Is religious life still viable?


Looking at the universe
When we look at statistics on religious life,  the numbers are startling. In most women's communities, there are more sisters above 90 than below 60. This has caused many to think that religious orders of women will die out in the not too distant future and that women today are no longer interested in religious life. But studies show that one in every ten never-married women born since Vatican II has seriously considered a vocation to religious life.

However, there are many challenges for those who are involved in vocation or formation ministry. One is the generational challenge. Older sisters who have grown up in a very different church with different experiences of religious life have to understand and connect with younger women who are exploring a religious vocation. Another is the challenge of diversity. Those entering religious life today are more racially and ethnically diverse than they were in the mid-1950s and 60s. Other research showed that young people entering religious life today are more interested in the common life (living together and socializing together), and tend to place more value on Mass, Liturgy of the Hours. and Eucharistic adoration than on faith sharing experiences. But the older and newer members today both give a "sense of being called by God" as their most common reason for entering religious life.

One recent study listed some obstacles to overcome: perceptions held by family members and friends regarding religious life, lack of information in campus ministry offices or parishes about how to begin the discernment process, and lack of availability in some religious orders of certain aspects of religious life that would attract newer members. Most importantly, a panel of young sisters had this advice for promoting vocations: "Catholics in general and religious in particular should ask young people to consider a religious vocation."

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