» Separation from the world

On Hermits and Virgins

Therese Ivers, JCL — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:42:01 +0000

by Therese Ivers, JCL

About fifteen years ago, while in the midst of my vocational discernment, I found an article on consecrated virgins. The author described consecrated virgins as women who made public vows in the hands of the bishop, lived in strict solitude, and followed an individually crafted rule of life that had been approved by that bishop. It was this article which convinced me that I did not have a vocation to consecrated virginity. After all, I liked being among people! What I didn’t know then, as I do now, is that such a description is a perfect fit for the vocation of diocesan hermits, and an almost entirely false one of consecrated virgins living in the world (unless they happen to be diocesan hermits!). There has been in the past, as well as in the present, a lot of confusion and misunderstanding about vocations to the eremitic and virginal life. This is why I think it would be a good time to bring up some common myths about the two vocations.

Myth #1. Hermits are the male counterpart of consecrated virgins.

The closest male counterpart to the consecrated virgin is the bishop. There are several reasons for this. One, the consecrated virgin most fully mirrors and represents the Church-Bride, for which reason she is called “bride of Christ”. The bishop represents Christ-Bridegroom in the fullness of orders. (This, incidentally, is why only a bishop -or abbot- can confer the consecration- he stands in the place of Christ the Bridegroom.) As is the case with a bishop, the virgin receives and enters her vocation through the ministry of a bishop. That is to say, a bishop enters the episcopacy through orders conferred upon him by the ordaining bishops, and a consecrated virgin enters the consecrated state through the consecration conferred upon her by the consecrating bishop. It is important to note that in neither the case of a (non religious) diocesan bishop, nor in the consecrated virgin living in the world are vows/promises made which constitute the man a bishop or the woman a consecrated virgin. Rather, it is the sacrament/sacramental conferred by the bishop which constitutes the person a bishop or a consecrated virgin. Finally, both the virgin and the bishop are in what is known as the “state of perfection” (this is not the case of diocesan priests or deacons).

Hermits (solitaries, anchorites, anchoresses, etc.) may be male or female. Thus, hermits (male) are the counterpart of hermitesses (female), not of consecrated virgins. Perhaps one reason why people may think hermits are the male vocation equivalent to consecrated virgins is because both are individually lived vocations in the sense that they are not attached to a religious community of any kind.

Myth #2. “Public” status requires visibility and “distinctness” for hermits and virgins

Some people object to the idea of becoming a hermit under the provisions of canon 603 because they perceive the public nature or status of the vocation of the diocesan hermit to be against the calling to solitude and silence. That is, according to such persons, if you are a publicly consecrated diocesan hermit, this “public status” goes against the withdrawal from the world that the hermit seeks and lives. Some people believe that consecrated virgins living in the world must live like religious because they believe that the consecrated state or the public state of consecration requires what is known as “separation from the world”. Both are errors tied to misunderstandings about what a “public state” is, and of what constitutes the essential elements of the vocations in question.

What is a public state?

Discerning to Death; Tapering One’s Discernment Towards Its Conclusion

Therese Ivers, JCL — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 01:19:45 +0000

by Therese Ivers, JCL

Way back in September, I was asked to help with an upcoming retreat for women discerning their vocations and who feel like they’re beating their heads on the wall “discerning to death”. This topic really resonated with me, and as I continue to prepare for this weekend’s retreat, I am seeing more and more how although there is plenty of literature giving pieces of information about the discernment process, there is hardly anything out there that talks about how to bring it to a peaceful conclusion. The goal of discernment is to figure out God’s will in one’s life, most particularly whether God is calling one to assume a lifelong commitment by virtue of ordination, vow, or consecration. In theory figuring out one’s vocation sounds pretty straightforward, but plenty of folks agonize over it, and some have never reached a practical conclusion as to whether there is a state in life they should pursue. How exactly does a person go from the beginning to the middle and then reach the end of vocational discernment?

Vocations and the Fairy Tale

Good fairy tales touch upon the deep desires of human beings. Some are about wealth as the reward of virtue and valor, a concept that even Our Lord uses in speaking about the reward of eternal life. Others talk about longevity and an absence from the ordinary woes of life (think immortality and the properties of risen bodies). The majority, however, are about romantic love in which after trial, the princess and the prince happily live together ever after. Again, this reflects the eternal betrothal between Christ and His Church…

Yet, it never ceases to amaze me when I am judging marriage annulment cases and we get someone under oath testifying that they thought that once they got married, everything would turn out great (despite the fact their spouse was abusively beating them daily during their courtship, they were both high on drugs most of the time, that they had two or three children before they decided to get officially hitched…) simply and solely because getting married in the Church was somehow going to magically make things different! It gets worse when they blame people in the Church for their failed marriage (why didn’t the priest stop us?)! How is it that the fairy tale of living happily ever after gets drummed into people’s minds when it comes to vocational choices? I will be forever happy if I marry that person… I will automatically be holy if I become a priest… As soon as I slip on that habit or religious life emblem, I’m gonna be floating around in prayer… It seems to me that good discernment starts with understanding that fairy tales are just that. Fairy tales.

The process of discerning a vocation starts with the realization that the process usually takes knowledge, dedication, and work. Knowledge is necessary to make informed choices. How much do you as a discerner know about the vocations open to you in the Church? It takes dedication to following the will of God. It also takes effort, or work.

One can say that the time of courtship, discernment for the seminary, convent, or other form of consecrated life, is normally a time of mutual discovery. It takes work, both on the part of the person making the decision to pursue a particular path or narrow it down to a path, and of the person(s) who admit that person into vows (think marriage, religious life, diocesan hermit life, and secular institutes), consecration (consecrated virgins) and ordination (diaconate, priesthood, and episcopacy). One who is discerning should work not only at improving knowledge about vocations, but self-knowledge so that obstacles and fears may be evaluated and addressed.

The Goal

The final goal of vocational discernment is to make vows, be consecrated or be ordained if this should be the Lord’s will. Yet, the immediate goal of the discerner should be to do what it takes to determine which path (if any) to which one seems to have a genuine call and make a decision to pursue it in a prudent fashion. That way, one can peacefully but purposefully pursue a possible call and offer oneself to a concrete person, diocese, order, or institute if one prudently and prayerfully determines they could be a fit. Of course a person should be “open” in that the other person, diocese, order, or institute may determine that it is not their vocation to be united with you in their particular path to holiness.

The Vocation To A Secular Institute

Therese Ivers, JCL — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 21:05:52 +0000

by Therese Ivers

The first secular institute with whom I came in contact were the Father Kolbe Missionaries. Not many people respond to a call to a vocation to a secular institute and in part, I believe it is because few people even know about their existence.

What is a secular institute? A secular institute is an organization which helps the faithful strive to mirror Christ more faithfully in their daily lives by following the evangelical counsels. Priests and laity may join a secular institute and it is a good vocation. However, the public consecration of vows or promises does not change the canonical status of the individual. Thus, those of the laity who profess the evangelical counsels in the form of vows do not enter the consecrated state but remain in the world and in the lay state in the Church.

Each secular institute has a different charism. The Father Kolbe Missionaries, the secular institute I am most familiar with, has a Marian charism. Their apostolate is to promote devotion to Our Lady as a way of assisting people to grow in holiness of life. Other secular institutes will have different apostolates and charisms.

Religious institutes emphasize communal life. Secular institutes, on the other hand, are usually composed of members who live separately. While some consecrated members might live in small groups as brothers or sisters, the vast majority of members live on their own. They support themselves and contribute to their secular institute. The idea is that a member of a secular institute is to live as leaven in the world. They are to be a good example to others in the daily routine of normal living.

It is because the members of secular institutes are not within the consecrated state but are dedicated to Christ’s service in either the priesthood or lay state that they do not wear a habit or uniform. The members blend in society and bear witness to Christ.

Members of secular institutes profess vows or sacred bonds of poverty, chastity, and obedience. These vows are understood according to the rules of the institute. Poverty is not a renunciation of ownership of goods. Chastity means celibacy for the sake of the kingdom. And obedience will be defined in the rules.

A few months ago, I discussed the three elements of religious life. The elements of a secular institute, are different in that they seem to be that of the evangelical counsels, life as leaven in the world, and the apostolate. It is to follow Christ more thoroughly in the world “secular manner” that people choose to embrace the evangelical counsels in the context of a non-religious institute lifestyle.

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.

Three Characteristics of Religious Institutes

Therese Ivers, JCL — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 16:51:57 +0000

What makes monks, nuns, sisters and brothers religious? There are three elements of their lives which make their form of life a distinct one in consecrated life. The three elements are the profession of the evangelical counsels, separation from the world, and common life.

The evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience were given by Christ to help people imitate Him more closely. While we are all called to practice these counsels according to our state in life, religious vow poverty, chastity, and obedience according to the charism of their institute. Their rules govern how these vows are concretely lived out in the day to day life of a religious.

While religious don’t separate themselves from the world to the extent of establishing a convent in space, they do withdraw from certain activities and things which hinder their call to leave things behind for the sake of following Christ more easily. For example, you will probably not see religious who as a community get season tickets for the football games in their area. They may individually attend some football games, but as a whole you should not see them make extravagant purchases or indulge in activities proper to those who are not separated from worldly things.

Common life is another characteristic of religious life. Religious should be in community. How this common life is lived out practically speaking is spelled out in their rules. By living together in community, religious are able to help support each other in their common goal of holiness in their way of life, of prayer and intercession for the people of God. Common life can be both a very large blessing and a source of friction and penance as individuals have their own personalities.

Should you be discerning a call to the religious form of consecrated life, you might want to pay attention to how these three elements are lived out in the community your are considering.