Refuting Opposition To Religious Vows?

[Macrina the Younger]

Hi--I'm new to this board and I'm not sure if this is the type of question you look for or not, but here goes:

 

I have an Orthodox Presbyterian friend whom I have recently told about my intention to pursue the life of a religious sister.  She asked me some questions about religious life in general and I gave her answers, but there is one question that I was not prepared to answer adequately and I told her I'd get back with her.

 

Apparently she is ok with the idea of religious life right up until an actual vow is taken--specifically, the vow of chastity.  Evidently her only reason for being uncomfortable with this is the Scripture passage 1 Tim. 4:3. 

 

I explained to her first that no religious brother or sister is forbidden to marry--they freely renounce marriage of their own accord--but she insists that by renouncing marriage with a vow, they are in essence "forbidding" marriage to themselves leaving no opportunity to "change their mind."  This seems like silly reasoning to me and  I realize of course that St. Paul was not writing about this sort of renunciation but was condemning some heretical beliefs found in sects like the Albigensians or Catharists, but we have not yet discussed the matter further.

 

I sought assistance from CatholicAnswers but have not received feedback as of yet, and I'm wondering: any thoughts on the best way to present this to my friend?  How do I explain the difference to her?  Is there any other biblical support for religious life I ought to read?

 

Thanks!

[CatherineM]

I think other scholars are better at these type questions, but I wanted to encourage you to ask this again in the Vocation Station. Those folks have answered lots of these questions in their own lives, and may have suggestions that I've never thought of.