Why Catholics Should Support Retired Women Religious

Why Catholics should support retired women religious may seem to be a back burner question among Roman Catholics. Mired in the mess that is the continuing revelations of priest sexual misconduct, Catholics may be so disappointed, distressed, dismayed (and almost any other adjective beginning with "dis") that in many instances they have hunkered down in their own parishes and tried to pray or ignore away contact with the Church universal.

While financial donations to the universal church have recovered somewhat, no one will claim that the Church is in the midst of a financial boom. And here begins the thought process for why Catholic laypeople should support retired women religious. There just isn't a lot of extra church cash lying around the rectory floor to be packed up and sent off to bail out retired women religious around the nation. Lots of excess cash has been drained off to pay court costs and findings. Women religious are not at the head of the line to receive financial assistance from the Church despite the hours of labor they annually contribute.

When examined closely it's not difficult to see the incredible body of work performed each year by women religious across nearly every diocese in the United States. In a single large archdiocese lIke my home diocese of Boston, women religious, even in their reduced numbers, continue to play large and formative roles in the spiritual and temporal education of young people. Sisters staff elementary parish schools and diocesan wide parochial schools as both teachers and administrators. Thousands of currently successful men and women in the greater Boston area can tell stories about the powerful role women religious had in making them toe the line and become disciplined, productive and community oriented citizens.

But the role of women religious is no way limited to the classroom. Sisters from many orders have served in the Boston area by providing nursing and health care to families and individuals in need. Their kindness and concern have been put to good use in working with young mothers, pregnant mothers and young girls at risk.

Women religious in the Boston area have committed themselves to programs bent on preventing Aids, healing the broken hearted who have lost children through abortion and assisted social service programs across the board. The young people, the elderly, the hungry, the sick, the uneducated, the under serviced all see in the face of women religious that help is coming and things may eventually improve

For their efforts women religious aren't off arranging for million dollar contracts with signing bonuses. They continue to be the poorest of the poor in God's service. Their effort is never to increase personal wealth, for that they have given up. Their work is directed to the greater glory of God, at whatever personal cost.

Catholics, and many non-Catholics as well, owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to religious order women in Boston and around the nation. It is a debt that no sister is really moving to collect on but it is no less a debt owed. While the rest of the Church appeared to be crumbling, in many Catholic communities women religious have been the glue keeping the pieces together.

Still , as sisters age they become less capable of bringing in income from teaching, nursing, speaking or other sisterly pursuits. What they can add to the coffers of their particular religious order dwindles. As with the rest of our society, religious women are now living to an older age meaning there are more financially unproductive years during which women religious need to have their most basic physical and medical needs met.

The responsibility for their care falls to whoever will pick it up. Private donations, group efforts are all welcome. means. In many dioceses annual collections are held to benefit religious order women. For example in 2010 the Archdiocese of Boston has already scheduled a Sunday collection on Nov. 21 proceeds of which will be used to help meet the needs of some 3000 women religious serving through 52 different religious orders in the area.

While much of the rest of the institutional Church seems unable to take or maintain the moral high ground, women religious continue in most areas to have the respect of the Catholic populations. It is this respect that can generate a rekindling of hope for better days in the Catholic community. Supporting women religious is a modern day effort to support ourselves and our faith community.

Sources :
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