One of the saddest features of Catholic life in America since Vatican II has been the transformation of so many nuns and sisters from being Brides of Christs into promoters of every Leftist and New Age fad imaginable. Finally, the Vatican has taken notice:
Go here to read the rest at Lifesite News. This problem of course is solving itself. The orders that have gotten off the rails and gone full Gaia and Feminazi are unable to attract postulants and are rapidly dying out. The average age of women in orders that belong to LCWR is 74. Fortunately, plenty of smart, young Catholic women, loyal to the magisterium, are flocking to orders affiliated with the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious. Go here to their website. Catholicism, works every time it’s tried.
[…] Of Aging Modernists & Brides of Christ – Donald R. McClarey, The American Catholic […]
One has to wonder though that given these problems cropped up rather quickly after teh Council if teh seeds of this were not sown prior to the Council.
I know a couple of young women who have gone overseas – one to Australia and one to the US – to join religious orders there because of the liberalism that has infected many of our women’s orders – in particular the Dominicans and the Sisters of Mercy.
My cousin, who was professed in the Domnican order back in 1992 was the mosr recent profession in that order in this country – and she is a raging feminist; we have some ding dong arguments, and I take much enjoyment getting her stirred up 🙂
That order is dying here, but those of St.Joseph of Cluny and the one founded my St. Mary of The Cross – St.Mary McKillop – are doing okay.
Greg.
I wonder if, after Vatican II, that the liberals got hold of things so quickly that it was like a “blitzkrieg”, and has taken a long time to peg back. Therewer certainly liberal feminists around prior to V2 – look at how many jumped “over the wall” – but many stayed.
Like most great historical events Greg, one could point to events prior to Vatican II that indicated what happened subsequent to it. However, one could also point to events prior to Vatican II that presaged a coming age of vibrant orthodoxy. The tea leaves, as they usually are in human affairs, were mixed. My own opinion is that in some other decade Vatican II would have been benign or at least harmless. In the context of the Sixties, when most institutions in the West came under sharp attack, the turmoil within the Church, matching the turmoil in the World following Vatican II, was a disaster that destroyed the faith of many and brought to the fore within the Church in too many cases blind guides. Pope Paul VI deserves a lot of credit for not surrendering to these forces, albeit he could not stop them. John Paul II largely accomplished that, and Pope Benedict is carrying forward with the rebuilding.
Working for a Catholic Church on Long Island, New York, I’m surrounded by these type of Nuns. On a personal level, I’m very fond of them, but politically, they are leftys. They voted for Obama and continue to push for amnesty for illegals, woman priests, etc. I remember the day when Joseph Ratzinger was made Pope – they were all very upset, but I was DELIGHTED, though I had to keep it to myself. The youngest one is in her 70’s and their order (Sisters of Mercy) is dying on the vine. I pray everyday that these “Foolish Virgins” will return to the orginal intent of their calling and stop the liberal nonsense before it’s too late.
The Sisters I know personally are all pretty darned liberal. And old. Most of their stories are similar as well; joined their orders in the sixties because they wanted to be involved in work for social justice. No mention of Jesus at all. One is a Sister of the Living Word. I don’t know what the others were (they’re retired) because I never asked. I don’t think I want to know, either. It’s too disappointing.
One order that never had a lot of vocations is now doing fairly well. The “Hawthorne” Dominicans take care of terminal, poor cancer patients. My sister-in-law is coming up to her 60th jubilee. They accept no money from patients or their families until the patient has been dead for 1 year (I think). The Sisters are wonderful, dedicated and cheerful. They have a daily office and Mass in their chapel. It is always a privilege for me to visit them periodically. They truly do Gods’ work.
No offense against anyone, but I don’t have any lefty friends, nuns or otherwise, nor am I fond of any lefties. Most are deluded. The rest are vicious man-haters and tradition-haters. Nothing in common, nor would there be.
Maybe I am just an intolerant, divisive, unkind and (worst of all) not nice conservative fanatic to the right of Attila the Hun (which by the way ryhmes with nun).
😉
Thank God they are being slapped down. About time.
Compare the rage of the aging leftist sisters to the joy apparent on the faces and in their speech of the Dominicans of Nashville and Michigan, or the Poor Clares in Birmingham and Arizona. ‘Nuff said.
One has to wonder why it has taken so long and gotten so out of control to have any kind of guidance from Rome. It doesn’t matter if it’s the sisters or the progressive clergy I honestly cannot believe these deep seeded efforts to destroy Holy Mother Church were left to fester and now we are REALLY reaping the fruits of our actions. If you want to be Catholic than be Catholic, otherwise go start your own church. I do not believe the souls that were educated and formated under these radical torrents of disdain for the Church and her teachings, will be held accountable for their loss of the gift of faith. Those however who formed these minds and knew better, but had their own personal agenda of what they wanted “the chruch” to be, will.
The Sisters of the Eucharist in Lansing/Ann Arbor are the most beautiful women I have ever met. You can’t wipe that smile off their faces. What a contrast to others who are in a power struggle with their own gender and faith.
God, send laborers into your field. We are truly blessed by women who love Christ as their bridegroom.
I finally found a link to the 8-page document via an article on Fr. Z’s blog. It’s pretty blunt for a church document, and establishes some heavy-duty new policies. The LCWR response so far looks like spin and negotiation, the opposite of the kind of obedience which the saints and great orders displayed even when the authority which oversaw them was unjustified in their actions.
I’m well acquainted with sisters of a local religious house who do much needed work with the poor, immigrants, homeless women, and the mentally handicapped. I admire them for their dedication and their ministries. But their have been no young sisters joining them for many years. I attribute this to their spirit of rebellion against the authority of the Church. One of the sister who was a sponsor of someone going through our RCIA process was disruptive during a couple of the sessions dealing with the sacrament of Holy Orders (she was very upset that we don’t ordain women and predicted that the Church would change that under another pope) and Marriage and sexuality (the Church shouldn’t condemn homosexual acts). I am bothered by the way the sisters stand beside the priest and hold up the bread and wine during the offertory prayers at Mass and I was told by someone who attended a recent event there that one of the sisters danced up the aisle in the offertory procession in a long flowing outfit, with bare feet, swaying and gracefully motioning with her arms. One of the sisters once introduced me to a visitor as ‘conservative’ (meaning only that I don’t see a problem with accepting church teaching and discipline). I’m an ordinary Catholic lay person, why on earth should it be considered ‘conservative’ to do that? I think the visit and the CDF’s action is long overdue. I feel most sorry for the professed sisters who do NOT agree with what’s going on. They have taken vows of obedience and have given many years of their lives to God within the order. They are sometimes the recipients of unkindness. But they stay, faithful to the Church and to their vows and soldier on.
CFS
” I am bothered by the way the sisters stand beside the priest and hold up the bread and wine during the offertory prayers at Mass ………”
This is a very serious liturgical abuse – the priest must be just as stupid as the nuns.
Has anyone reported this to his bishop?
[…] for the purpose of amusement. Yesterday I wandered over there to see their reaction to the Vatican’s attempt to reform The Leadership Conference of Women Religious. The reactions were both hysterical and hysterically funny. Father Z, who I have designated the […]
Yes i do agree that there are orders dying out due to lack of attracting vocations, however there are two Domincan Orders both in the USA who have for the last decade have been attracting young women not only from the US, but from other countries as well. They are the Domincan Sisters of St Cecilia and the Domincan Sisters of Mary, in both of these orders the sisters are in traditional habit and veil and it is these orders that are attracting women. In the St Cecilia congregation they have over 200 in the mother house alone, that is fully professed, novices and postualants and are still taking in prospective applicants, the same is said for the Domincan Sisters of Mary. The St Cecilia congregation has recently opened it’s 1st overseas convent here in Australia in Sydney and are doing well.