church let them not wear the habit?:banghead:

 

[Frank_Roman]

In 1945 there were 138,079 sisters, in 1950 there were 147,310, in 1955 there were 158,069, in 1960 there were 168,527. There were 135,225 in 1975, 126,517 in 1980, 115,386 in 1985, 103,269 in 1990, 92,107 in 1995, 75,500 in 2002. Sisters were the backbone of the Catholic education and health systems in 1965. In 2002, there were 75,000 sisters, with an average age of 68. By 2020, the number of sisters will drop to 40,000 — and of these, only 21,000 will be age 70 or under. In 1965, 104,000 sisters were teaching, while in 2002 there were only 8,200 teachers. From 1965 to 2002, per capita, the number of sisters fell from 39.43 per 10,000 to 11.56 — a decline of 71 percent. Hip-Hip-Hooray for the new springtime!

 

[FrCorey]

**and Never lend out your habit.
I am a benedictine and one time lent my best habit to a brother who lost his, don’t ask. and he happened to like to smoke cigars in his free time. and when I got it back it was full of holes. everywhere, sleeves, cowl, scapulars, etc. only my monks rope was spared. so now my holy habit is a really holey habit. and the brother who made it for me wants 375.00 for a new one and a 6 month wait for it. hmm, now to earn a new one I have to be a french friar for a long time. i.e. I will be a monk in the service of the king, the burger king.
**

 

[Shoshana]

I see there are some people discerning a vocation here, may I put your names on the list for prayer in the Perpetual Prayer for Priests/Seminarians/Vocations?

As an aside, being in a convent myself, who were known at the time as the Grey Sisters of the Cross of Ottawa, I can totally relate to this subject. The habit MUST remain!!! the only way to go!

 

[Paris_Blues]

Shoshana:

I see there are some people discerning a vocation here, may I put your names on the list for prayer in the Perpetual Prayer for Priests/Seminarians/Vocations?

No:nope:

 

[Shoshana]

Paris Blues:

No:nope:

Okee Dokee!

 

[palmas85]

ChemicalBean:

Your information about the Sisters of Loretto is interesting, but not altogether surprising. Here’s a few thoughts that came from a conversation a while back with a pre/post VII sister about religious life today.

If the reason for their foundation was solely to teach masses of children for free in Catholic schools, then they will naturally die out because they are no longer needed for that. The model for education has long ago changed. Schools are bigger with more shared resources. We expect the teachers of our children, particularly in private schools, to be academically well-qualified (knowing what they teach) and professionally skilled in teaching methods (knowing how to teach). Although some sisters fit this bill, surely not all in their community do. More importantly, there are now plenty of well-qualified, lay professionals to teach in Catholic schools, and those sisters who are not gifted with teaching ablilty are needed more badly somewhere else. The same can be said for all the “nursing” orders.

I think what’s cool about religious communities in general is that their vocation is not so much a calling to “do” as to “be.” They are free to attend to the needs of the current times, and then what they do catches on to the rest of us. Hopefully, we catch onto their Christian witness as well. Way back then, it was education and health care for the masses. But because they put the structure in place (Catholic schools, hospitals), all that stuff is still readily available, and they are free to move on to other ministries.

This is probably why we are seeing more Sisters as social workers, counselors, therapists, legal agents, lobbyists, naturalists, etc. because these people are badly needed. If one day you wake up, lose your job and then lose your home and file for bankruptcy, and then out of frustration your marriage dissolves and you lose your children too, and consequently you get depressed, etc. think of how much more you need a Sister to be one of these than a teacher or a nurse!

Our world is a lot more individualistic, and so they probably have to live that somewhat to reach out to a hurting world (smaller living arrangements, etc.) Once these needs are being readily met, God will probably move them to do something else or put them out of business.

You are quite right. The world certainly needs more certified enneagram consultants, patriarchy resisters, insurance salesmen and and the like. No doubt about it And lets not forget the theraputic touch specialists, my personal favorite.

 

[Digitonomy]

In the picture above of the Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist, what’s up with the three back rows wearing traditional habits, versus the three front rows wearing vests?