Media-watching Religious---why?

[Saint Therese]

?

[Saint Therese]

[quote]And, apparently, so does Mother Angelica[/quote]

I'm sorry,I'm not sure what you mean?

[Luigi]

The monks I know - I'm not in touch with any cloistered nuns - know what's happening in their local area well before it hits the papers. I've called to inform them of this or that topic, perhaps to ask for their prayers on it, and they wind up telling me more about it than I called to tell them.

Being cloistered doesn't mean being out of touch, necessarily. Although I'm not personally in touch with any cloistered nuns - mentioned above - there are several monasteries in my diocese, and whole FLOODS of people request prayers from them - by leaving notes in the church, coming to the door, sending letters - and (GASP!) via e-mail and their websites! Not all of the monasteries accept prayer requests via e-mail and the internet, but several of them do. I wouldn't say one order lives a more authentically cloistered life than the others - they're all habited, well-established, approved by the the bishop, and so forth - they're all doing what God has called them to do, they're all living the cloistered life, and they're all in touch with the world they (still) live in. They take in other people's prayer requests (and of course they don't have to do that - the divine office includes general intentions to be prayed for, too), and they hold those intentions in their hearts as they pray. If they read the newspapers, or watch it on television, they no doubt glean intentions to pray for from those, as well. And if they sometimes watch television or even movies, perhaps they can see just how decadent American society is becoming, and maybe God wants them to see that, so they can redouble their efforts on behalf of that decadent society. Who are we to say?

One of the great beauties of the Catholic Church is that there are many ways to be holy - actively involved, cloistered, or living isolated in a cave. The Church has always issued guidelines to regulate the orders, but the orders - and perhaps even the individual monasteries - write their own rules. If the order/house rules for enclosure are within the Church guidelines for enclosure, why should anyone get upset about it? It's just part of the natural variation that the Church has always tolerated (and even encouraged - that's why there are so many orders instead of just one).

If you're considering a cloistered vocation, and you feel strongly about how much attachment/detachment or involvement with the world you want or can stand, I suppose this does become an more or less important decision. But if you're not, I don't see a problem.

[Saint Therese]

What has that to do with Mother Angelica?

Im beginning to see that the issue of the relationship between religious and the media is much more complex than I would have guessed.

Edited August 3, 2008 by Saint Therese

[Digitaldame]

[quote name='Saint Therese' post='1616329' date='Aug 3 2008, 07:09 AM']What has that to do with Mother Angelica?

I'm beginning to see that the issue of the relationship between religious and the media is much more complex than I would have guessed.[/quote]

May I make a general response to this interesting discussion. I know I'll be repeating some of the points already made, but as one who has lived the contemplative monastic life for twenty-seven years and regularly uses the internet, I have thought and prayed about all this for a long time so it may be helpful to share my experience with others.

[b]The practice in my community:[/b]
In my community, all the professed are allowed to use email and the radio for news. Email is cheaper than sending letters (we're poor) and less intrusive than the telephone (we do try to dissuade incoming calls, and restrict outgoing calls to what is strictly necessary for work or health). Radio news is cheaper than buying a newspaper, and in the UK is not broken up by commercials. Listening to a three-minute news bulletin is, in my view, preferable to dawdling over a newspaper. We do not have TV or watch videos. We have a web site we did ourselves, which draws a lot of prayer requests; and we use the internet for our work — printing, web design and making audio books for the blind and visually impaired — and for shopping. We also make use of the internet's resources for study, e.g. although our library is good, the online Latin Library is a great source for texts we don't have. As prioress, I don't impose any particular restraints on the community's use of the internet: I trust them, and I know that they are absolutely committed to the search for God and therefore self-disciplining. (In any case, they know perfectly well I can read the bills and work out who's been online and for how long!) We don't currently have anyone in the novitiate, but if we did, a different set of rules would apply to them because newcomers to monastic life need time and space to familiarise themselves with and internalise monastic teaching and values.

[b]Pros and Cons of internet use[/b]
We are very aware that some priests and religious have misused the internet. There is a lot that is undesirable. Equally, it is unwise to "let the devil have all the best tunes". As a community, we have made a conscious decision to try to use the internet for good because we see how we can share quite a lot of our life with others without their intruding into the cloister. Our web site, blog, podacsts and so on are all at the beginning stages; and if we don't have time to give to them, we don't give it. Our priorities are unchanged. It is true that we could possibly ask lay people to look after our web site for us, but would someone not actually living in community be in a position truly to understand our life or portray it accurately? Benedictines are very keen on their autonomy, and I think the sheer quirkiness of our different web sites is quite telling. The internet is to today what book-making and printing were to earlier centuries. (Aside: I've even named my hard disk "scriptorium" . . .)

[b]Verbi Sponsa[/b]
Any directive from Rome should be treated with respect and acted on, but I can't help remembering that when this was issued there was a joke circulating in some contemplative houses to the effect that we should email the Vatican officials to thank them for letting us finally use fax machines! It is a slight weakness that apparently no contemplative nun was consulted in the drawing up of this document; and as it is made to apply to many different spiritualities, not all its provisions have been interpreted in the same way.

In conclusion, I have to say that I can't imagine any contemplative nun spending longer online than she has to. We're all too busy (and I can only square this long post with my conscience because I hoped it might be helpful to some.)

[puellapaschalis]

Thank you, Sister, for your post. It was definitely helpful to me so let your conscience be reassured!

[johnnydigit]

ah so many communities, charisms, personalities, etc. in our Church. it's so wonderful, the diversity we have that can suit so many different people. alas, there is conflicting moderation, and religious who may or may not be prepared to handle modern media. hopefully their communities' superiors know what is best for their community.

with such a wide spectrum of charisms, it's only logical that some would benefit from interacting with modern media, e.g. the Franciscans Friars of the Immaculate with their St. Maximilian Kolbe spirituality and evangelizing through the media.. the CFR's and EWTN, etc.

as far as those who don't really need it but use it, i dunno. i guess that's up to the superior to decide if his members are grounded in their faith and practice moderation..

btw, i have taken note of whether or not there is a tv in the friaries and monasteries i have visited or discerned with. not necessarily a negative or positive, just something to think about when considering the community as a whole. personally i would like it if there was a community tv where we could watch EWTN or religious programs only. nothing like a daily dose of Fr. Corapi, Fr. Groeschel, or Bishop Sheen!

[Chiquitunga]

[quote name='johnnydigit' post='1616353' date='Aug 3 2008, 01:48 AM']with such a wide spectrum of charisms, it's only logical that some would benefit from interacting with modern media, e.g. the Franciscans Friars of the Immaculate with their St. Maximilian Kolbe spirituality and evangelizing through the media.. the CFR's and EWTN, etc.[/quote]
Yes, definitely! For apostolic communities the internet is wonderful for evangelization!

[quote name='alicemary' post='1616288' date='Aug 2 2008, 10:01 PM']The Summit Dominicans have access to the internet, and surely their blog has bolstered their community numbers.....they have taken down the walls and let us see a small glimpse of their beautiful lives.[/quote]
Summit does limit internet access though, in accordance with Verbi Sponsa. I remember reading somewhere that those in the novitiate there cannot go online, and after that, it is limited.

From the above article

[quote]The day Lauren Franko was inspired to become a nun, she did what many people her age would do: She logged on to the Internet in search of answers ... A little over a year later, she left Drew University and entered the monastery. In doing so, she is also joining an unfamiliar world -- one without cell phones and, ironically, the Internet.[/quote]