Sacred Space of Twelve

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Why worry about numbers? As a Temporary Professed Religious Sister, I am asked if I worry about the decreasing numbers of Sisters. I’m sure you’ve heard about this. As for me, that’s not something I worry about. It’s all about God’s call and will. That’s why I am Sister. Presently our congregation consists of around 580 sisters, so why would I worry right? Well, let me share about a recent experience I had in May. I was in Trinidad and Tobago with some of my Dominican sisters. One of my Sisters was going to renew her vows. So all eight sisters who live in Trinidad gathered including myself and three other sisters who were visiting from the US, too. This was a small gathering of 12 in comparison to our large gatherings of 300 or so. We began to prepare by setting up the environment with colored cloth, flowers from the yard, the St Dominic statue and our constitution. We also prepared the place settings for dinner following the ceremony. The environment looked beautiful. When everyone gathered the ceremony began. All I can say was WOW! The presence of God and the Holy Spirit filled the room. It could be felt and heard in the singing, the scripture reading, in the reciting of the Lord’s prayer, in the preaching and in the renewal of vows. I thought to myself what if this was our present number of sisters in the congregation and all I could think was “Thanks be to God!” Religious Sisters are not about numbers but rather about a community of women who have made a commitment to God. They also make a commitment to journey together as faithful women of God. In this moment, this space became the sacred space of twelve. Do you have worries about smaller numbers of Religious Sisters? If so, I’d be interested in knowing why, if you’re willing to share.
Sr. Priscilla Torres, OP
San Antonio, TX

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