42 Reasons Nuns Should Wear Habits

[Thijs]

Good points but there are sisters who do not wear any habits that I love like the Apostles of Interior Life or do not do veils like the Missionary of God's Love, Servants of God's Love and the Sisters of the Society Devoted to the Sacred Heart.

I am still praying that those leading the LCWR may sounds like Dorothy Day rather than Barbara Marx Hubbard (this is not a point of debate, we may have differing opinions but the point here is that, those  sisters whether in habit or not; that are faithful to the Church should be prayed that women may continue to serve God in religious life through them)

Edited July 11, 2017 by Thijs
Incorrect spelling

[Antonella]

7. The habit prevents a nun from the possibility of wearing offensive clothing

27. Wearing a habit makes a nun look like a nun, whereas not wearing a habit makes a nun NOT look like a nun

38. Wearing of a traditional habit enables a nun to pray properly at any time

41. Nuns without habits don't seem like real nuns

This article is a joke, right? It must be...

As a person who is discerning religious life, I feel offended by the fact that some people (WHO ARE NOT NUNS) feel entitled to express their opinion on how religious sisters and nuns should dress. I feel like the only thing that they see and respect are the clothes. Nr. 38 is just... Good to know that this person is an expert on how clothes improve your prayer-life. I want to pray properly at any time too! Who here is willing to give me a habbit?

Why isn't anybody offended when their parish priest wears shorts or (God forbid) a T-shirt? 

Here is 1 reason you shouldn't care about what a nun/religious sister is wearing:

1. It's nun of your business.

[dominicansoul]

I'm all for Sisters/Nuns wearing habits, but some of these reasons are ridiculous.  

Edited July 12, 2017 by dominicansoul

[savvy]

Antonella,

This seems like the opposite of what I came across once. A woman at my parish asked, me, "Why would you join an order that wears habits?. Now that is just creepy."

 

 

 

[katherineH]

This article is so presumptuous I don't even feel like taking the time to critique it. 

[AveMariaPurissima]

I'm a big fan of religious wearing habits... but in addition to the issues other people have pointed out with the list, some of these "reasons" are just so logically unsound!

[Makarioi]

On 7/11/2017 at 6:20 PM, Antonella said:

7. The habit prevents a nun from the possibility of wearing offensive clothing

27. Wearing a habit makes a nun look like a nun, whereas not wearing a habit makes a nun NOT look like a nun

38. Wearing of a traditional habit enables a nun to pray properly at any time

41. Nuns without habits don't seem like real nuns

This article is a joke, right? It must be...

As a person who is discerning religious life, I feel offended by the fact that some people (WHO ARE NOT NUNS) feel entitled to express their opinion on how religious sisters and nuns should dress. I feel like the only thing that they see and respect are the clothes. Nr. 38 is just... Good to know that this person is an expert on how clothes improve your prayer-life. I want to pray properly at any time too! Who here is willing to give me a habbit?

Why isn't anybody offended when their parish priest wears shorts or (God forbid) a T-shirt? 

Here is 1 reason you shouldn't care about what a nun/religious sister is wearing:

1. It's nun of your business.

You shouldn't feel offended, everyone is entitled to express their opinion and you don't have to be in religious life to have one. Historically here, there are threads about habits and folks stand strong in their opinions. 

[Antonella]

@Makarioi Why is everybody entitled to express their opinion on what religious sisters should wear? Should I feel entitled to go to my parish priest and ask him not to wear shorts just because he is a priest? His shorts doesn't affect my spiritual life. It doesn't hurt me. I don't really care. Or should I feel entitled to talk about his shorts in a forum...?

It amasses me that people have nothing better to do than talk about what sisters are wearing. Do they feel offended when they see a sister without a veil or wearing pantaloons? Does it really affect them? Why are they judging them based on their clothes?  Why are people so bordered if they see a sister who isn't in a habit?

How would you feel if somebody would say to your sister that she isn't dressed properly for Mass (even though she is dressed modestly) just because she ins't wearing a veil or a maxi skirt? Is a girl who wears a skirt holier than a girl who wears jeans?

You know why I feel offended? Because I am `'entitled" to get upset when people are questioning the validity of somebody's vocation (or Vows...) just because that somebody isn't dressed in a certain way. Let God decide who is a good nun and who isn't.

Here is an idea: let's all forget this whole habit/no habit debate and focus on our own wardrobe and personal life. You don't become holier if you think that religious sisters should wear the habit.  

[Guest]

The reason I like to see a religious in habit is because it immediately states for me "Jesus and His Gospel are present" and that is the standard not only religious but I too must strive for and religious in habit reminds me that I too must strive towards that goal (make Jesus and His Gospel present).  For me, the religious habit and religious life is a witness to me of what my own life should all be about not in precise details but in general terms.

The religious habit to me speaks without speaking.  However! I do still find religious in secular clothing much easier to relate to than habited religious.   With priests and religious in pre V2 type of religious attire, I still sort of jump to an interior (somewhat stressed***) attention - product of upbringing pre V2 I think.   Back then we were expected to have our priests, religious and nuns on very high pedestals indeed........and many of us did I think.  I have never quite completely overcome the latter and while I love the religious habit, I prefer them in secular clothing for my own benefit and relating.

But we are all different...........thank God. 

I remember back pre V2 in senior college when we were on retreat and the retreat priest told us that only the cream of Catholicism was called to Holy Orders and religious life.  Cream I was not and knew it, but I thought I might be able to just get under the radar with a bit of luck.  (Begs the question of course, what IS the "cream of Catholicism").  Back in those days, I found it impossible to separate my will from God's Will, because if my objective was good, then surely it had to be God's Will.  Sorted that one out for myself nowadays thankfully.  My first attraction to religious life was the habit, but next it was to discover that the religious Rule of Life was an expression of God's Will we were told - and so if I became a religious or nun, I would have God's Will spelt out very clearly for me in the Rule of Life.  Simply by obedience to The Rule and to my superior, I would be about God's Will - guaranteed! No two ways about it.  That all seemed to me spectacular back in my teens that is, much preferable to my own interior conflicts on the subject of God's Will back then..............only 56 or so years back!!!  What a journey.

Perhaps I have isolated for myself the reason I can be conflicted over some sort of religious attire or identification in my own life now.  I would very much love to make Jesus and His Gospel present without a word, but cream of Catholicism I am absolutely not, nor any desire to be so in the stereotypical sense and I can be conflicted even over that.  I have no hesitation today, however, in grasping my own identity/role and vocational call as not being to religious life per se, but very much in the Laity in every way.

***I don't know quite the words.

"Our hearts are restless, Lord, until they rest in Thee"

 

 

_________________

I do think that very strong objections to opinions re the religious habit or not being discussed/preferred etc. by lay persons, sort of betrays an appearance that religious and laity are totally different absolutely (apples and oranges) with nothing whatsoever to say to each other.  I don't think that way.

[Guest]

Wont go into it here, but it does seem to me that religious etc. have much they are in a near perfect position today most especially to explore and indeed say to Laity about our own vocation, role and mission in The Church and the world.

[allegra]

On 12.7.2017 at 0:20 AM, Antonella said:

Here is 1 reason you shouldn't care about what a nun/religious sister is wearing:

1. It's nun of your business.