Tonight at 7:00pm, Sister Pat Dowling, CBS vocation director will launch the Sisters Chat Room for women who are exploring their call to religious life. Featured guest is Sister Chris Webb who will share her story of being called to religious life and how she knew. Sr. Chris is preparing to make final vows November 12 and will be sharing what this means over a four week period with women who exploring their own calling to religious life. To access Sisters Chat go to our home page and click on Sisters Chat. Instructions for logging on are found on the Chat Room page. Hope to see you on Sisters Chat!

Contrition simply is being sorry for our offenses against God and our brothers and sisters. There are two types of contrition: perfect and imperfect.  In either case we are sorry for our sins because they are an offense against God. 

In the Life in Christ, A Catholic Catechism for Adults, it states that “In imperfect contrition the motive is fear of the justice of God and the punishment which our sins deserve. In perfect contrition, the motive is the goodness of God, which prompts us to love God above all else for God’s own sake to be sorry that we have offended him.” 

The Sacrament of Reconciliation involves confessing our sins and also facilitates our reconciliation with others.  This also helps us to change our ways and to grow in God’s love.  God is merciful and forgives our sins.  

In the parable of the Prodigal Son, the younger son was sorry for his sins and went to his father … continue reading…

though God initiates a call it’s also the personal witness of the sister’s life (or priest’s) which helps to awaken another person’s desires to generously respond to Jesus’ calling.

I just want to know what might be going on in your life this week.
Have the glorious springtime surroundings opened a glimpse into something bigger than yourself?

Is God speaking to you through the new scents of budding flowers, or the soft songs of the baby birds?

Have you found yourself desiring something more in your life?
Tell me about it. If you have found yourself with questions, ask me!

What were the first indications that you had this particular vocation and what was your reaction?
I would like to be a nun but want to pursue a profession, and I feel like I’m stuck. What is your advice?
Do you have to be a virgin to be a nun?
Find the answers to these questions and more…or ask your own!

http://www.society.me/patthenun

Contemplative, Cloistered, Semi-Cloistered, Apostolic, Nun, Sister…

These are all terms that I  find myself talking about daily.  They are also terms that many young Catholics cannot define or differentiate.

I am asked frequently, “What is the difference between a nun and a sister?”

Traditionally, there   is a clear difference, but nowadays, the lines have become a bit blurry.  Both nuns and sisters are women who have dedicated themselves to live vowed religious lives (of chastity, poverty and obedience) within the Catholic Church, following in the footsteps of Jesus in ministry.  Both have dedicated themselves to God. 

So, the difference, then, to put it simply, and traditionally, is that a nun lives her life within the walls of a monastery cloister,  serving others through contemplative prayer, while a sister shares her gifts out in the world, directly impacting those in need. 

Nuns live a cloistered life within their own community/monastery, rarely going outside of their monastery.  That is where they live, pray, work and recreate. 

Sisters, however, are never called “nuns”.  They are vowed religious sisters and are considered apostolic, or active.  Some sisters live, pray and work both within their own community and its … continue reading…

Please take a moment to read this reflection on Lent from Sister Kathleen Moroney.

On Ash Wednesday a mixture of ashes and consecration oil are imposed on the foreheads of the faithful in the sign of the cross.  This symbolism is rooted in the Old Testament and in some early churches as the practice of wearing sack cloth and ashes to symbolize penance.

Lent is a feast of friendship and it is always a new beginning.  It is a time to be more loving, more generous, more forgiving and more grateful.  Our Lenten journey should bring us closer to Christ and it is a perfect time to discern a call–maybe to religious life as a Bon Secours Sister.  Or to whatever changes we may see fit to change in our own lives.

Because I am a Nun, I often get asked if I regret not having the chance to have children of my own.  And I must admit, it is not always an easy question to answer.

As little girls, we were always given baby dolls, with the preconceived notion that it is practice for when we grow up and become moms.  On my first birthday, my grandmother gave me a baby doll with a green dress and hat.  On the back of the doll was a winder that, when wound, made the baby say her bedtime prayers.  Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray dear Lord my soul to keep…I even had a doll carriage for my baby doll when I was really young.

I still … continue reading…

why did you become a sister?