How Important Is The Religious Habit ?

[brandelynmarie]

[quote name='tinytherese' date='26 February 2010 - 12:11 AM' timestamp='1267157487' post='2063132']
There was a recent thread about this when sisters from other convents wanted to be on Oprah because the Dominican Sisters of Mary were. My response is post #83 and the one before that is a great post.

http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/index.php?showtopic=102929&st=80
[/quote]


I love what you said on that post:

"It isn't as if all of the habited sisters show off their "wedding ring," or act as if they are trying to draw attention to themselves, "Look at me! Look at me! See I'm so good because I'm a nun!" Instead they are really saying, "Look at God." They can just be minding their own business and then bam! People see them and they think about God. They don't even have to say anything. As St. Francis of Assissi said, "Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary." They serve as witnesses."{


Look at God...it sounds like many of you are saying the same thing & I'm lovin' it!

[vee]

I like to put things in photos

[img]http://www.lcwr.org/lcwrannualassembly/2007assembly/presidents.jpg[/img]

or

[img]http://www.overheardinthesacristy.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/cmswr-1.jpg[/img]

Irregardless of how good a sister someone is if I see a habit out in public I know they are on duty and possibly approachable as Sr Marie said.

[quote]In fact, people come and talk to me at the strangest and sometimes,most inconvenient, times because they know just by looking at me that Iwill do my best to love them with the love of Jesus and help them. Theyask me to pray for them, to help them, and to simply be with them. If Ididn't have a habit on, all of those people might continue in theireveryday lives with their hearts burdened without the knowledge thatsomeone carries their burdens in prayer and works.[/quote]

Im wondering about this though
[quote]As beautiful as it was, I don't think it was simple, becoming, or [b]hygienic[/b], [/quote]

How are the old style of habits not hygenic?

[Sister Marie]

[quote name='BarbaraTherese' date='26 February 2010 - 10:47 PM' timestamp='1267242435' post='2063504']
Good post in many ways I thought. Sister, it seems that some of your fellow Sisters have for reasons of their ministry sacrificed the habit or part of it. Is it only the cross and veil for those in prison ministries for example and do they still wear a habit of some form into the prisons, though without cross and veil? Another question is that if these Sisters have sacrificed the habit for secular clothing for prison ministry for example, do they wear the habit at other times? That is, they have both secular clothing and a religious habit available.



Excellent point of view. I have wondered at times if some religious in secular clothing deeply feel the loss of the habit, but have adopted secular clothing out of Obedience and because this is the decision of the leadership of their particular Congregation. And I dont mean with a rebellious attitude, but striving to be in outward observance and in the heart obedient, which is the ideal of religious obedience - and though it brings them personal suffering.

Will keep you and all religious in prayer as asked, Sister.

Barb
[/quote]

Barb,

As far as wearing their habit, veil, and crucifix when not in the prison, our sisters do. We are required by our Rule to wear a habit. However, there is an exception for things like prison ministry. One sister I know takes off her veil and crucifix in the car, puts them in a safe spot until she returns and puts them right back on.

I belong to the Yahoo group of Sisters Supporting the Apostolic Visitation and as far as obedience goes, many of the sisters have expressed the desire in their hearts to do what they know is right as an individual religious within the confines of communities which may have lost some of the essentials of religious life. These are the sisters who still go to daily Mass even though it is not required of them by their community, but may not wear a habit because of obedience. This is my own take on everything though, so please don't think I am applying this reasoning to all religious - these are just my own experiences and thoughts!

Sister Marie

[Sister Marie]

[quote name='vee8' date='27 February 2010 - 01:15 AM' timestamp='1267251357' post='2063630']
I like to put things in photos

[img]http://www.lcwr.org/lcwrannualassembly/2007assembly/presidents.jpg[/img]

or

[img]http://www.overheardinthesacristy.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/cmswr-1.jpg[/img]

Irregardless of how good a sister someone is if I see a habit out in public I know they are on duty and possibly approachable as Sr Marie said.



Im wondering about this though


How are the old style of habits not hygenic?
[/quote]

Dear Vee8,

As I said before, I am only speaking for my own experience within my community and not the communities of other sisters, especially since all our old habits are all different, as is our ministry, and community life which are all part of the hygiene issue.

There are two quotes from Perfectae Caritatis that refer to the issue of hygiene and religious life:

"Religious, therefore, who are striving faithfully to observe the chastity they have professed must have faith in the words of the Lord, and trusting in God's help not overestimate their own strength but practice mortification and custody of the senses. Neither should they neglect the natural means which promote health of mind and body."

"The religious habit, an outward mark of consecration to God, should be simple and modest, poor and at the same becoming. In addition it must meet the requirements of health and be suited to the circumstances of time and place and to the needs of the ministry involved. The habits of both men and women religious which do not conform to these norms must be changed."

I am too young to have ever worn the old habit, but I know what it looks like and what materials it consisted of. Other communities would not have the same issues as mine did and might have completely different concerns all together which would never cross my mind.

The first thing I would bring up would be ministry. It makes a big difference whether you are praying, in addition to other work, in the cloister; or working in hospitals and schools. The more contact you have with people, the more germs get circulated around and these habits were not washed frequently. You could say that it would be a penance or mortification, which is a good and necessary thing in religious life. However, if you are a nurse and you are carrying all these germs to each person, it ceases to be your own personal penance and becomes a health concern.

The second consideration is time and place. It may not be practical to wear the same thing in the summer in South America as you wear in the winter in Chicago. Many sisters in the warmer climates broke out with terrible and painful rashes on their foreheads which became infected because of the plastic piece of the bonnet (it was actually made using the plastic from Clorox bottles covered with fabric). The sweat and dirt that built up was not washed away as frequently as would have been necessary for health. The same thing about washing is true for the rest of the habit.

The habit that I wear now is sometimes still oppressive in the heat. However, it can be washed frequently. There are no tight fitting pieces of plastic that cause rashes, and we have a habit for warm weather that is lighter than the habit in the winter. There is still a penance to parts of my habit but it is a penance that doesn't give way to the spread of disease and it doesn't harm the health of sisters wearing it. It is uncomfortable sometimes. I am not complaining, just trying to accurately describe how I see penance fitting in.

The sisters in your picture are wearing beautiful habits, but it does seem that most of them have probably made some changes especially to the style of the veil. My community looks much like theirs. Again, please know I speak only for my experience in a particular religious family because as I said, all of these factors are different for each community and I am sure that others who have kept closer to their original habit are keeping with hygiene. Their habits may have been a different material, their work not so close to disease, and their location in a more consistent climate. They would probably have less to change. The Council brought up hygiene because it was a valid and important issue in religious life. I love my habit and really value the witness it gives. I hope that this was helpful!

God bless you!

Sister Marie

[Saint Therese]

I think the religious habit is very important. And I think that its no coincidence that the disappearance of the habit began about the same time as feminism began to influence society and the Church.

[Ephrem Augustine]

"The habit scares people, or puts them off"

Well, for those who have memories of the masochistic nun or the fire and brimstone priest? I have never encountered one in my life. I have certainly encountered self righteous non Catholics not wearing habits. These kind of associations, I do believe, are diminishing with younger catholics.

To see a smiling and laughing and happy and joyful religious, as many young habited religious actually are, is enough to draw the curiosity of young people we minister. And for those who do have the negative attitudes toward habited religious... It is time that they have their horizons broadened and allow room in their experience for happy religious. Because they are all over the place, if only they had the open mind to it.

I guess my only dilemma still is all the young people who have absolutely no conception of what habit, religious life, radical witness, or any of that actually is.

[Totus Tuus]

Habit = not debatable. It's essential. I would venture to say that most of the discerners here wouldn't consider an Order that didn't wear a habit (and a lapel pin does not constitute a habit). I am not sure why this is such a hot topic... it's not really optional as far as the Church is concerned...

[brightsadness]

[quote name='Totus Tuus' date='27 February 2010 - 11:04 AM' timestamp='1267293880' post='2063766']
Habit = not debatable. It's essential. I would venture to say that most of the discerners here wouldn't consider an Order that didn't wear a habit (and a lapel pin does not constitute a habit). I am not sure why this is such a hot topic... it's not really optional as far as the Church is concerned...
[/quote]


I agree. it's not a hot topic. It's normative. The exceptions are made for particular pastoral circumstances. Maybe some communities need to change their status and become Secular Institutes in order to be faithful to their evolving charism.

[BarbTherese]

[quote name='Sister Marie' date='27 February 2010 - 11:16 PM' timestamp='1267274808' post='2063680']
Barb,

As far as wearing their habit, veil, and crucifix when not in the prison, our sisters do. We are required by our Rule to wear a habit. However, there is an exception for things like prison ministry. One sister I know takes off her veil and crucifix in the car, puts them in a safe spot until she returns and puts them right back on.

I belong to the Yahoo group of Sisters Supporting the Apostolic Visitation and as far as obedience goes, many of the sisters have expressed the desire in their hearts to do what they know is right as an individual religious within the confines of communities which may have lost some of the essentials of religious life. These are the sisters who still go to daily Mass even though it is not required of them by their community, but may not wear a habit because of obedience. This is my own take on everything though, so please don't think I am applying this reasoning to all religious - these are just my own experiences and thoughts!

Sister Marie
[/quote]


Thank you for sharing the above, Sister. I was quite curious as to whether perhaps some of your Sisters were allowed secular clothing for ministry purposes if necessary as well as the religious habit. Happy to read that the habit is in your Rule of Life - and indeed also happy to read that those Sisters in prison ministry have found a way to retain their religious habit as well as meet prison safety rulings.

I did realize you were sharing your own experiences and thoughts. I really feel deeply for those religious who may be in religious orders that have ruled against what is important to them and essential in the life and are persevering nonethless, many seem to have left the life. For this very reason that they are persevering in an 'uphill struggle' they are to be admired. It will be very interesting to hear the conclusions of the Apostolic Visition in the USA and the result of those conclusions. I am in Australia incidentally and an outsider looking in and I am conscious of this.

From what I know of the situation here in Australia (and I am not a religious and again, an outsider looking in) my own personal thoughts are that those in religious habit and those that are not seem to be unfolding happily side by side, and I cannot see why they cannot continue to do so. Unless of course if Rome rules that all religious are to be in habit regardless - then for me the matter is decided full stop. I certainly do not believe in what I understand is 'liberal thinking' either in religious life or outside of it.
And as with you, my own personal thoughts.

Blessings this Lent in which we also celebrate the Mercy of God - Barb