VOCATIONS TO THE RELIGIOUS LIFE

We are also invited to pray each Thursday for the life and work of Religious Communities in the Church, using the following prayer, written by a Little Brother of Francis, originally for communities in Australia and New Zealand.
Lord Jesus Christ in your great love you draw all people to yourself: and in your wisdom you call us to your service. We pray at this time you will kindle in the hearts of men and women the desire to follow you in the Religious Life.
Give to those whom you call, grace to accept their vocation readily and thankfully, to make the whole-hearted surrender which you ask of them, and for love of you, to persevere to the end.
This we ask in your name. Amen .

A SERMON
for
VOCATION SUNDAY
5th SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY
SUNDAY 19th JUNE 2005

Preached at
ST FRANCIS, LEIGH PARK
by
Sister Joanna Elizabeth SSB

Reference:
Matthew 10: 24-39

I imagine that a good many of you watched the recent BBC television series “The Monastery” in which five men from varying backgrounds embarked on a forty day attempt at living by the Rule of St Benedict at Worth Abbey. The purpose of the programme was to test the relevance of the monastic life with a group of contemporary men. The five non-Catholic volunteers were bound by the monastic disciplines of silence, obedience and humility. They prayed and ate with the monks and worked in the grounds. They also lived without their CD Players and mobile phones – a hard challenge for many of today’s people! Nobody dreamt that this programme would receive such high viewing figures. This is miraculous in our secular society that denies Christianity for fear of offending those of other faiths!

Now you may wonder just why I am stood here, waffling on about a popular “Reality TV” show? Quite simply, today is Vocation Sunday as well as being the Fifth Sunday after Trinity. This is the Sunday in the year when we are encouraged to pray especially for Vocations to the Religious Life. Now ofcourse, each one of us has a Vocation to fulfil, that of being a Christian: a Vocation to a life of faith, hope and love; of which Our Lord, St Paul and St John all emphasise that love is the most important of these – without love all our thoughts and actions are a complete waste of time and energy. Our Vocation as Christians is to live out our Baptismal Promises – to turn to Christ, to renounce evil and to repent of our sins and without love we cannot do this.

We all have this Vocation or Calling, but, and it is a big BUT: God has chosen a different way for each of us to express this Calling. For some it will be through ordination to the Diaconate or Priesthood. For others it will be as Readers, Lay Workers, Church Musicians, Servers, Sunday School Teachers or one of those many more hidden ministries such as coffee making, flower arranging, giving out hymnbooks, cleaning, doing the accounts and all the jobs that make the life of the Parish run smoothly. Some will be called to be single while others are called to be married. And the Religious Life is another expression of the way this Calling may be answered. The Religious Life, living in Community following a Rule under the Vows of Poverty, Chastity and Obedience, is another expression of living out these Baptismal Promises.

Now of course “The Monastery” was set in a Roman Catholic, Benedictine, men’s Community. And there are many ways of expressing the Religious Life. It is open to men and women. There are no academic qualifications expected. The main qualification is a sense of God’s Calling which others are able to recognise through talking to the Aspirant and by being around them. There are Communities in a number of traditions and also in other faiths. Some Communities wear special clothes – a habit, whilst others don’t. Some of you are not strangers to the Religious Life as you met Sister Chris, from the Franciscans, at your Patronal Festival last year and may well know of the Benedictine Monks at Alton Abbey. Both are Anglican Communities and so are we, The Society of the Sisters of Bethany. George Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury once described the Religious Communities of the Anglican Church as its “best kept secret” and I think he was right.

So what is the Religious Life? What are we trying to do that’s so special? Each Brother or Sister feels that in some way God has communicated his desire for them to take this path as opposed to any other. Each feels that they must try and follow this challenging Calling, even if it seems to be a totally outrageous thing to do. Many people have huge misconceptions about the Religious Life. They imagine that we pray solidly all day and all night: that on the rare occasions that we do sleep – it is in our habits: that we don’t have fun or celebrations: that we have lousy food, such as gruel: and that we do no work all day – Prayer does not count as work! Also, Community members live in a wonderful rosy state of bliss, without stress and without quarrels! If anybody knows this dream Community……! People forget that Religious are human beings just like anyone else. Recently (April 2005) I was fortunate enough to attend a Communities’ Week at Lee Abbey in Devon. The main Speaker was the writer, Gerard Hughes SJ. He began by saying that people believe “Community” is a cosy word but in fact it is anything but that. Because Communities are made up of human beings it is about Conflict and Challenge which is hard work. Community is not the oasis of peace that the outsider imagines. And you have no idea what a joyous relief this was to hear! Being a nun is not easy, even when you know you are doing what God wants! If you are in the wrong Community or aren’t meant to be a Religious at all, then Community can be Hell on Earth! In our Gospel Reading Jesus talks about how precious we are to God and how He knows every detail of our body and personality. He goes on to say that He hasn’t brought Peace but conflict and how relationships can be divided by faith or a lack of it. Throughout History religion has been used to fan the flames of war and conflict in many countries and centuries. And choosing the Religious Life is one of those choices which often causes discord in family relationships and friendships through a lack of understanding – especially in families where there are special expectations surrounding the role of all family members such as the pursuit of a certain career or to marry and produce a family. The Religious Life is a Challenge to Love. It is not a Challenge to like all mankind or even every Community Member but it is a Call to value each one. In Community we learn to be honest with ourselves and to be more sensitive and tolerant towards other personalities. For Father Christopher, the Abbot in “The Monastery”, the principles the volunteers have to internalise is the essence of Community living. Obedience is about listening; Silence is about space; and Humility is about being realistic. And although in the television programme these are expressed in the Benedictine manner, they are the same in any Community. Community cannot function if its members do not listen to one another. Each member needs space to explore their relationship with God and man and Humility comes in as each Community member must develop realistic expectations of himself, of others and of God.The only way to test a Vocation is to live the life – to take the risk. Probably anyone truly fulfilling the life of a Religious ought to be a member of Gamblers Anonymous as this way of life is full of risk: uncertainty of permanent location and occupation: the changing of personnel and position in the Community hierarchy: the uncertainty of reactions from outside to a Religious: and most of all the unknown desire of God which forms the central thread to this life – “Your Will be done and not mine” is the constant prayer. However, like every Christian the Religious is not alone in taking up God’s Calling. The God who Calls provides the strength to follow Him. The pursuit of any Calling is not easy or smooth – it wouldn’t be worth doing if we could waltz through without a care in the world. Today’s monks and nuns here in England may not have the same physical demands that their predecessors faced but they still face Challenge. Communities are smaller and so each individual is better known by the Community at large and this causes a greater strain on the mind and emotions. Also, today’s generation is used to having their own way; discipline and obedience are old fashioned notions; what is important is “My Rights”. Newcomers can make the mistake of trying to force a Community to change to fit their expectations rather than at first accepting the Community’s way and then developing a relationship in other words, a dialogue involving individual, Community and God. Commitment is another area where the modern person struggles – people don’t want to be pinned down and appear to walk away when the going gets tough. There is no room for that in the Religious Life as it is about a permanent and continuous relationship with God and the Community – walking out just because someone gets on your nerves isn’t on! People cannot change their Community or partner like their socks! All through our lives we should be learning: those who think they know it all and refuse to open themselves up to allow for growth wither in the atmosphere of a Community. Many Aspirants to the Religious Life today are not used to living with others in a family situation as many people live alone. Increasing numbers of people find it strange having meals at regular times and sitting down at the table to eat it. This can be very difficult for the newcomer as well as strange and this is just one example of how the Religious Life is different to much of what goes on outside. I once saw a programme on television about the Hutterites in America. These are a Protestant sect who began in Moravia as followers of Bishop Jakob Hutter of the Mennonite Church who live a agricultural, communal lifestyle with prayer at its heart. I was deeply impressed by one old man who featured in the programme. He said that he believed that it wasn’t right for everyone to be Hutterite – you were born that way or weren’t. It is similar with a Religious Vocation. It isn’t the right path for everyone. For example, both of Therese of Lisieux’s parents wanted to test their Vocation but were advised against it and to marry and have a family – the result; five daughters who all became nuns including the Little Flower. It is important that all Christians are aware of the Religious Life, so as they can pray for the members of Communities, for their work and for more Vocations to this Calling. If we know about different Callings, we are in a better position to guide and encourage others and Vocations need to be encouraged and nurtured if they are to grow to their full potential. Sadly, Christians can be some of the least encouraging people that a would-be Religious may know. On the other hand some of the best support given to Religious comes from the friendship, support and prayers of their Associates (or Tertiaries or Oblates) – people outside the Community who are linked to the Community by a simple commitment to prayer, support and friendship. Associateship is a path open to many people.

So remember us in your prayers. Don’t be afraid to find out about the Religious Life: get to know a Community and perhaps become an Associate. Don’t be afraid to talk about the Religious Life as it is a realistic choice in today’s world. The pursuit of God’s Will is always relevant in all circumstances. But most of all: don’t be afraid to consider that God might be calling You.