Female vocations at a 25 year high

[DameAgnes]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/11559321/Why-Im-giving-up-my-academic-career-to-become-a-nun.html

[Nunsuch]

This story is over a year old, and only applies to the UK.... The number then was that 45 women entered religious life in the UK. This is lovely, but hardly a flood of vocations.....

[Swami Mommy]

I thought that this sentence was the most important in the entire article:

"Over a period of months and years, and with plenty of self-scrutiny and second-guessing, I realised that religious life was what I desired when I was most free and most passionately myself."

 

Edited September 7, 2016 by Swami Mommy

[DameAgnes]

4 hours ago, Nunsuch said:

This story is over a year old, and only applies to the UK.... The number then was that 45 women entered religious life in the UK. This is lovely, but hardly a flood of vocations.....

Yes, I knew it was over a year old, still thought it was a lovely piece. I never did suggest it was a flood. :-)

[Sister Leticia]

22 hours ago, Nunsuch said:

This story is over a year old, and only applies to the UK.... The number then was that 45 women entered religious life in the UK. This is lovely, but hardly a flood of vocations.....

Yes, the story was about the number of women who entered in 2014. And I can confirm that the interviewee is still a novice with her order. But just to put the 45 in context...

There are about 5 million Catholics in England and Wales (Scotland is a different national Church) - that's about 10% of the total population. 

When I entered in the early 1990s an average of 30-40 women would enter religious life each year. However, by the end of the decade the number had started decreasing and continued to do so - numbers hovered around 20 then decreased more, and one year dipped below 10. There was no discernible pattern to this - monasteries as well as apostolic orders all had fewer vocations and fewer enquiries. But it did eventually lead to the establishment of the National Office for Vocation, the creation of discernment groups and other opportunities and support for vocations personnel. Several orders, like mine, became much more committed to vocations ministry, so there have been more come & see weekends and other events, as well as prayer for vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life.

Then, about 5 years ago something like 21 or 23 women (I can't remember the exact number) entered - the highest for a decade. Numbers climbed slowly - and then we were taken by surprise when the 2014 number was announced. It was the highest for about 30 years.

Yes, of course, 45 entrants doesn't automatically mean 45 professions X years down the line, and I know several have already left. And we may never surpass it, or even reach it again. And I'm sure that by US standards 45 is a mere, barely visible trickle, but our relative numbers and expectations mean 45 entrants from our national church is probably the same as 45 entrants just from an American archdiocese!

[<3 PopeFrancis]

We also have programs to encourage people to answer calls for Vocations.  It was slow starting but it has been effective in dealing with serious inquiries.

22 hours ago, Swami Mommy said:

I thought that this sentence was the most important in the entire article:

"Over a period of months and years, and with plenty of self-scrutiny and second-guessing, I realised that religious life was what I desired when I was most free and most passionately myself."

 

It is interesting that you think this being a ( Mommy ).