Would you wear this habit?

[Jenniferolg]

In Raymond Arroyo’s book on Mother Angelica, he addresses her decision to return to the more formal habit. If I remember correctly, it was because she was showing humility. She also claims it stimulated vocations to her order.

 

[Sirach2]

In Raymond Arroyo’s book on Mother Angelica, he addresses her decision to return to the more formal habit. If I remember correctly, it was because she was showing humility. She also claims it stimulated vocations to her order.

Of course, purity of intention is of the essence in our decision-making. Thanks for this tidbit from Raymond.

 

[Jenniferolg]

Regarding what is stopping me from wearing a veil at Holy Mass, I don’t think my desire to not “do” my hair is sufficient reason to don a veil at Holy Mass.

About 20 years ago, during a Bible study, we asked our priest why the Church stopped requiring women to cover their heads, and if we would be allowed to wear them on our own…he answered, “Don’t try to be holier than the Church!” That has stuck with me. If the Church asks me to do it, I will gladly do it, but since the Church does not ask, I won’t.

 

[JRKH]

To answer Brother’s question…I must say that I would wear whatever my particular order would require of me.
Certainly one should not enter an order based on what one wears - and since obedience would require submission in this regard it seems a no-brainer that one simply wears what is regimented by the order.

That said, I agree with the premise that the most fundamental requirements of such habits should be simplicity and functionality consistent with modesty and (to some extent) cultural norms.

That’s my 2 cents…

Peace
James

 

[Mary_Gail_36]

In Raymond Arroyo’s book on Mother Angelica, he addresses her decision to return to the more formal habit. If I remember correctly, it was because she was showing humility. She also claims it stimulated vocations to her order.

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/...3A1IoBf8amiqckAU7AMP0tpnr4fFEIMBtIS8FoocK5ffD

Here is a picture of Mother Angelica, her habit is long and she has the wimple and veil. But it is a much more simple version of the picture Brother JR posted. It doesn’t seem very ornate or complicated to sew.

Here are the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal.

http://franciscansisterscfr.com/images/home_page_new.jpg

Very simple robes and veils. And such joyous faces.

 

[antioch25]

There’ say saying in Italian

“l’abito non fa il monaco”. The habit (clothing) does not make the monk.

 

[Paddy_Walker]

I finished looking at the pictures. I think that if you take away the headpieces, the tunics themselves are not bad. They could probably be a little less poofy to save money. Cloth is expensive. It costs a lot of money to make a habit. Our own habit costs about $300.00. It costs a lot of money to look poor. LOL Go figure that one out.

There was a time when cloth was inexpensive and seamstresses and tailors were many. That’s no longer the case. Now you have to send out to a company for a habit. If they went to something that is wash and wear, with less stuff on the head, it would work to their advantage.

Why don’t you make it yourself? Keep sheep, make wool, cost 0.

 

[katy]

Regarding what is stopping me from wearing a veil at Holy Mass, I don’t think my desire to not “do” my hair is sufficient reason to don a veil at Holy Mass.

About 20 years ago, during a Bible study, we asked our priest why the Church stopped requiring women to cover their heads, and if we would be allowed to wear them on our own…he answered, “Don’t try to be holier than the Church!” That has stuck with me. If the Church asks me to do it, I will gladly do it, but since the Church does not ask, I won’t.

This is turning into a rabbit hole, but I still wonder what that priest meant. How did he know if you or anyone was trying to be holier than the Church?
Maybe someone finds it a good way to remind herself to be at prayer, or whatever. It seems to me that he might have been advocating a minimalism the discourages anything beyond what is absolutely required. But I can’t read his mind or heart either, of course.

 

[Mary_Gail_36]

Why don’t you make it yourself? Keep sheep, make wool, cost 0.

I believe Brother JR is located in a pretty large city…no room for sheep.

 

[MarcoPolo]

How many of those people who mourn the old habits would wear one?

I suspect some people who prefer sisters to wear the habits may be averse to sisters who appear like this:

That’s Sister Keehan there with VP Joe Biden. It may not mean those who mourn for habits necessarily mourn for the return of the most apparelly complex habits in history.

 

[Paddy_Walker]

I believe Brother JR is located in a pretty large city…no room for sheep.

But he belongs to a worldwide/nationwide order, perhaps? Somebody somewhere in that order has land and maybe a farm.

 

[agnes_therese]

It may not mean those who mourn for habits necessarily mourn for the return of the most apparelly complex habits in history.

Bingo. Simple is awesome. I firmly believe there is a lot to be said for the visible witness of sisters and brothers in habits.

 

[JRKH]

I finished looking at the pictures. I think that if you take away the headpieces, the tunics themselves are not bad. They could probably be a little less poofy to save money. Cloth is expensive. It costs a lot of money to make a habit. Our own habit costs about $300.00. It costs a lot of money to look poor. LOL Go figure that one out.

Actually - it’s not too hard to figure out…
The reason St Francis dressed as he did was because it was the cheapest.
However - over time - as people began to associate a certain mode of dress with the Franciscans, this mode was maintained - even after it ceased to be the cheapest way to go.
Such is the downfall of (dare I say it?) “habits”.

There was a time when cloth was inexpensive and seamstresses and tailors were many. That’s no longer the case. Now you have to send out to a company for a habit. If they went to something that is wash and wear, with less stuff on the head, it would work to their advantage.

Why don’t you make it yourself? Keep sheep, make wool, cost 0.

I believe Brother JR is located in a pretty large city…no room for sheep.

But he belongs to a worldwide/nationwide order, perhaps? Somebody somewhere in that order has land and maybe a farm.

I like this mode of thinking. It seems that monasteries actually do look for ways to support themselves. We see monasteries that make everything from Jams and Coffee to Caskets and Coffins. So why not habits?
Or perhaps there already are such groups.

Kind of off topic but - - -

Peace
James

 

[katy]

Having done some sewing, how could a fairly simple habit cost $300? I am assuming that they make their own, since a basic habit would be the same design and stitches over and over–not that hard to figure out.

 

[Mrs_Sally]

I suspect some people who prefer sisters to wear the habits may be averse to sisters who appear like this:

That’s Sister Keehan there with VP Joe Biden. It may not mean those who mourn for habits necessarily mourn for the return of the most apparelly complex habits in history.

While we may not agree with her positions on various topics, there is nothing really wrong with the way she’s dressed - simple, conservative, modest suit and blouse. She’s dressed as ordinary women of her age dress - which is what many of the funny habits were back then, the ordinary clothes of an ordinary woman. No, she doesn’t look like a “movie nun” in that suit, but the original sisters didn’t either. Other than the fact that they might have all been wearing a dress made from the same fabric and pattern (but might not have been), they didn’t stand out from the crowd back in the 1600s.

 

[Luz_Maria]

[Snips]

I vaguely remember seeing the Sisters of Mercy in their old habit; but I can’t recall where. It was many years ago. I was struck by the double collar with the starch. I’ve always wondered why men’s habits were never that complicated.

because men were the ones who designed all those habits? freesmileys.org/smileys/smiley-laughing014.gif I could not help it! The devilish in me came out! I mean no disrespect! Forgot that Dec. 28 has passed! (Holy Innocents’ Day – think of April’s Fool (April 1), but instead of saying “April fools” saying “Innocent!”)

To answer your question, Brother: Yes, I would wear that habit. The habit would not keep me from entering the Order if I wanted to be one of them.

I have no idea of what “stuff” those cardboard-like parts of the habits were made. If fabric, then I know how to make the actual starch (powder) to cook the starch to make something hard like that. In the States, people who do “Square Dancing” use Elmer’s Glue in some way.

I suspect some people who prefer sisters to wear the habits may be averse to sisters who appear like this:
http://oi41.tinypic.com/al5l4y.jpg
That’s Sister Keehan there with VP Joe Biden. It may not mean those who mourn for habits necessarily mourn for the return of the most apparelly complex habits in history.

You are right! How could any one at all tell that woman was a Religious?

Bingo. Simple is awesome. I firmly believe there is a lot to be said for the visible witness of sisters and brothers in habits.

Yes again!

I am not a Sister/Nun, nor do I wear a “Crucifix”, but people actually ask me if I am a “Monja” in Spanish or Sister when in English. I get it told in both languages!

When a Sister friend of mine decided to change to . . . [what do I call it?] regular clothing, I asked her how were we to tell a Sister from the rest. She said they did not wear makeup nor jewelry. I was not wearing either, so I asked her: “I am not wearing either, so does that make me a fully professed Sister?” She could not answer me.

She also told me that they received bad treatment from people when they went out wearing the habit. Could not answer me when I replied “so was Jesus”. She was my friend and did not take it as an insult.

 

[Avila123]

I know the photos were historical but many of the habits evolved over time. For example, when my Aunt took her vows (I think she was 16 or 18 yrs old - she became a novice at 14) she had a full length habit but it did not look cumbersome. When she transferred to the Congo, she wore her tropical habit (white, less cloth and much simpler). Sometimes she wore a simple white dress and head covering. In the 1970’s our secondary school had two nuns, one wore ordinary clothes and a simple head covering, whilst the Deputy Head for girls wore a plain black habit (just below the knee) that looked more like a working dress and a simple head covering. In other words, practical comfortable clothing that says “I am a nun”. What better advert for the religious life than a habit?

PS. Reference making the habit, I saw a program on a cloistered convent and they made their habits from a simple pattern.

 

[Cat]

Regarding what is stopping me from wearing a veil at Holy Mass, I don’t think my desire to not “do” my hair is sufficient reason to don a veil at Holy Mass.

About 20 years ago, during a Bible study, we asked our priest why the Church stopped requiring women to cover their heads, and if we would be allowed to wear them on our own…he answered, “Don’t try to be holier than the Church!” That has stuck with me. If the Church asks me to do it, I will gladly do it, but since the Church does not ask, I won’t.

That is a really, really good answer. Thank you for posting this.

 

[Cat]

Why don’t you make it yourself? Keep sheep, make wool, cost 0.

Sheep require pens, feed, and vet care, all of which costs money. And then there’s the time–that’s probably as valuable to a busy man as money.

And someone has to shear the sheep, card the wool, weave it into cloth, and then cut and stitch the cloth into a garment. Not everyone has these skills, and they are not cheap to hire.

I have a friend who does all this with angora rabbits. Thirty years ago, she charged $400 dollars for one sweater. I can’t even imagine how much a hand-grown, hand-made angora sweater would cost today.

 

[Oneofthewomen]

Br. Jay, thank you for asking this question! For me the answer would be a big fat NO!!!

I cannot imagine having all of that “froo-froo” around my face & neck, it would make me crazy and probably very mean. Maybe that’s why some recall the sisters that taught them as being “mean”- they hated their habits!

It was always my understanding that a habit for a sister (as opposed to that of a cloistered nun) was what the typical widow would have worn at the time, so many of these habits, once upon a time, would not have seemed out of place. I also thought that, for the most part, sisters were to be “in the world” and not to dress in ways that would make them “stand out”. Isn’t that why Mother Teresa chose a sari style habit for her order, so that her sisters ‘blended in’ ?

I think now though, that it would be very impractical and very expensive for sisters to dress like they did in days gone by. And considering that those old habits needed lots of care & maintenance, and there are not convents full of novices to do laundry anymore, that simple, wash & wear clothing, the requires little to no ironing, lets the sisters spend their time doing pastoral work instead of caring for their habits.