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St. Teresa of the Andes & Chapel Rats

Therese Ivers, JCL — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 18:52:32 +0000

by Therese Ivers, JCL

One day, as I was helping out a friend in the sacristy, she mentioned something about “the chapel rats”. My friend was not referring to rats scurrying about – for as far as I know, there were none in the building. Rather, she was talking about those who spend practically all their time in the chapel, every day, in the mistaken notion that it is more holy to spend one’s life in the chapel or one one’s knees rather than to lead a balanced lifestyle. This tends to be a common error in those discerning their vocations.

People who are single who are discerning their vocations should pray, yes. Prayer is very good thing. But to spend 4, 5 hours a day in the church, working at a job, and then spending another hour or two on spiritual reading and research on communities or charisms each day is usually unwise. Why? Because the laity have a special mission in the world. They should participate in a prudent manner in the civic, social, family, and spiritual spheres. Volunteering, political activism (even just folding envelopes), building family and social ties, getting enough exercise, healthy meals, etc. are proper activities for those who are free from community or spousal ties. These should all have a slot on a single person’s calendar.

The role of the laity is to be beacons of light in the world. Lay persons, especially singles, whether they are minors or whether they are working adults, should live out their state in life according to their circumstances. In certain areas, it may be too dangerous for a young, single woman to minister directly to the homeless. But surely she can help someone learn to read or volunteer for a day to bring meals to a family in need or do some work of corporal or spiritual work of charity. A man might consider helping out single mothers with repairs around the house (observing all proprieties) or doing a spiritual or corporal work of mercy on a regular basis or as they are called for.

The single person should not forget that he/she is a human being. Having appropriate hobbies, growing in knowledge, interacting with other people and families, participating in cultural enrichment activities, etc. is an integral part of developing one’s humanity. Of course, a person might object, “I’m discerning a vocation! I’m in a different situation than other singles. I need to be holy and learn what God is calling me to. It’s a waste of time to be normal and participate in all these ‘worldly’ activities!”

Again, it is extremely important that the single person pray, do a daily examination of conscience, go to Mass frequently, etc. However, the Church reminds us that the laity have a mission in the world. If you don’t know where you are being called whether by vow, ordination, or consecration, the holy thing and proper thing to do is to live your state in life well and fully. Even if you know you’re being called to the ordained life or consecrated life or marriage, for now you are still single and lay!

Is it too “worldly” to be active in politics, volunteerism, etc.? Will it make a person less “holy”? Will it distract me from God? The answer to this question is that if these activities are done well, prudently, and in accordance with one’s path as discerned in the concrete circumstances of life, they should help the person to grow in holiness, their humanity, and happiness.

To my mind, St. Teresa of the Andes is a perfect “modern” example of how holiness can be found in every day life. Most of St. Teresa’s life was lived as a lay person. She was great at sports, loved airplanes, went horseback riding, went to the opera, played the piano, took care of a poor orphan, lived a social life… and yet, she was extremely holy! It was only the last 11 months of her life that she became a nun. She agonized over her discernment – like so many people do today. She didn’t know which order she was called to. But, while she was discerning and growing up, she lived a normal lifestyle for the people in her family situation. Yes, she prayed, prayed intensely, but she also partied. She was a lay woman, and she was very holy.

It is because I think St. Teresa of the Andes is an attractive, easy to relate to saint, that I spent quite a bit of time contacting people in Chile, EWTN, and other places to see how the TV series on her life could be republished on VHS or DVD a couple years ago. This series is one of my favorite movies because it shows how a person can be normal and holy and that a holy person is surrounded by the same problems everyone else is. To my great delight, I just discovered that Ignatius Press has released the series in DVD format. If you wish to help support the work of this website, you can order this set below by clicking on the picture:

Religious Brothers

Therese Ivers, JCL — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 01:44:25 +0000

by Therese Ivers, JCL

One of our readers put in a request that we discuss the vocation of religious brothers. As a result, I would like to share a few thoughts on the vocation to religious brotherhood.

“Are we visiting the monkeys?” My brother asked this when he was about three years old. He was not talking about going to the zoo. Rather, he was referring to our practice of occasionally going to visit a local abbey on Sunday. This particular abbey has special significance for me. It was where I made a retreat before making my First Communion. It was also where I met “Brother Beekeeper”.

“Brother Beekeeper” was a monk who kept the abbey beehives. No doubt he did much more around the abbey, but I knew him as a super nice monk who showed us what he did with bees. I was writing an essay on beekeeping when I was about 11 years old, and since my neighborhood lacked bee hives, I went to the abbey because I remembered luscious honeycomb being served there for Sunday brunch they’d serve the abbot’s guests. There, this wonderful monk showed us the hives. We donned beekeeping outfits (much too big for my brother and I!) and we had a hands-on experience with beekeeping. We even extracted honey and learned that propolis (gunk bees glue to the entrance of their hives) was good for cuts. Brother Beekeeper even gave my family some honey we extracted and some of that propolis to take home as a souvenir of our trip.

Yes, monks were great in my books. One of the easiest place to find them is in an abbey. Interestingly enough, I’ve noticed that people become quite possessive of “their” monks when they live in a community blessed with a strong presence of monks. It is quite touching to hear in different parts of the United States about “The Abbey”, which means the local abbey. That goes for some of the more “monastic” brothers/monks.

With respect to more active brothers, I have only occasionally bumped into them in my travels around the U.S. They are scarce, with women religious outnumbering them oftentimes at a ratio greater than 10:1. One of my canon law classmates in Rome was a religious brother. He is a member of the Missionaries of Charity that Bl. Mother Teresa founded. He would come into class in his grey and light blue clothing and he was an asset to our class. My family has ties to some religious brothers in that some of us were educated by religious brothers in academic institutions run by them.

In some respects, I think that many Catholics tend to categorize men’s vocations into the priesthood and married states. There is an attitude that I have frequently encountered that if a man has a vocation, he should become a priest and not a brother. Somehow brothers are seen as “not as good as priests” or “wanna-be-priests” that didn’t make it. This is not the case at all! A brother is one called by God to live in community, taking the three vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. His role is that of intercessory prayer before God and of service to His people. Some brothers are more contemplative, and others are more active. This is a lofty vocation which God calls some men to live. This is a particular and important role in our Church. Sadly, many are not aware of this call because if they think of vocation at all, they think in terms of the priesthood or married life.

So, who are religious brothers? Primarily, religious brothers are men who are assiduously devoted to prayer and contemplation. They are disciples of Christ. Their first duty is personal holiness and to give witness to the joy of living for Christ with their prayer and penance. Then, they may devote themselves to an apostolate in the abundance of their prayer life. You will see brothers such as my classmate working with the poorest of the poor. You will find others hard at work in their monasteries plowing fields or doing work to maintain themselves. The common thread in their lives is that they are men dedicated to the hard but sublime task of taking up the yoke of Christ, both for the good of their own souls and that of the rest of us.

The Consecrated Diocesan Hermit

Therese Ivers, JCL — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 21:01:55 +0000

by Therese Ivers

A consecrated hermit is an individual who has made public vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the hands of his bishop and lives them according to a rule of life approved by that bishop. The “diocesan hermit” and “consecrated hermit” lives a seclusive lifestyle and vocations to this form of consecrated life are rare. In this article, a hermit is male. However, most of what is written of male hermits applies equally to female hermitesses.

Life of Solitude

Each hermit lives in solitude. Social interaction is strictly limited because a hermit finds his vocation in the contemplation of divine things away from the tumult of the world. Consecrated hermits who are not ordained often attend Mass in the local parish. They may also be seen grocery shopping and running necessary errands. The degree of solitude and the manner of observing it is spelled out in their own rule of life, which may differ from hermit to hermit. Hermits may also live in “community” in hermitages built on the same property. They meet for common exercises such as Holy Mass.

Public Vows and Rule of Life

To become a diocesan hermit, an individual must normally live for some time under a rule of life. The hermit normally submits this rule to his bishop for approval. If the bishop discerns that a hermit who has been steadily living a balanced rule of life and observing the evangelical counsels should be admitted as a diocesan hermit, the hermit enters the consecrated state by making his profession at the hands of this bishop.

Desert Fathers

The desert fathers were the first known hermits. They lived in solitude either in “cells” or “hermitages” spread out far and few between or in clusters. Eventually many of the hermit clusters evolved into monastic groups. Some orders today preserve their eremetic roots. Carthusians, Camaldelese, Carmelites, and others were heavily influenced by the ermetic lifestyle. While over the centuries members of religious institutes could sometimes receive permission to become hermits, those who are not members of religious institutes are able under canon 603 to become diocesan hermits.

Vocational Discernment

If you are discerning a vocation to become a consecrated hermit, your first step should be to consult your spiritual director. You may also want to consult your diocesan office for vocations and perhaps the bishop himself.

College Education Part I- Should Cloistered Nuns Have A College Education?

Therese Ivers, JCL — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 10:54:27 +0000

Table of contents for College Education

College Education Part I- Should Cloistered Nuns Have A College Education?
College Education Part II- Choosing A College When Discerning

by Therese Ivers

Frances was a very bright AP high school student. During her senior year, Frances discovered the Lord and felt a very strong call to live her life in the cloister. After looking around at various convents, she felt very attracted to a community in a close by city. After a lot of thought and prayer, Frances decided to enter soon after she would graduate.

Next in series

Teleseminar Series: An Interview With Sr. Stephania Part I

Therese Ivers, JCL — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 00:36:47 +0000

Sr. Stephania of La Crosse, WI, graciously agreed to be interviewed on various vocations topics in a teleseminar interview with Therese Ivers. The first part of the interview is now available online in the members area of this website. If you are not already a member, simply register HERE and navigate to the audio section to listen to this interview.

God bless!

A sample clip is also available below for you to listen to in order to get an idea of what the interview was like.

Am I Called To A Contemplative Or Active Religious Community?

Therese Ivers, JCL — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 00:51:35 +0000

By Therese Ivers

All religious are called to be contemplative. Any apostolate which they engage in should be exercised as a fruit of their contemplation. That being said, we have what we call contemplative religious institutes and active religious institutes. The difference is that contemplative institutes are dedicated primarily to prayer and contemplation and do not engage in apostolates except perhaps on a very limited basis. Active religious, on the other hand, are primarily contemplatives in action. They go out and engage in their apostolates fortified by their times of intense prayer and intimacy with the Lord.

If you are discerning a call to the religious life, one of the very basic questions you’ll have to ask