The following comes from a May 7 email from one of our readers:
In the months of May and June there will be a traveling screening throughout the United States and Canada of the documentary film For Love Alone. The film, a joint production of the Conference of Major Superiors of Women Religious and Grassroots Films “highlights the lives of women religious throughout the United States and emphasizes the great rewards and trials of dedicating one’s life to God.”
As of this writing, For Love Alone has screened at the Wake Up the World Rally in Toronto, Canada on May 3: At St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia on May 4, at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary, in Boynton Beach, FL on May 5; at Texas A&M in College Station, TX on May 6; and at St. John Vianney Seminary in Denver, CO on May 7.
The film has met with an enthusiastic response, and if it is anything like Grassroots Films’ acclaimed priestly vocations video Fishers of Men, that is not surprising:
After seeing the film at Toronto’s Wake Up the World Rally, Anishka S. said: “Many of us have not grown up or ever met nuns. This film gave us the perfect exposure to what the consecrated life is like. What a beautiful insight!”
Following the Boynton Beach screening, Msgr. David Toups, the Rector of St. Vincent DePaul Regional Seminary said “For me this film speaks to the complementarity of our vocations as priests and religious. Our calls are meant to be mutually inspiring…this film makes me want to be a better priest.”
First year theology student Anthony Cavaliere, of the Diocese of Tallahassee, agreed: “I feel that this film captured the essence of consecrated life here in own back yard. I was very impressed by the honesty of the film, and the ways that is showed the beautiful simplicity that the sisters embody in their daily life and ministry. I know that this film will be an invaluable resource in promoting vocations. The joy that this film brings is very contagious.”
Upcoming screenings will be at Catholic Underground in New York on Saturday, May 9; at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN on May 11; at the Archdiocesan Office of the Archdiocese of Vancouver, Canada on May 12; at the Archdiocese of Portland, OR on May 14; at St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Franciscio on May 15; at Catholic Underground of Los Angeles on May 16, and at the Institute for Priestly Formation in Omaha, NE on July 12.
The San Francisco screening will be at the St. Francis Room of St. Mary’s Cathedral on Friday, May 15 at 7:00PM. The showing will be preceded by Eucharistic Adoration in the Cathedral at 6:00 PM. A number of the Sisters whose orders are profiled in the film will be in attendance to answer questions.
The Los Angeles screening will be on Saturday, May 16 at 7:00PM at Catholic Underground at 8634 Holloway Dr, West Hollywood, California 90069. The Sisters will also be in attendance at the screening.
The Conference of Major Superiors of Women Religious was founded in 1992. Its history webpage describes its mission “In the spring of 1992, eighty major superiors of women religious from across the United States, under the guidance of Cardinal James Hickey, supported a petition to the Holy Father for the approval of a second conference or council of women religious in the United States. On June 13th the permission was granted and the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR) was canonically erected.”
While it is perhaps too strong to say that the CMSWR was founded in opposition to the liberal Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the fact that the eighty major superiors saw a need for a second conference is suggestive, to say the least. What is certain is that many of the fastest growing (and youngest) orders of women religious are affiliated with the CMSWR, attracted by its greater emphasis on prayer, and religious community. Wikipedia writes: “According to the 2009 Study on Recent Vocations by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, the average median age of nuns and sisters in CMSWR institutes was 60, compared with 74 for those in LCWR; among those joining CMSWR institutes only 15% were over 40, compared with 56% for LCWR institutes; 43% of the CMSWR institutes had at least 5 novices, compared with 9% of the LCWR institutes. “
To learn more about the San Francisco screening, visit:
https://www.facebook.com/events/100272480308933
To learn more about the Los Angeles screening, visit:
https://www.facebook.com/events/803085713143728/
You can sign up here via our Facebook event page.
Beautiful women of the CMSWR – God Bless you all.
When one’s life is totally consecrated to God, that person is basically experiencing Heaven on Earth. There is nothing more joyous than loving God, and not letting earthly things get in the way. Many times there is spiritual bliss, but at the same time there can be dark nights of the soul. The latter is purgative, that is it brings the soul even closer to God. One of the gifts of consecrated life is peace of the soul, knowing that you are trying to do His will daily. The many times I have visited cloistered monasteries of nuns and monks, I have witnessed a serene look about them, as well as a spiritual joy which has become deeply rooted in their nature. We desperately need more of these special consecrated lives in out world today.
Holy Sisters, watch your back! As much as Pope Francis could not wait to close the book on the necessary investigation of the LCWR (Benedict, why did you leave us!), the Vatican is suspicious of the CMSWR (if not worse).
Remember always the vile treatment of the Franciscan Friars/Sisters of the Immaculate — this could be your fate (and the fate of all Traditional Orders). In fact, expect “investigations” after the October Synod.
Repression never rests; and Satan never sleeps. The witness you provide is not what the Catholic leadership of today wants. Instead, pay close attention to the demands of the Church for recognition and celebration of mortal sin — just wait to see what happens to Cardinal Nichols saying the “Soho Mass” for an LGBT crowd in the UK, and his earlier rebuke of UK priests signing a letter in defense of Catholic Orthodoxy. This is an evil man, with a dark purpose; many such bishops now exist in the Church, and they do not like what you represent.
Pray unceasingly to the Holy Mother for protection. It is unlikely you will find it anywhere else in the Vatican.
Our Lady of Akita warned us about evil bishops and priests and yes the FFI were utterly destroyed by Rome for one reason and one reason only The Traditional Latin Mass that they loved!!
This article referenced the 2009 report from the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate. When I went to their website, the front page had a pdf titled “Population Trends Among Religious Institutes of Women” that painted a much bleaker picture. According to the new study, the levels of incoming vocations are fairly comparable between the LCWR and the regretfully smaller CMSWR. While I’m hoping that this is inaccurate, as this is the first such report that I’ve seen, I’ve never seen any hard numbers that tell me otherwise. The percentages quoted in the cal-catholic article are encouraging, but actual numbers of sisters entering into consecrated life would be more useful.
If there were more sisters like these holy nuns, there would be far fewer problems in the Church today. Ave Maria Purrissima !