12
October 7, 2014
in the church
T
he Valley Catholic
Year of Consecrated Life events to help laity learn more about religious
By Carol Zimmermann
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- In an effort
to help lay Catholics gain a deeper
understanding of religious life, priests,
brothers and women religious intend
to open their convents, monasteries,
abbeys and religious houses to the
public one day next February.
“If you’ve ever wondered what a
brother or religious sister does all day,
you will find out,” said Dominican
Sister Marie Bernadette Thompson in
announcing the open house scheduled
for Feb. 8, 2015.
The open house is just one of the
events for the upcoming Year of Consecrated Life, which begins the weekend
of Nov. 29-30 -- the first Sunday of Advent is Nov. 30. It will end Feb. 2, 2016,
the World Day of Consecrated life.
The special year dedicated to consecrated life was announced by Pope
Francis and is similar to previous
themed years announced by popes such
as Year of the Priest (2009-2010) or Year
of St. Paul. (2008-2009).
The year also marks the 50th anniversary of “Perfectae Caritatis,” a
decree on religious life, and “Lumen
Gentium,” the Second Vatican Council’s
Dogmatic Constitution on the Church.
The purpose of the yearlong celebration, according to a Vatican statement,
is to “make a grateful remembrance of
the recent past” while embracing “the
future with hope.”
Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Raleigh, North Carolina, chairman of the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’
Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life
and Vocations, announced the Year of
Consecrated Life events at an Oct. 1
news conference at the USCCB headquarters in Washington.
He said the scheduled events will
‘Whenever you think you are
giving something you always
end up receiving more.’
provide an opportunity, especially for
young people, to see how men and
women religious live. He also urged
heads of religious orders to let his committee know of activities they are planning so they can be publicized.
Sister Thompson, council coordinator of the Council of Major Superiors of
Women Religious, said the purpose of
the open house gatherings will be to
provide people with an encounter with
men and women religious and also an
encounter with Christ.
Sister Marcia Allen, a member of the
Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia, Kansas, and president-elect of Leadership
Conference of Women Religious, said
another initiative for the upcoming year
is called “Days with Religious,” during
which laypeople will have opportunities to join men and women religious
in works of service throughout the
summer of 2015.
She said these opportunities, to be
announced locally, will not only give
laypeople the chance to “work with us
side by side” but will also enable them
to become aware of the charisms of different orders.
Sister Allen said she hoped the experience would be a “coming together for
the sake of the church’s presence” in the
modern world.
The third major initiative for the
year is a day of prayer scheduled Sept.
13, 2015.
“We will join hands and hearts
Dominican Sister Marie Bernadette Thompson, council coordinator for the Council of Major
Superiors of Women Religious, discusses initiatives focused on bringing together men and
women religious and families, particularly young adults, during an Oct. 1 press conference
in Washington. (CNS photo/Tyler Orsburn)
with you that day,” said Father James
Greenfield, president of the Conference
of Major Superiors of Men, who noted
that throughout that day people will be
invited to join religious men and women
for vespers, rosary or holy hours.
The priest, who is a member of the
Oblates of St. Francis de Sales of the
Wilmington, Delaware-Philadelphia
province, said he hoped the year would
not only encourage new vocations
but also would allow people to “see
our commitment with fresh eyes and
open their hearts to support us with
a renewed energy that stirs us all to
embrace our pope’s ongoing call for the
new evangelization.”
Although the year’s events are
intended to give laypeople a deeper
understanding of consecrat YY