By Sr. Mary Ruth
School Sisters of Christ the King
Priests and lay faithful from across the Diocese of Lincoln and beyond often express their desire to me, and to my fellow School Sisters of Christ the King, that our Sisters could serve in their parishes and schools. Religious do maintain a relatively strong presence in the apostolates of our diocese as compared to elsewhere in the United States. However, we are still only able to say “yes” to a small fraction of the requests we receive. We simply do not have enough Sisters to bring in the abundant harvest.
As brides of Christ, the primary call of consecrated women religious is to seek union with God in prayer. We must safeguard our life of prayer and remain on the True Vine, for without Him we can do nothing. This life received in contemplation naturally leads to fruitfulness through spiritual motherhood. This motherhood is expressed first of all in prayer for the needs of the whole Church, and in the case of active religious communities, it also becomes concrete through apostolic works in the local Church.
When I visit places within the Church where they do not regularly have the presence of women religious, my heart hurts. Being a teacher, I especially experience this when I see schools without Sisters. I just want to gather up all the children and bring them to Jesus. Though I am so grateful and edified by the faithful service of priests, deacons and laity in these locations, there is a lack that I can feel. I do believe that God’s grace can supply for any deficiency, but I wonder if perhaps the desire in my heart is an echo of a desire in His.
A practice which has been very beneficial in my own spiritual life is to recognize when desires keep arising in my heart and to bring them before the Lord. Instead of over-analyzing or rationalizing them away, I simply come before Him. Sometimes we can develop a false piety which causes us to believe that God wants us to merely sacrifice our desires. The enemy tries to convince us that Our Heavenly Father won’t give us good things.
It is true that we should not hold on to sinful desires, but often there is much good in what we desire. God wants to purify and transform our desires, allowing what is good to grow. After all, Jesus did say, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).
In addition to offering my desires to the Lord, I ask Him to show me if there is something that I should do about this desire. Sometimes He bids me to persevere in prayer or leads me to surrender something to which I was overly attached. At other times he reveals to me actions that he wishes me to take, often small ones but sometimes ones that require more courage. For example, when I feel the desire for more vocations to our Community, he frequently invites me to show extra kindness and gratitude for the Sisters I already have and to be generous and welcoming to those who come to visit us during their discernment. Another way I responded to his call was by sharing these thoughts with you.
Perhaps some of you reading this article have felt the desire that there may be religious available to serve in your own community or parish. I encourage you to join me in repeatedly bringing this desire before the Lord. Keep begging him to send more vocations to orders in our diocese and in other parts of the Church. We want to serve you, but we cannot do so without your help. I particularly encourage you to consider how the Holy Spirit wants you to support those from your own families, parishes, and communities who may be called to a religious vocation.
Young women need your encouragement and accompaniment to consider religious life. I am a religious sister today in large part due to a FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) missionary who arranged a trip for a few of her Bible study members to visit the community which I would eventually enter, the School Sisters of Christ the King. And when I was struck by fear and doubt in regard to answering the call the Lord had placed upon my heart, I eventually opened up to trusted friends who, I knew, loved and valued religious life. They encouraged me and helped me to know that I wasn’t crazy, and their support was exactly what I needed at that time. I am so grateful for them.
Please join us in building up a more vibrant culture of vocations in our diocese and in the wider Church. Pray and act so that many young women may know the joy of belonging entirely to Jesus and that their spiritual motherhood may bear abundant fruit among His people.
