A Confirmation, A Royal Title and

Tucked into the recent good news about a woman being confirmed to lead the CIA, and a feminist not only becoming a Royal Bride, but also a Duchess, was a small article regarding a reprimand to another segment of American females.

I must admit, I only read about the Vatican’s assessment in an American newspaper. I was not sitting in a pew listening to a sermon.

And yes, I did read it on the internet, but it was also a direct quote from an recent edict issued by the Congregation For the Doctrine of Faith led by yes, an American Cardinal.

And I had to wonder isn’t this 2018? Or are we back in the Middle Ages?

I must be totally honest. A vocation was never something I ever remotely considered. Even during a time when being either the “Mother of a Priest” or “Mother of a Nun” was a title yearned for by most of my Mother’s generation.

And to give Mom credit, I was never encouraged to assume a lifestyle that while I respected had no appeal.

And I must also acknowledge all the nuns I encountered didn’t remind me of angels. Indeed there were a few who I could not kindly describe; particularly, one who taught the sixth grade in St. Paul’s.

Still the majority who touched my life brought encouragement to learn more, introduced me to Will Shakespeare and a joy in literature that still endures, along with a belief in my God that has never faltered. One incredible young Ursuline Mother assured me that my scribbling was worth reading. She was alone in her confidence, and I have never forgotten her.

The Sisters were a part of my youth that I took for granted including their social isolation, dedication and relative poverty. It was decades later when I became more involved with one of their enduring accomplishments, Madonna Heights in Dix Hills, that I developed a more personal recognition of their lives and sacrifices.

Most of them were a bit older than I; but one was close to my age. We had chosen different roles in life. Hers was a dedication to God and His service. A vocation she still serves working diligently without the comfort of a convent filled with peers.

No, the American nuns have not weathered this century well. Many are forced to relocate as convents shut down and their elder companions pass on to their rewards.

Their lives are probably harder than most of them could have anticipated or many American Catholics realize.

So when I read about the male members of the hierarchy issuing edicts regarding their female counterparts, I cringe a bit. I wonder how many Cardinals, Bishops or Monsignors have had to find other homes and continue working to support themselves after a certain age.

In this age of social justice, I cannot help but believe this is one area that has not evolved, and my heart reaches out to the many women who have given their lives to serve their God.