HOW YOU CAN become a sister

The last of the Frequently Asked Questions

Well, what about obedience? What would that mean for me?

A major goal of initial formation is that each person will begin to “live the questions,” as Rilke says, as she studies the vows and all that they mean. So a short answer here isn’t possible. But we can say that vowing religious obedience does NOT mean that you would be taking on a kind of adult childhood in which “Mother” or “The Superior” tells you what to do. Religious obedience in the Assumption is lived out by adults who desire the good of the others as well as their own good. A line from our Rule of Life may give you some inkling of how we try to live this vow: “the generosity with which each one give up her own will and accepts what has been decided strengthens communion and builds up the community. In this way the whole Congregation is formed in love, thanks to the fidelity of each of its members.”

How about chastity? Does that mean that I can’t have any friends?

“Learning how to love requires time and entails many conversions,” says our Rule. “Celibacy for Christ is a path of growth in which passions and feelings are gradually integrated under the influence of the Spirit, so that the personality is developed both by Love and for Love.” In other words, the vow of chastity is not a vow against human friendship. Instead, it is a vow that orients us to seek a life of deeper and deeper friendship with Christ, to include him in all our relationships, whether with friends or family. Friendship with others, both men and women, are deeply important to us. Our friends enrich our lives as individuals and as community.

And poverty? How does that work?

With our vow of poverty we renounce the right to dispose of property independently. This means that salaries, gifts and inheritances belong to the community rather than to individual sisters. We live from the community rather than from our own resources. It’s a discipline that’s meant to lead us to genuine poverty and simplicity of heart.

I understand that you are an international congregation and that you’ve got sisters in your U.S. Province from all over the world. Does that mean that I would have to go to live in some other country if I joined you?

It’s true that we value our internationality very much. In the Assumption, you begin to get a feel for that internationality, something that’s promoted by regular international sessions for sisters held at our motherhouse in Paris and elsewhere in the congregation. Events like these lay the groundwork for a culture of international friendship and solidarity among us. Many of us have enjoyed spending time in some other province of the Assumption – some for a very long time, others for a year or two. Some have lived their whole religious life here in the U.S. So the answer to the question is: it depends on what you need and on what the province and congregation need. But joining us does not mean that you would automatically go to live in another country.

Are you open to new members?

Yes. Please come and see.

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How You Can Become A:

Sr. Nuala