Recently, I’ve been
reading the views of a Diocesan Hermit on her blog where she strongly insists
that the Consecration to a life of Virginity according to canon 604 is a
vocation or Consecration to Sacred ‘Secularity.’ She does not quote from primary and authoritative sources such as Sacred Scripture, Fathers of the Church, Magisterium, or Canon law, to support her personal views. Her interpretation of the Rite of consecration itself, is selective and subjective.
She confuses the accidentals with the essence of the charism of the Ordo Virginum. Her ideas are analogous to saying that the sacrament of matrimony is particularly a Call to be consecrated to Sacred ‘Secularity.’
The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:
1601 "The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament."
Virginity for the sake of the Kingdom
1618 Christ is the center of all Christian life. The bond with him takes precedence over all other bonds, familial or social (emphasis mine). From the very beginning of the Church there have been men and women who have renounced the great good of marriage to follow the Lamb wherever he goes, to be intent on the things of the Lord, to seek to please him, and to go out to meet the Bridegroom who is coming.114 Christ himself has invited certain persons to follow him in this way of life, of which he remains the model:
- "For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to receive this, let him receive it."
CONSECRATED
VIRGINITY IS NOT RELIGIOUS LIFE WITH A UNIFORM LIFE-STYLE OF MEMBERS.
INSTEAD, LIKE ANY MARRIED COUPLE, EVERY
CONSECRATED VIRGIN LIVES HER RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST IN A UNIQUE WAY, WHICH SHAPES THE PHYSICAL, MENTAL, EMOTIONAL, SOCIAL, AND SPIRITUAL
ASPECTS OF LIFE TOGETHER.
Although the
Ordo Virginum is a diocese based vocation, it has been confused with religious
life/ secular institutes/ lay single life, etc. Its own identity and charism is
not only blurred but lost in countries
where religious life has the monopoly. The charism of secular institutes, especially the imagery of ‘silent leaven in the world’ seems to have been ‘strategically
and artificially’ imposed on the Ordo Virginum by some bishop’s
conferences.
The vocation of consecrated virgins is ECCLESIAL in one word. She
is given to the Church community. It is based on the Paschal mystery which was the treasure at the
heart of the Early Church expressed as obedience, self-emptying[kenosis] on the
cross, and virginity or espousal with Christ.
When Jesus’ heart
was pierced, blood and water flowed out symbolizing the sacraments of baptism and
eucharist, the birth of the Bride of Christ-the Church. Consecrated virginity
was founded on the Cross. The consecration confers
the virgin with a gift of the Holy Spirit
based on the needs of the local church community.
I had
written a letter to the Congregation for
Institutes of Consecrated life in Rome some years ago, after reading an article
on consecrated virgins, written by Sr
Sharon Holland IHM in INFORMACIONES,1999. Questions about several aspects of
the vocation of consecrated virgins according to canon 604 were raised by me.
Let me share a few of the questions and the response I received :
Questions:
·
In
ancient Church history we find that sometimes the same person belonged to 2
orders at the same time. Is it possible for a consecrated virgin to also
be a hermit and lead a diocese-based
life?
·
According
to the Roman Pontifical, the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity is
used for women living in the world and those in monasteries. Does ‘living in the world’ mean only that
it is ‘not in a monastery’ or should it be lived strictly ‘in the world’ like
in secular institutes ?
·
The
charism of consecrated virgins is to be an
eschatological image of the Heavenly Bride and the life to come when the Church
will at last fully live her love for Christ the Bridegroom. The charism of
Secular Institutes is to transfigure the
world from within, acting like a leaven
within the cultural, economic, and political life. Hence it would be
improper for a member of a Secular Institute to wear clothing which would identify
them as a consecrated person. However, consecrated virgins are called to be an image of the Church’s love for Christ. Would
it be proper if the local circumstances demand, to wear clothing which would
identify one as a consecrated person or be addressed as ‘Sister’ even though
one does not live in a religious community ?
Response from the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated
life:
Prot.n.SpR 862-4/2003
While an individual can belong to two associations of the
faithful, one cannot readily have two vocations which involve the total
consecration of their life. Perhaps a consecrated virgin might live a secluded
life, more like a hermit. However, they are two distinct approaches to the
consecration of life and to life-style. The life of virginity 'lived in the
world' gives public witness in everyday life, in some self-supporting work and
in her service to the Church. It is not
quite the same as the style of a secular institute because the virgin’s
consecration is public, yet it is secular in the sense that she is not a
religious.
The use of
the veil, provided for in the Rite is decided on in the local circumstances
with the Diocesan Bishop. The same would be true regarding any other
identifying clothing and/or the use of the title Sister.
Pages from the ROMAN PONTIFICAL
FOREWORD
Part IV , Blessing of
Persons
The
fourth and final part of the book contains the rites for the blessing of
persons who are publicly consecrated to God. [Since religious profession itself
is ordinarily received on behalf of the Church by the religious superior, the
rite is given in the Roman Ritual rather than in this book].
The
last of these rites is for the traditional consecration of unmarried women to
the life of religious virginity. The revision, which had been formally decreed
by the Second Vatican Council, was published by the decree of the Congregation
for Divine Worship, May 31,1970, not only for nuns but also for individual consecrated women who do not live in religious
communites.[here again it is seen that ‘living in the world’ is not emphasized]
Chapter Sixteeen :
CONSECRATION TO A LIFE OF
VIRGINITY
INTRODUCTION
Nature and Value of
Consecration to Virginity
The
custom of consecrating women to a life of virginity flourished even in the
early Church. It led to the formation of the solemn rite constituting the candidate a sacred person, a surpassing sign of
the Church’s love for Christ and an eschatological image of the world to come
and the glory of the heavenly Bride of Christ. In the rite of
consecration the Church reveals its love of virginity, begs God’s grace on
those who are consecrated, and prays with fervor for an outpouring of the Holy
Spirit.
Principal Duties of Those
Consecrated
Those
who consecrate their chastity under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit do so
for the sake of more fervent love of Christ and of greater freedom in the
service of their brothers and sisters.
They
are to spend their time in works of penance and of mercy, in apostolic activity
and in prayer, according to their state of life and spiritual gifts.
To
fulfil their duty of prayer they are strongly advised to celebrate the liturgy
of the hours each day, especially morning
prayer and evening prayer. In this way, by joining their voices to those
of Christ the High Priest and of his Church, they will offer unending praise
to the heavenly Father and pray for the salvation of the whole world.
Those Who May Be
Consecrated
This
consecration may be received by nuns or by women living in the world.
In
the case of women living in the world it is required:
a
] that they have never married or lived in public or open violation of
chastity;
b] that by their age, prudence, and universally approved character they give
assurance of perseverance in the life of chastity dedicated to the service of
the Church and of their neighbour;
c
] that they be admitted to this consecration by the bishop who is the Ordinary
of the place.
It
is for the bishop to decide on the conditions under which women living in the
world are to undertake a life of perpetual virginity.
This vocation is the
consecration of one’s virginity to God
and to the diocese. I can say with
confidence that 'secularity' is not an essential element or 'charism' of consecrated virginity. Had this been so, even monastics who received the same consecration
would be obliged to it! As mentioned in the Roman Pontifical, the nature
and value of consecrated virginity is the same, whether lived in the monastery
or outside the monastery.
To define the
vocation as consecrated virgins "Living in the World" makes it
very different from "Consecrated Virgins" living in the world. I
think the number of religious women in the dioceses around the world may
be less than 0.002 per cent and monastics may be less than 0.00002 per cent of
all catholics. Even among these monastics, this Rite is being used very rarely
by few Orders and is becoming
extinct. Hence it is 'by default'
that consecrated virgins live in the world.
The beauty of the
charism is that it can be lived in a rainbow variety of ways. However, I would
advise a woman who sees it her mission to be a leaven to transform the
political, temporal aspects of the world, to consider joining a secular
institute or lay association/movement, since such vocational options are already
available. Consecrated virgins do not need to change their charism just because
today's world seems to have the need or because Religious wish to maintain a
monopoly regarding public pastoral consecrated life.
Canon 604 clearly states that virgins are dedicated to the service of the
‘Church.’ The suggested homily in the Rite mentions apostle in the
Church and the world. The entire
rite and charism is primarily focused on spousal spirituality and
dedication to the service of the Church community.
Through this rootedness, it
expands its vision and embraces the world in mission too. Since the consecrated virgin is an image of the entire Church as Bride
and body of Christ, she can be adorned with many other charisms, to
express her central vocation. Sacred secularity would be just one of the
many possible ways of living the vocation.
Some people argue that
post Vatican council II theology of sacred secularity ought to be embraced by
all consecrated virgins to live our vocation truthfully. I will argue
that the Bride of Christ is an image of the entire Church. The Holy
Spirit would not be keen to change the charism of the Ordo Virginum or add
sacred secularity to it, without at the same time inspiring the same for
diocesan hermits, priests and even the religious. Unity is very important
to the Holy Spirit.
The bride of Christ
spiritual relationship through baptism is not the same as the mystical espousal
of the consecrated virgin with Christ, of which her charism expects her to be an
Image. The interpretation of Vatican Council II and the way some people
in the church are trying to impose the charism of secular institutes on
consecrated virgins, is a dictatorship according to my interpretation. It would
be improper to insist that a married woman is obliged to focus on mission in
the world at the cost of her relationship with her husband and children / family. The entire family of the Church [clergy, laity, consecrated persons]should be involved in transforming the world
as leaven –not just consecrated virgins.
Much
of what is attributed to religious life today actually belongs to the charism
of consecrated virgins in the Early Church, and is paradoxically being denied
to consecrated virgins themselves in today’s world.
This is not in the interest of Truth, justice, human rights, and
dignity of virgins who have given their
entire lives to Christ and the service of the Church. Imagine a married woman being
told that she should keep her marriage hidden, her spouse cannot live
with her, she should not call herself
Mrs, her service to her family is part-time, and her married vocation need not
involve her whole self: body, mind, emotions, spirit, and social relationships. It is legitimate that a consecrated virgin should express with dignity her relationship as
bride of Christ.
If it is justified that the Ordo Virginum should
not live its own charism, so as to give way for Religious life to
dominate, by the same logic it would be appropriate for the diocesan clergy to
lose their charisms to give way for Religious clergy.
The call to holiness is Universal and there is a fundamental equality of dignity of all the baptized in
the Church. Powerful institutions in the church need to have individual and collective examination of
conscience. We can suppress the Truth for a while but on the third day Truth
will Rise again!
If a married woman tries to be dedicated to her spouse and family, it
does not mean that she is ignoring or denigrating the world outside her family. It
just means that her family is her life. In today’s world of course there
are women for whom their career in the world is more important. To work outside
her family is a matter of need for survival or a choice. Every woman is free to
choose according to her circumstances. To focus on ones family is not a middle way for her !
THE URGENT
NEED IN THE MISSION OF CONSECRATED VIRGINS IS NOT TO
CONSECRATE THE WORLD TO GOD, BUT FOR A NEW EVANGELISATION, THAT WILL REMIND
MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH, OF THEIR OWN CONSECRATION AND RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND
THE WORLD.
The
Pressing Needs of the World Today:
A new state of affairs today both in the Church and in social, economic,
political and cultural life, calls with a particular urgency for the action of
the lay faithful. If lack of commitment is always unacceptable, the present
time renders it even more so. It is not permissible for anyone to remain
idle.
Certainly all the members of the
Church are sharers in this secular dimension but in different ways. In
particular the sharing of the lay faithful has its own manner of
realization and function, which, according to the Council, is "properly
and particularly" theirs. Such a manner is designated with the expression
"secular character"(32).
The
images taken from the gospel of salt, light and leaven, although
indiscriminately applicable to all Jesus' disciples, are specifically applied
to the lay faithful. [Post –synodal Apostolic Exhortation: Christifideles Laici
]
TODAY’S CHURCH REQUIRES A NEW EVANGELISATION. CONSECRATED VIRGINS
SHOULD RATHER ANSWER THIS NEED, WHICH IS SO INTRINSIC TO OUR ORIGINAL
CHARISM, THAN MEDITATE ON SACRED SECULARITY, WHICH IS THE CALL OF EVERY
BAPTISED MEMBER OF THE CHURCH, AND TO WHICH, SECULAR INSTITUTES AND THE LAITY WHO
FORM 99.99998 % OF THE CHURCH, ARE ALREADY CALLED IN A PARTICULAR WAY THROUGH
THEIR OWN CONSECRATION.
