religious sightings
CELEBRATING LIFE: Sister Josephe Marie Flynn,
S.S.N.D. (at podium) announced the publication of
her book Rescuing Regina
(Lawrence Hill Books, 2011)
as Regina and David Bakala
look on. The Bakalas survived torture in the Congo
and made their way to the
U.S. as asylum seekers—
until Regina was arrested
and ordered to leave the
country. Flynn’s book tells
the story of a community-wide effort to prevent her
deportation and certain
death.
NUMBER OF YOUNGER
SISTERS RISING IN U.K.
in EnGLAnd and Wales the number of young women discerning and entering
religious communities is showing signs of
rising. The national office for Vocation
first released data about a pronounced
trend toward younger women entering
religious communities in 2010.
The most recent upturn in younger
entrants may be connected to a growth
in sheer numbers. “The information we
have so far for entrants in 2011 shows
that there has been an increase in people
joining religious life. Perhaps most significant is the trend whereby a number
of active religious female congregations
that have not had people joining them for
over a decade now have several women
either joining or thinking of doing so,”
said sister Cathy Jones of the national
office for Vocation. “it seems likely that
the 2012 figures for active female reli-
POSTULANTS Sadora Bloom and Cynthia Castro are preparing to take vows with the Dominican Sisters of St. Joseph in
Hampshire, England.
gious congregations will demonstrate a
notable rise,” she said.
Jones and her colleagues attribute the
rise in numbers and youth partly to “a
number of discernment projects aimed at
helping young people make a decision in
respect of religious life.” in England and
Wales in 2010 (the last year with published data), 28 men entered formation
in religious communities and 22 women
entered communities.
“IT WAS AT THE UNIVERSITY where my friends started to talk about possibilities and maybe the religious life. . . .
It was somehow appealing, and the idea started to grow how awesome it would be to give up everything–to
give up everything–and follow Christ.”
–Dominican Fr. Joseph Minuth, OP, Moving Forward In Hope: Keys to the Future CD,
published by the National Religious Vocation Conference
SISTERS, BROTHERS, PRIESTS
“BEING A Catholic today
is not historical . . . when
generations shared faith
the way they shared a family name. . . . [Rather] it is a
deliberate choice to look
at the world in a particular
way, based not only on
the teachings of Jesus, but
also on the development
of that uniquely ‘Catholic
imagination.’ ”
–Tim Muldoon, Seeds of Hope:
Young Adults and the Catholic
Church (Paulist Press)
A positive influence in my life . . .
IVIAN LUNASOL Sarcos Colmenares
MISS WORLD 2011, Ivian Lunasol Sarcos Colmena- res of Venezuela, was raised by the Sisters of the
Sacred Heart of Jesus after becoming an orphan at age
11. She once aspired to be a nun, and after winning
the international crown she expressed her desire to
help others and told of her affection and “eternal grati-
tude” for the sisters:
“It seems to me that [living in the sisters’ orphan-
age] is what has made me a person with principles
and the capacity to deal with all that God has given me
in my life. . . . Instead of complaining and lamenting
all that has happened to me, I have learned to give
thanks to God.”
Find and follow us everywhere! Download the apps for
digitalvocationguide.org and soon
VocationMatch.com
. . .
8
VISION 2013
For more features go to VocationNetwork.org
VISION 2013
