Have you heard the one about the nun? You know who? Loyal and meek, always obedient. Our Father raised man to be the ultimate sinful being. The woman submitting to his command. How dare a nun (woman) disobey the teachings of her patriarchal faith? Really, it’s just fascinating.
So the Vatican has decreed that American nuns have lost their way and failed to vilify the people and ideals it finds distasteful. Submit or be excommunicated. And yet these wonderful women have taken their time to hear the Vatican’s message and decide in the most rational matter how to proceed.
The Leadership Conference of Women Religious was held over the last few days to decide how to reply to the Vatican. The leadership within the Church has concluded that the majority of American nuns aren’t sufficiently Catholic. What it is exactly that they’ve failed to do is vague, but it includes a necessity to condemn homosexuality, birth control and abortion. Catholic decrees that have weakened with the modern age. This is of course the same Church that protects abusive priests, forbids them to marry (unless you’re already a priest, married and Episcopalian), and believes women cannot be priests. However, if you’re a nun, that’s ok.
Imagine a female pope!
The Catholic Church may take decades to catch up to the now. So it’s admirable to see these American sisters come together and decide to continue the conversation with the Vatican. There’s no submission and no break with the faith. There’s dialogue. And though I can’t pretend to know what the ultimate end might be, I sincerely hope for the best. For them.