{"id":24814,"date":"2009-07-23T17:32:02","date_gmt":"2009-07-23T21:32:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/2009\/07\/recipe-for-a-thriving-religiou\/"},"modified":"2009-07-23T17:32:02","modified_gmt":"2009-07-23T21:32:02","slug":"recipe-for-a-thriving-religiou","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/2009\/07\/recipe-for-a-thriving-religiou\/","title":{"rendered":"Recipe for a thriving religious order"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Cist<\/a><\/span>Recently, the National Catholic Register<\/a> published an
\narticle on the life of nuns at the Valley of Our Lady Monastery<\/a>, located on 112
\nacres in Prairie du Sac, outside of Madison, Wisconsin. The author brings out
\nsome salient points that contribute to the “success” of this particular
\nmonastery. Let’s be clear, success is not defined here in terms of secularity but ways that allow for a vocation to thrive according to the Divine
\nPlan. Let me draw your attention to two things that struck me. Mind you, these
\nitems (see below) are not new at all but they do spell out what is needed to help contribute to
\nthe resurgence of religious life if it’s God’s will. Sadly groups like the Sisters of Mercy, the Sisters of St Joseph, the various Franciscan and Dominican sisters’ congregations to name a few, would think these comments are inaccurate, too shrill and not relevant for the “modern world.” Truthfully, I think these groups want to die because they are too “relevant” matter. BUT when you see women attracted to congregations like this monastery, the Alma Mercy Sisters<\/a> and the Franciscan Sisters of the Martyr Saint George<\/a> and not to the secular-looking groups, then one has to ask the hard questions. Having defend the general thesis of the article, let it be known I am not totally in
\nagreement with Father Mullady’s acceptance of BlackBerries but I can’t have
\neverything.<\/span><\/span><\/font><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/font><\/div>\n

\"DSC_1095.JPG\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

1. When asked what she thought was attracting young women to this
\nancient contemplative order, Sister Bernarda replied, “To begin with, God.” She
\nadded, “Then, perhaps, the desire for a life of prayer, solitude, simplicity,
\nwith an ancient liturgy in Latin and Gregorian chant, and a simple, traditional
\nhabit. Also, we follow the directives of our order and the Church.” Sister Mary
\nBede boiled it down to this: “When you’re looking for a traditional,
\nhabit-wearing, Divine Office-saying order, it narrows down your choices a bit.”
\nShe preferred the Cistercians to some of the newer orders, explaining,
\n“Definitely, it’s a comfort knowing that the Rule of St. Benedict has
\nsanctified hundreds of thousands of men and women throughout the ages. It helps
\nto live a life in faith — that God will work through our superiors and rule to
\nbring about our sanctification.” When asked what keeps her order so grounded in
\nits ancient origins and traditions, Sister Mary Dolores responded, “There is a
\npreservation of identity<\/span>; progress comes not from something entirely new, but a
\nreturning to the charism of the founders. In tradition, the past is present but
\nupdated.”<\/span><\/span><\/font><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/font><\/div>\n
2. Dominican Father Brian Mullady has seen many traditional orders
\nsurvive the decades after Vatican II. Theological consultant for the Institute
\non Religious Life<\/a> in Libertyville, Ill. — a collaborative effort of Catholic
\nbishops, priests, religious and laity to foster and strengthen vocations to the
\nconsecrated life — Father Mullady said: “Mostly they weathered the changes by
\nadapting the things that needed to be adapted for young people — there are
\nsisters on the Internet and carrying BlackBerries — but preserving the habit,
\nthe cloister, silence, reading at table, living in community<\/span>.”<\/span><\/span><\/font><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/font><\/div>\n
Read the rest of
\nthe article<\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/font><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Recently, the National Catholic Register published an article on the life of nuns at the Valley of Our Lady Monastery, located on 112 acres in Prairie du Sac, outside of Madison, Wisconsin. The author brings out some salient points that contribute to the “success” of this particular monastery. Let’s be clear, success is not defined … Continue reading Recipe for a thriving religious order<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[1707],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24814"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24814"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24814\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}