Reflecting on year-long study of consecrated life in Corpus Christi

All communities of consecrated life share some elements that are necessary in order for the Church to recognize them as a community. However, individual communities also differ in regard to certain elements that give their communities the specific character that makes them who they are.

For a group of persons to be recognized by the Church as a religious community, there are certain requirements set out in the Church’s Code of Canon Law. These include the fact that there must be a sufficient number of members to make it likely that this group will survive as a group over a prolonged period of years.

In addition, the group must follow the decrees of Canon Law that are called for in every religious community. These include “members according to proper law pronounce public vows, either perpetual or temporary, which are to be renewed when they have lapsed, and live a life in common as brothers or sisters,” (Can. 607, *2) Part 3 of the same canon requires “The public witness to be rendered by religious to Christ and to the Church entails a separation from the world proper to the character and purpose of each institute.”

So, we have cloistered communities such as the Sister Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration known as the Pink Sisters for whom a “public witness to Christ and to the Church” entails a clear separation from the world. This physical separation, however, allows for the ongoing prayer of the cloistered sisters who pray continually for all, centering their activities around spiritual help for others.  

On the other hand, there are active sisters, more numerous than the contemplative sisters, such as the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word and the Missionary Daughters of the Most Pure Virgin Mary whose ministry shows itself in serving others through hospital work or through educating children or ministering to adults.

In modern times, the types of active ministry have changed and developed. For many years, the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods taught in schools in the Diocese of Corpus Christi as well as in other locations. Today, with changing times and changing numbers of vocations, only one Sister of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the- Woods ministers in the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament are described in their Constitution as somewhere between the active congregations and those that are cloistered. They are, therefore, called a contemplative/apostolic community. They are called to pray to a certain degree in a way that is comparable to contemplatives, such as the Pink Sisters, while living out important aspects of the apostolic efforts of most of the other religious in the diocese.

These sisters have to be aware always of the demands of the apostolic life while at the same time, taking more time for prayer than most religious institutes. Contemplative/active sisters are called to participate in daily Mass, a daily hour of contemplative prayer, elements of the Divine Office, plus private prayer at the choice of each sister. The result calls for an ongoing effort to balance out both the apostolic and the contemplative–sometimes difficult but not impossible.

It is important, however, to remember that all religious communities are called to both prayer and apostolic endeavor. Where the emphasis is placed differs from community to community, but if a community neglects one totally in order to concentrate on the other, this community has lost its sense of perspective.  

The many congregations of sisters in the Diocese of Corpus Christi who are described as active but who also have a deep prayer life include the Dominican Sisters of Saint Thomas Aquinas, the Missionary Daughters of the Most Pure Virgin Mary in Kingsville, the Pax Christi Sisters, the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary of the Woods, the Sisters of Saint Ann and the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity.  All of these take the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, as do the more contemplative sisters, but they also spend a great deal of time in apostolic work in order to help others.

And living in community with each other, sharing prayer and everyday life with each other is important to them. They see their apostolic endeavor as reaching out to bring God’s love to others–an endeavor that is supported by their prayer life so that success in the apostolic endeavor can be recognized as the fruit of prayer.

The spiritual life and active ministry then of most of the religious congregations in the Diocese of Corpus Christi go hand-in-hand.

Where the emphasis goes depends on each congregation but all are called to prayer and to action to help others. To this call, they endeavor to respond whole-heartedly and with great love.