Religious Life in the Catholic Church

There are 2 ways to live the religious lifestyle:

1-“ordained” life for men, as priests and/or deacons

and

2-“vowed” religious life for men and women, as nuns (sisters) or brothers.

The Religious Lifestyle The Religious Lifestyle involves . . . involves . . .

1. Committing yourself to a specific religious community

2. Making and respecting vows3. “Living in community” – living with

others who have chosen to live a religious lifestyle

4. Committing your life to God and the service of God’s people

Religious CommunitiesReligious Communities

Each religious community has its own unique spirituality and guidelines for service and prayer.

These differences reflect the spirituality of the community’s founder.

For example . . .For example . . .For example, St. Francis of Assisi is thefounder of the Franciscanorders of priests and sisters. Based on what you know about St. Francis, what do you think about the nature of the spirituality and service of the Franciscans?

Religious Communities Serving Religious Communities Serving Little FlowerLittle Flower

Sisters of St. Joseph (SSJ)

Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM)

Sisters of Mercy (RSM)(Religious Sisters of Mercy)

““Name the Nuns” – The LF SistersName the Nuns” – The LF SistersSSJ: IHM:Sr. Julia Sr. DonnaSr. Rosemarie Sr. Ellen AnneSr. Marie O’Hagan Sr. NoelleSr. Fran Sr. Michael

Sr. Joan AmesRSM: Sr. Regina Flanigan

Sr. Kathleen Sr. Marie O’Malley

Sr. Mary DooleySr. Kim

HW Assignment #2 – 4th QuarterDue: Monday, May 2

Visit the following websites representing the 3 religious orders that serve the

Little Flower community:IHM: www.ihmimmaculata.org

SSJ: www.ssjphila.orgRSM: www.sistersofmercy.org

Read about each community as you explore each website.

List 3 interesting facts/ideas about each community. This must be typed, but does

not need to be in paragraph form.

Create a citation for each website (in MLA format) using your NoodleTools account.

Conclude with a reflective paragraph answering: Which community is most

attractive to you? Why?

Vows – “Evangelical Counsels”

Those who choose the Religious Lifestyle make 3 vows – sacred, public promises to

follow the example of Jesus.

Vow #1 – PovertyThe vow of poverty is the promise to live

simply, without attachment to material things, and to value and seek goodness and happiness that can not be bought.

Vow #2 - ChastityThe vow of chastity is a commitment to a

unique way of loving – one that does not focus on a particular other person, but is,

rather, open to loving all of God’s children as an extension of a focused, prayerful, love of

God.

This vow includes a commitment to celibacy, which is the promise to never marry or

engage in a sexual relationship with anyone.

Vow #3 - Obedience

The vow of obedience is a promise to give oneself completely and unselfishly to the

service of God and others.

“Living in Community”

“Living in Community” is living with other people who try, as a group, to be of

service to God, others, and each other.

It involves (among many other things) the sharing of faith, time, prayer, meals, resources, responsibilities, and work.

Commitment to ServiceIn Religious life, there are 2 kinds of service:

Active Service involves direct

contact with those being served.

Examples:

Contemplative Service involves

full-time prayer for the needs and

intentions of the world.

What about “Ordained Life?”

The sacrament of Holy Orders (ordination) is received when men become deacons,

priests, and bishops.

As a priest, ordained life is lived in 1 of 2 ways: as a diocesan priest or as a

religious order priest.

Diocesan Priests

A diocesan priest works directly for a local bishop and diocese (such as the

Archdiocese of Philadelphia).

What kind of work does a priest do in the Church?

Religious Order Priests

Similar to the “vowed religious life” of sisters and brothers, religious order priests

choose to belong to a particular community. Examples:

Religious order priests take the same 3 vows that vowed religious take.

Diocesan priests take 2 vows: chastity & obedience

Test #1 – 4th QuarterThe Religious LifestyleWednesday, April 21