Second Pillar
Encounter
“Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
Revelation 21:9
Friends of the Bridegroom reintegrate encounters with religious women into the ordinary life of the Church. These encounters with the brides of Christ inherently teach the Church - both men and women - about who they are called to be as the spouse of Jesus the Divine Bridegroom. For some women, these encounters may also unfold in prayer as an invitation to follow Jesus into consecrated life.
As you foster an awareness of the beauty of religious life, a natural overflow is to create opportunities to re-integrate religious sisters into the life of the Church. This can be done in any sphere of influence, on a small or great scale. Invite the Holy Spirit to guide you to the fertile ground in your area.
To support you, we have a catalog of guides for hosting sisters in various settings, based on our own experience. These are intended as a launchpad for your own creativity.
Planning a Visit: A Guide for Hosting Women Religious in Your Community
The goal of inviting sisters to your community is the renewal of your local Church- that the witness of their consecrated life would awaken the hearts of the faithful to relationship with their Divine Bridegroom while also renewing the sisters’ hearts as they live their Vocation.
This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the process of inviting sisters into your community, including a sample multi-day schedule and invitation email templates.
Download the Guide
Event Guides
School Visit
In most Catholic grade schools, the presence of religious sisters has dropped to nearly zero in the past several decades. A few hours and a little bit of planning is all it takes to help school-age girls experience the possibility that they may be called to the beautiful life of a religious sister.
Host a Parent Night
Knowing that forming a culture of vocations is rooted in the family, this event provides an opportunity for sisters to help form the hearts of parents through their spiritual motherhood and witness to the beauty of religious life. The night includes a time of prayer, a talk from the sisters, Q&A, and social time. Ideally, this event can be paired with school-visits, high school events, family events, etc and serves as an opportunity for parents to go deeper and ask important questions.
Family Holy Hour and Potluck
An event to share the joy of religious life with children through the witness of religious sisters. The evening opens with large group prayer, introductions, and a short presentation and continues with groups rotating to FUN stations hosted by religious sisters and parishioners. It concludes with a large group time of prayer/Eucharistic Adoration.
Bethany Brunch
Bethany Brunch forms the hearts of young women through the witness of women religious and cultivates an openness to religious vocations. The morning typically opens with Mass and continues into breakfast and a talk from a religious sister. It concludes with a time of silent adoration.
Family Holy Hour and Potluck
This event is an excellent way to bring together families, priests, and religious for a time of prayer and fellowship at a local parish. It requires relatively little prep work or resources, but is beautifully impactful for those that attend.
Other Ideas
In addition to the events above, encounters with religious can also take place within the framework of events that are already taking place or through media. Below, you’ll find ideas for how to integrate encounters with women religious in the ordinary life of the Church, sorted by age group.
College and Young Adult
Here, you’ll find many ideas about how to incorporate religious sisters in young adult and campus ministry, in addition to helpful books and videos.
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-Invite sisters to your college campus.
Connect with a local campus ministry
Offer 1:1 meetings.
Some communities regularly offer “spiritual direction,” others are more comfortable offering “spiritual conversations” or simply calling them 1:1’s. Some communities will do this for young men and women, but many prefer just to meet with women. Ask the sisters what they desire.
Host an event with the campus ministry
Plug into an event that is already happening.
Think of retreats, evening Mass, monthly Adoration nights, etc etc. This could vary a lot from campus to campus.
Work with missionaries on campus
FOCUS missionaries often know religious sisters and may be able to bring them to their Bible studies or other events. Double-win here- missionaries and college students!
Do something fun, and invite young adult women interested in religious life
Ice skating, go for a hike, picnic in a park, etc- ask the sisters what they enjoy, so everyone wins!
-Invite sisters to attend local young adult retreats as small group leaders or simply to be present.
-Organize a trip to visit or volunteer at a convent. Pro tip: Missionaries of Charity often have many times available for volunteers, but you have to give them an old-fashioned phone call to find out.
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Books
- Discernment of Spirits by Father Timothy Gallagher, OMV
-Examen Prayer by Father Timothy Gallagher, OMV
-And You Are Christ’s by Father Thomas Dubay, SM
-Discerning Religious Life by Mother Clare Matthiass, CFR
-Vita Consecrata, The Consecrated Life and its Mission in the Church
-Is This a Call
Videos
Blessed is She Come & See series, Behind the Veil, and other videos are available on our resource page.
Websites
Institute on Religious Life Vocation search tool and discernment info
Teens
As girls grow in maturity and in relationship with Jesus Christ, the witness of religious sisters helps them to understand who they are as women. Consider where the fertile ground is for reaching the hearts of high school women, and bring sisters!
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-Invite sisters to local youth conferences and retreats.
-Plan a service project at a local convent.
-Visit local convents to meet the sisters.
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Book Recommendations:
True North: A Roadmap for Discernment by Joel Stepanek
Digital Resources
Blessed is She Come & See series, Behind the Veil, and other videos are available on our resource page.
Young Children and Families
The ways of encountering religious life as a family are as diverse as every family! Here are some ideas to get you started and some books you may not have heard of.
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-Invite sisters to visit the classroom at your school
-Take your daughters to Mass at a nearby convent.
-Invite local sisters for dinner.
-Go visit a monastery and ask to see one of the sisters (often there is a doorbell)
-Donate groceries to a local convent (if they receive these).
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“The Unsolvable Problem” by Mother Mary Clare, CFR
Take the next step.