NCR Misses the Boat on Religious Life.

National "Catholic" Reporter the dissenting source for all things "Catholic" had this lovely post by Ken Briggs. With my Emphasis and [Comments]

National Public Radio, like most media, find the Nashville Dominicans and their cohort of other traditional sisters, simply irresistable. The Nashvillians [Note the tone] come gift wrapped [really? Gift wrapped?] in nostalgia and fading stereotype: flowing white habits, communing together like a spiritual summer camp, endlessly mirthful [Shouldn't sisters be joyful in their vocations unlike some of the unhabited nuns I've known?] and dedicated to ideals that reporters are glad to see that a few, at least, are preserving. [So, NPR is the beacon of conservative ideals and traditionalist viewpoints now.]

The NPR suggests that these sisters are the "new radicals" for rejecting Facebook and Twitter for 5:30 a.m. mass and strict discipline. If clutching chords of the past, choosing the security and seeming stability of the old, subservient sisterhood is radical, then the label might have some validity. If joining a small movement of nuns bent on returning the majority of American sisters to a past they have consciously turned away from [We all have seen how well THAT worked out for the good sisters who turned away from the past. Remember, a conscious decision makes it a good decision.] in the name of renewal, that sounds reactionary. It's not a holy spirit [sic] call toward a future but an invitation to seek solace in a past.

The media's magnetic attraction to the Nashville Dominicans is matched by the community's skill at calling attention to itself. It's public image has emerged as the one, vibrant, smiling, energetic, booming alternative to the array of "liberal" orders. The story line is that they are growing as the liberals are failing because they haven't abandoned the true meaning of consecrated life [there's some truth in that]. In a not-always-so-subtle way they and other conservative groups imply that divine will is rewarding the devout and punishing the rebels [that's a bit of a stretch. No?].

Some of the responses to the NPR segment display the liberal instinct for self-criticism. Conservatives claim they have been shut out of mainstream religious life; liberals hasten to assure them that they have a legitimate place in that religious life [illustrated beautifully by this piece which seems to indicate that the “Nashvillians” are not occupying a legitimate place in religious life]. Which is fine, but doesn't go both ways. For the most part, conservatives don't consider the other camp, the product of the Second Vatican Council, as an equally valid expression of sisterhood [I question wether the other camp was in fact the product of Vatican II... where is my copy of Perfectae Caritatis?].

The media's fascination with by-gone days [Living tradition is by-gone suddenly.] is natural. It conjures up interesting history that is unknown to lots of readers and listeners and delivers the wonders of strangeness. Context is usually missing, however, and reasons why things go in and out of existence rarely explored.

One example: traditionalist convents do appeal to a small number of Catholic women. The numbers don't indicate anything like a significant trend, but the fact that more enter these groups than seek liberal ones is enough to draw media attention. In the midst of the NPR piece, it's noted that "a few leave" after a time [This is true of every seminary and religious order I know of. It shouldn't be a surprise and I would like to see the numbers laid out for the liberal orders]. That never gets explored [A fair criticism. Finally]. Some research has indicated that a relatively large number leave -- that the flow entering is largely offset by the number leaving [Is it? Is that why Nashville and Ann Arbor are constantly in need of more facilities? People are leaving at a rate that offsets the rate of entry?]. But in the excitement of the story line, this key question goes unanswered.

If this doesn't strike you as a total disconnect with the reality of the Christian vocation, especially that of Religious Life I don't know what will. The young women that I know who have ever expressed any interest in the vocation of Religious Life are clearly not interested in orders whose membership starts at 45 and keeps going up. The young men I've known who were interested in Religious Life aren't interested in orders whose membership starts at 45 and goes up. Even if the numbers leaving are sizable, these orders are providing healthy formation to these girls who, even if they leave, are still active and faithful Catholics.