Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

As I was working on a presentation this week about Consecrated life, I could not help but think how often sisters, brothers, and priest are perceived as “The Ones” who have the call to holiness.   When in fact, it is through the sacrament of baptism that all have the call to holiness.   Despite a persons vocation they are called to answer their baptismal call to be holy, Christ like.   A person is called to share in the mission to serve and share God’s love and mercy. What could be more appropriate than the season of Lent to work on answering this baptismal call? When I think of being Christ like, I think of sacrifice.   Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice and died for our sins.   Sacrifices can bring about conversion and help us to seek and find what is holy and let go of what is not.   As Lent begins, I am thinking of what sacrifices I can make to lead me to be Christ like.   Make time for silence.   Make time for others despite a bu...

"Wake Up the World" challenges those of us who live the consecrated life. This is the theme of the Year of Consecrated Life celebrated in the United States. Both Kathy Flynn and Roberta Popara have mentioned this in their blogs.  The Church observes this year from November 30, 2014 through February 2, 2016 (not an ordinary year). To what are we called to "wake up the world?" To injustices? To the beauty of our world? To the truth of the gospel? To the privilege and responsibility of every person to   make a difference for good? To "wake up the world" implies that we need to be fully alive and alert. How do I awaken the world around me? I start where I am, with the gifts and experiences I have, and intentionally live what I profess. I am summoned to go beyond my 'comfort' zone. The way I live has the power to wake me up and others around me. Fortunately,   I am in community with many committed religious and together we can respond to ...

As I considered my offering for the blog this month, I also have been pondering this beginning of the Year of Consecrated Life.   Looking at the blog for this month, I was grateful to see Kathy Flynn, second year novice, has also written about it.   So I follow in her blessed footsteps. Because of an event that I will be leading for the religious of the Diocese of Palm Beach for this special year, I have been reading the documents related to it.   But for this gathering I have also taken time to look at the mission statements for all the congregations represented where I minister. Each congregation of Sisters has its own way of expressing who they are and how they desire live God’s mission in the world.   The process of collecting and reading each of these has truly touched my heart.   It also caused me ponder again the mission statement of my congregation:              We are Catholic Sisters pr...

Pope Francis just announced 2015 as the Year of Consecrated Life. In a class I’m taking, I’ve been reading literature addressing the decline in numbers of women religious in the U.S. since the mid-60s, from a sociological perspective.   While many valid theories have been proposed, some empirical studies have focused on decreased numbers only, but not on what drives those numbers. Others have asked the question, “Why did you leave?” Why a woman chooses to leave religious life is as much a personal call from God as are her reasons for entering. Those reasons are so important, but they are also frozen in time. They are what they are. An equally important question, which seems more dynamic and visionary, is:   “Why do you stay?” I suspect that many women would respond differently to “why did you enter?” than to “why do you stay?” We evolve, our understanding of life and our place in it evolves, our relationship to God evolves… we simply are not the same people today th...