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I was registering for an
Archdiocesan Day of Reflection for Consecrated Life here in Chicago and
struggled to complete the form. Name, congregation,
years of vocation… easy questions. Then
there was a special section for those in initial formation. Yes, that’s me! We were instructed to mark our stage of
formation from four choices listed: postulant,
novice, temporary professed, and perpetually professed. I immediately thought well, none of the above. Is
there an option for a sister who’s not
a religious, who will never profess
temporary or perpetual vows?
The Daughters of Charity are canonically
a Society
of Apostolic Life, rather than a Religious Institute, and our structure and
terminology is a bit different than our Religious friends (including the
various congregations within the Sisters of Charity Federation). This category of consecrated life first hit
the scene in the 1983
Code of Cannon Law, but we have been living out of our particular
spirit since our foundation in 1633.
(Others
have written extensively on this topic, so be sure to click on the links if you
want to learn more.)
A major distinction between
religious congregations and our particular identity as Daughters of Charity
that many folks get hung up on revolves around the vows. Our vows
are “non-religious, annual, and always renewable” (Constitution 28a). Folks seem puzzled at times when I explain to
them that I am a sister out on mission and haven’t made any vows. I’m quick to clarity that I live the evangelical counsels (poverty,
chastity, and obedience) and am deeply committed to serving Christ in the Poor
(fourth vow of the Daughters of Charity), but I have not made any vows. Daughters of Charity in initial formation
make vows for the first time between 5-7 years vocation, and then renew them
each year with all the sisters on the Feast of the Annunciation, a special day
in the community we call Renovation. To understand how a sister can be sent on
mission from the Seminary
(similar to the novitiate) without any vows (typically religious congregations
profess temporary vows after the novitiate), it is important to clarify the
relationship between serving the mission and making vows, for us as Daughters
of Charity.
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| "Incorporation" (August 21, 2016) |
In his article, “The
Vows According to the Specific Spirit of the Daughters of Charity,” Fr.Fernando Quintano, CM explains, “… vows
are not what make someone a Daughter of Charity; rather the nature and manner
of making them contribute to the identity of the Company and are a necessary
condition for remaining in it. The
central point within religious consecration is the profession of the
evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty, and obedience by public vows, while
for the Daughters of Charity, the central point is mission, that is to say,
continuing the mission of Christ, Evangelizer and Servant, a mission expressed
through the corporal and spiritual service of poor persons.” (Echoes of the Company, No. 4 July-Aug 2011, pg. 408)
I have been a Daughter of Charity
since I was incorporated into the community and I have continued as a member of the community throughout
Seminary and now out on mission in Chicago.
My "Sending on Mission" was a significant moment on my
journey as a Daughter of Charity because I was sent forth to participate in the
mission of Christ, specifically sent to serve persons who are poor, which as
Fr. Quintano points out, is the central point of our lives: MISSION.
 |
| "Sending on Mission" (April 21, 2018) |
My day to day life doesn’t seem
too different than my sisters who have made vows. We pray together, share community life
together, and serve alongside each other in various ministries. Yet every March 25 there is something that distinctly
separates us. During that quiet pause
after the homily during a Renovation mass, the sisters silently recite the vow
formula, making their vows to God for another year. It is such a sacred moment to witness as a
sister under vows, as I feel the tension between the already of mission life and the not
yet of vows.
So, what does a sister under vows
do during Renovation? I pray for my
sisters, those gathered at the present liturgy, and the 14,000 others scattered
across the globe saying “yes” under a variety of challenging circumstances. Last year when I was in the Seminary, we
celebrated Renovation with our senior sisters missioned to the ministry of
prayer in St. Louis. I accompanied one
sister during mass and was instructed to prompt her when it was time to renew
vows. I held her hand, pointed to the vow
formula, and loudly whispered into her ear, “It’s time to make your vows.” She erupted into a broad smile and responded,
“uh-huh.” I pointed to the words of the
vow formula and watched her gaze travel across the page, with an occasional slight
nod of the head.
In a few years, God-willing, I will make my own “uh-huh”
to God for the first time. But in the
meantime, I will continue to live in the already
of mission life: strengthening my
identity as a Daughter of Charity, expanding my love for the Poor, broadening
my forms of service, investing myself in community life, and forever deepening
my relationship with God.
