Missionaries Of Charity

[Lucia]

Anyone have any direct experience with the Missionaries of Charity.  I've been thinking about them lately and was wondering if anyone on Phatmass could give me more info on them, like their entrance requirements for example?  It seems to me that there really isnt much information out there on their lives inside the convent, the work yes, but not what it's like to be a missionary of charity--prayer life and so on.  In addition, I've heard that you have to be in perfect health to enter the MCs, is this true?  

 

Thanks for Any Info!

[Lilllabettt]

Unless things have changed, they are the strictest community I know of re: health requirements.
Mother Teresa wanted her institute to give the "best" to the poor - to include the most physically capable servants caring for them.

But if you have concerns in this area, the safe thing to do is to contact them directly. Things change.

[miserere55]

I once spent a summer living and working with the postulants and aspirants of the Missionaries of Charity in the South Bronx.  I was discerning a vocation to their community.  They live a very strict life.  Their vow of poverty is based upon the concept of third world poverty.  If you want to know about this community, then read the book "An Unquenchable Thirst" by Mary Johnson.  This book will give you an inside look into the Missionaries of Charity.  I found it to be quite accurate.

[OnlySunshine]

Anyone have any direct experience with the Missionaries of Charity.  I've been thinking about them lately and was wondering if anyone on Phatmass could give me more info on them, like their entrance requirements for example?  It seems to me that there really isnt much information out there on their lives inside the convent, the work yes, but not what it's like to be a missionary of charity--prayer life and so on.  In addition, I've heard that you have to be in perfect health to enter the MCs, is this true?  

 

Thanks for Any Info!

 

One of the Sisters in the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal was discerning with them for a time before she entered the CFRs.  She told me they are pretty strict about health requirements.  She also told me that the thing that made her sure she wasn't called to the MCs was the fact that they only visit home every 10 years or so.  She said she couldn't live with not seeing her family more often.  I don't blame her.  I think I'd have trouble with that, too. 

Edited May 13, 2014 by MaterMisericordiae

[Lucia]

Thanks for your replies thus far.  I didnt know they were so strict on health issues but it also makes sense given the conditions I imagine the sisters have to deal with in some countries where they serve and how strict their vow of poverty is.  Given this info I probably shouldnt look into this community. :unsure: They do seem like a beautiful community.  

[Lucia]

I once spent a summer living and working with the postulants and aspirants of the Missionaries of Charity in the South Bronx.  I was discerning a vocation to their community.  They live a very strict life.  Their vow of poverty is based upon the concept of third world poverty.  If you want to know about this community, then read the book "An Unquenchable Thirst" by Mary Johnson.  This book will give you an inside look into the Missionaries of Charity.  I found it to be quite accurate.

Hi Miserere55, 

I've heard of the book but have not read it because I've heard some very mixed reviews of it and thought it might just be an anti-missionaries of charity book given some of the things the author has said including that she no longer believes in God.

[Lucia]

I happened to run into the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal yesterday evening.  Are they also as strict about health requirements?

[Nunsense]

I once spent a summer living and working with the postulants and aspirants of the Missionaries of Charity in the South Bronx.  I was discerning a vocation to their community.  They live a very strict life.  Their vow of poverty is based upon the concept of third world poverty.  If you want to know about this community, then read the book "An Unquenchable Thirst" by Mary Johnson.  This book will give you an inside look into the Missionaries of Charity.  I found it to be quite accurate.

 

 

I enjoyed this book very much and I could tell that Johnson really loved the MCs, even though she decided to leave. I read another book about the MCs as well, called Hope Endures by Colette Livermore, an Australian former MC sister who is now a doctor. I spent time myself living and working with the MCs in Melbourne and both books pretty much detailed a lot of the things that I observed personally. 

 

Mother Teresa's life was exceptional and she is the reason I converted to Catholicism in the 70s, but the truth is that the life of an MC sister is physically and psychologically very demanding, especially for Westerners who have been raised in a totally different culture. It isn't simply about being 'tough' or 'enduring' it; it is that, despite their convents now being located in many Western countries, the religious community itself is basically Indian in its cultural attitudes, and these attitudes can sometimes feel almost 'cult-like' to a Westerner - and this can create some pretty intense inner conflicts. Good health prior to entering is really an absolute essential.

 

I love the the MCs, don't get me wrong, but they really aren't like any Western community. The Carmelites also demonstrate some 'cult-like' attitudes, but because they are basically European in origin, these can somehow seem less alien to a Westerner, and perhaps, in some ways, almost romantic in nature, especially to younger women.

 

Anyone wishing to pursue a life as an MC nun should spend some time with them as a volunteer and become familiar with their culture. In fact, reading these two books could be a very good way to see some of the attitudes and behaviors of the community from the perspective of Westerners (both who tried very hard to persevere). Reading these books doesn't necessarily mean one has to agree with everything that is written, as each individual is going to react to the same situation in different ways; the authors have merely described their own personal experiences. But both authors do provide a pretty accurate picture of the MC lifestyle itself. If, after reading these books, a woman still feels called to the MCs, then at least she would have been given some degree of fore-knowledge about everyday attitudes and practices.

 

I don't think we should be afraid to read books by women who have left religious life, because it is a very common thing to happen these days and there is often valuable information given (didn't we all enjoy The Nun's Story, even though she left?). And yes, some former religious do end up going through very difficult times, even to the point of leaving the Church or not believing in God anymore. In most cases, this is probably a perfectly normal reaction to the feelings of failure and/or rejection that can overwhelm a person who entered in all sincerity, expecting it to be for life. When I read books by former sisters or nuns, I feel such compassion for their inner struggles, both during their time in the convent and after they leave. Just reading here on phatmass I have seen so many women go through so much. One phatmasser has even set up a website support group for such women (Leonie's Longing I think it is called). In reading these books though, I ask myself how I would have handled some of the situations these women faced, or even feel comforted when I recognize myself in some situation or another. 'Exiting' religious life is probably one of the hardest things a person will ever do, whether they are asked to leave, or choose to leave, both situations have their own issues. Writing about it can be very cathartic but there is no reason to assume that several years down the track, the author won't have moved on and made peace with their past experiences, and even - hopefully - found their faith again.

 

So, yes, I highly recommend both these books to anyone interested in a vocation with the MCs.

[Lilllabettt]

miss you around here, nunsense

[miserere55]

Hi Lucia...........I understand your concerns about the book I suggested, but I really wouldn't suggest you read something by someone who has an axe to grind.  The author really loves the MC's and the things she writes about the practices and prayer life and lifestyle of the MC's is accurate.  Personal experiences, however, would differ from person to person.  Nunsense is right, though, their life is harsh and physically and psychologically demanding.  There is no privacy and relatively no free time.  The food is the food of the poorest of the poor......so a good stomach is necessary.  I love Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity.  I have her statue on my desk and her Feast Day is my birthday!!  I admire and respect any person who enters her Congregation, even if their stay is temporary.  Prayers for your discernment.

 

Nunsense, thanks for your comments.  You were spot on!!! 

[cmaD2006]

miss you around here, nunsense

Glad to see you back Nunsense :)

[Antigonos]

Glad to see you back Nunsense :)

Me, too!

[MargaretTeresa]

NUNSENSE!!!

 

I might be staying overnight with some MCs in a few weeks. I can't wait to meet them. I'm always admired what they do. They're some tough cookies! :)

[Lucia]

Thanks Phatmassers, maybe I will give the book a read once my enormous reading list gets smaller.  I just wasnt sure whether buying the book was worth it   because I heard some negative things about it and some of the things I read about the author.  I thought it might be a book by someone with an axe to grind.  And just to clarify I am not afraid to read a book by a woman who has left religious life, I dont pass any judgment on that, it seems to me to be only normal for some women to discern that their vocation is not religious life or that their vocation is not to a particular community.  I just wasnt sure about whether this book was by someone with an axe to grind-in which case I didnt think I would like it so why spend money buying it.  

 

Back to the MC's, I did speak to a volunteer who very much stressed how it was a "third world order" and a VD with another community told me that she knew many americans who had entered and left because they found it very hard to adjust.  In any event, I dont think the lord is guiding me in that direction since I do have a medical issue which would probably bar me from entering with the MCs anyway.-

[Lucia]

NUNSENSE!!!

 

I might be staying overnight with some MCs in a few weeks. I can't wait to meet them. I'm always admired what they do. They're some tough cookies! :)

They seem like such a beautiful community, too bad they are so strict with health issues and only allow home visits every 10 years.  I may see if I can volunteer with them even if thats not where Im meant to be.  

[beatitude]

Lucia, if you feel called to work with people living in poverty, may I suggest that you look into the Little Sisters of Jesus? While their lifestyle is less rigorous than that of the MCs, their charism is to share in the ordinary life of people who are poor and marginalised, so you will find them working in factories, as cleaners, in care homes, etc. - low-waged ordinary jobs in the heart of the world. They are to be found in many unusual places; some sisters travel with and minister to a circus camp, others live in a Roma/Gypsy community, others are with tribal peoples in the Amazon, and for a while a group of sisters even lived in a prison alongside the inmates. They are very simple in how they live - no big convents, for example, if they're in the Amazon they have a mud hut like the other people in their village and if they're in London they have an apartment like the others on their block - but their poverty is not so physically demanding as MC poverty. They place a lot of emphasis on daily Adoration and they are founded in the spirituality of Bl. Charles de Foucauld. If you have profited from Mother Teresa's writing I suggest you read that of their founder, Little Sister Magdeleine. :) Vincentian communities might be another avenue for you to explore.

[MargaretTeresa]

Lucia, if you feel called to work with people living in poverty, may I suggest that you look into the Little Sisters of Jesus? While their lifestyle is less rigorous than that of the MCs, their charism is to share in the ordinary life of people who are poor and marginalised, so you will find them working in factories, as cleaners, in care homes, etc. - low-waged ordinary jobs in the heart of the world. They are to be found in many unusual places; some sisters travel with and minister to a circus camp, others live in a Roma/Gypsy community, others are with tribal peoples in the Amazon, and for a while a group of sisters even lived in a prison alongside the inmates. They are very simple in how they live - no big convents, for example, if they're in the Amazon they have a mud hut like the other people in their village and if they're in London they have an apartment like the others on their block - but their poverty is not so physically demanding as MC poverty. They place a lot of emphasis on daily Adoration and they are founded in the spirituality of Bl. Charles de Foucauld. If you have profited from Mother Teresa's writing I suggest you read that of their founder, Little Sister Magdeleine. :) Vincentian communities might be another avenue for you to explore.

 

Yes, definitely look at the Daughters of Charity and the Sisters of Charity.

 

I know in NOLA the DCs work in a multitude of things including healthcare, homeless shelters, and schools.

The SC in NOLA I met worked with the homeless and also with the St Bernard Project, which is (still) working to help rebuild St. Bernard Parish after Hurricane Katrina.

[OnlySunshine]

Another good order to look into that works with the poorest of the poor is the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal.  As I said earlier, a Sister from that order discerned with the MCs as well but discerned and joined the CFRs.  :)

[Nunsense]

Thanks Phatmassers, maybe I will give the book a read once my enormous reading list gets smaller.  I just wasnt sure whether buying the book was worth it   because I heard some negative things about it and some of the things I read about the author.  I thought it might be a book by someone with an axe to grind.  And just to clarify I am not afraid to read a book by a woman who has left religious life, I dont pass any judgment on that, it seems to me to be only normal for some women to discern that their vocation is not religious life or that their vocation is not to a particular community.  I just wasnt sure about whether this book was by someone with an axe to grind-in which case I didnt think I would like it so why spend money buying it.  

 

 

 

 

I haven't bought a book in years unless it was from a thrift shop. So one word for you...

 

LIBRARY.

 

Even if your local library doesn't have a copy of the book, almost all libraries can do 'inter-library loans' to get a book for you from another library.

 

There is an online library locator and catalogue that can also be of help locating a library near you or particular book:

 

As for finding time to read - I always keep a book in my bathroom - there are always occasions when I need a little extra time there and reading is a good way to pass the time... :P

[AnneLine]

And... I believe a good amount of An Unquenchable Thirst is available on the Amazon website as a 'look inside' option.   And, if your own library doesn't have it available, it may be possible to order it through Inter-library loan.  THAT is a wonderful resource.

 

I will second what the others have said about how much of their lifestyle is a radical living out of the Third World vision of what poverty looks like.   I had a friend who had very much wanted to be a Carmelite nun... but she was from one of the Southeast-Asian countries near India, and she left while she was a novice.  There were many reasons, but a large part was that it did not seem 'poor' enough for her; she knew GOd wanted something more like the poverty she knew the people in her country-of-birth were experiencing.  Eventually she entered  the Missionaries of Charity and found it was the right fit for her.  

 

Each person has to find the right place... and God will provide.

 

I think the LIttle Brothers and Sisters of Jesus are amazing....