bringing religious objects to monastery

[MarysLittleFlower]

Let's say you enter a community... Would you usually be allowed to still wear your Miraculous Medal (if not part of habit), or take with you a third class relic you have, any religious holy cards or pictures? I seem to remember someone saying you could donate old Catholic books to the convent library. Is this usually allowed? But how does having these devotional objects relate to the vow of poverty? For example if you wear them or have them in your cell. Does this not contradict the Vow? Someone also mentioned having photographs of family, but again how does this relate to not having personal possessions?

If it varies by community, what about more cloistered communities?

Thank you!

Edited May 17, 2015 by MarysLittleFlower

[Spem in alium]

I can only really speak for my congregation, which is more active -- but when I entered, I was given a medal of the Holy Family and Holy Spirit which I wear daily (except for when I'm sleeping, or doing recreational activities). My Sisters wear a cross as part of their habit, but when they're doing recreation or just working around the house they don't wear them. I was allowed to bring statues, cards, books, and pictures, but I was told when I entered that my room, or cell, is like my own little chapel - keep it neat, tidy, and uncluttered. While it's nice to have holy cards and statues around the place, they can sometimes be too much.
For me, poverty is more about detachment than about how much you have. I've been in the situation when people have asked me or my Sisters why we can still have computers and phones if we take a vow of poverty. The response is that poverty is more about being poor in spirit, humble, and practicing detachment from material goods (making good use of how much time we commit to them, and being able and prepared to separate ourselves from them if need be). The same really can be said of religious articles. 

[beatitude]

For a good understanding of poverty, I recommend The Ladder of the Beatitudes by Jim Forest, an Eastern Orthodox Christian. This book changed my life and faith - no exaggeration. He takes each beatitude in turn and discusses what they mean for our lives, and his take on 'Blessed are the poor/poor in spirit' was an eye-opener for me. It's beautifully and simply written.

Each religious community will have its own take on poverty, according to their charism and founding spirit. I know that the Visitation nuns change their cells every so often so that sisters don't get too attached to anything, not even the particular space where they sleep. Poor Clares were founded in "most high poverty", meaning that they couldn't own any property at all, not even their monastery. According to the Rule of St Benedict, if a monk or nun is sent a gift they should show it to the superior, and the superior will decide how it's to be used - if it can be retained by the individual or if it must be shared by the community. As Spem in alium said, they key here is detachment. It is possible to have very few material things - a bare cell and nothing but the clothes on your back - and still be very grasping and miserly at heart. Worrying that you are not being poor enough can actually be a sign that you are not yet sufficiently detached, because it's still an over-concern with created things.

Another key thing is need. An active order might need computers and phones, especially one working in a busy apostolate such as healthcare. Contemplative orders have less need of these things, so many nuns go without Internet access at all. It's not so much whether you have the things, but why you have them and how you use them. Devotional objects sometimes become decorative clutter rather than aids to prayer, and when this happens it's better to go without. Some communities stipulate that you can bring certain devotional objects with you when you enter, but of course they don't allow you to have an indefinite number and turn your cell into a replica of the parish shop. When a friend entered the Poor Clares she was told she could bring one Bible, one rosary, and one small statue or icon for her cell. When she was choosing the image to take with her - not an easy choice! - she discovered something about what mattered to her spiritually, and that was important.

[Gabriela]

turn your cell into a replica of the parish shop

​

[IgnatiusofLoyola]

I expect that before you enter ANY Community--active or cloistered--you will be told what you can bring. If you are not specifically told, then it would not be out of place to ask.

However, it would seem to me (and others please speak up if you disagree) that the number and nature of religious objects you are allowed to bring should not be one of the first questions you ask a Community, but a question you ask after you have been admitted, or at the time you make application to a Community. I would expect that by the time you ask to be admitted to a Community, you would already understand how your possible future Community interprets the vow of poverty. Whether or not you were allowed to keep a certain number of religious objects shouldn't be a factor in choosing a Community. (Note: I am NOT saying you have ever suggested you would do this. Your original post is very clear that you are simply collecting general information about customs of various Religious Communities.)

[sr.christinaosf]

Good point...Are you attached to these objects?  What is your attitude toward them?  Leave it up to the superiors.

[MarysLittleFlower]

Good point...Are you attached to these objects?  What is your attitude toward them?  Leave it up to the superiors.

Thanks for the replies!

One of the things that I'm wondering about is that I've joined certain associations or confraternities where one of the obligations is to wear a blessed object. For example I'm part of the St Philomena Achconfraternity and one of the obligations is wearing the St Philomena cord. I'm also enrolled into the Miraculous Medal and the Brown Scapular. Because of the Brown Scapular promise I hope to wear it till death.. So I'm wondering how this works with entering religious life because I've already been enrolled into these things. 

[NadaTeTurbe]

you have to speak with the community about it. You want to enter contemplative life, right ? I don't know if you can be a member of a contemplative community and a member of another confraternity... I wear the miraculous medal too, and you can wear it under your habit, like the brown scapular. 

[marigold]

Thanks for the replies!

One of the things that I'm wondering about is that I've joined certain associations or confraternities where one of the obligations is to wear a blessed object. For example I'm part of the St Philomena Achconfraternity and one of the obligations is wearing the St Philomena cord. I'm also enrolled into the Miraculous Medal and the Brown Scapular. Because of the Brown Scapular promise I hope to wear it till death.. So I'm wondering how this works with entering religious life because I've already been enrolled into these things. 

​

you have to speak with the community about it. You want to enter contemplative life, right ? I don't know if you can be a member of a contemplative community and a member of another confraternity... I wear the miraculous medal too, and you can wear it under your habit, like the brown scapular. 

​I'm pretty sure I remember a similar conversation a while back where it was established that plenty of sisters continue to do these things. The character of medals, scapulars etc. being what they are - more like 'general Catholic stuff' rather than a particular quirk of yours (for example, wearing old family jewellery) might be the thinking behind that. As ever, ask the communities though.

Edited May 23, 2015 by marigold
grammar

[Starets]

I was not given any sort of list of what to bring but the general rule is that less is more. All my worldly possessions fit in 2 suitcases a carry on bag and a computer bag. If you can get your belongings down to that or less you will be fine, generally speaking.

[MarysLittleFlower]

Thank you! I am trying to submit all this to God's Will and not be too attached

i know someone who joined a more active community and she was allowed to keep her sacramentals like the miraculous medal or scapular but I wasn't sure about more cloistered communities... I'll go where God wants me but it was just a question I thought to ask. 

I wouldn't want to bring a lot of stuff anyway... If I can bring books for the cell it would be around a couple. I would ask what books the community would want in the library. Many books I have are pretty well known but some are very rare. I'm ok with whatever amount of religious images I can bring... Not sure what most communities want with objects like third class relics?? Anyway I'm trying to leave it to God - I have to say some things have been very helpful to me spiritually - but God's Will comes first. I don't particularly care if the community would let me keep something in the cell vs somewhere else so others can use it. I wouldn't want to bring much. A few things are special for spiritual reasons so I hope God would give me the grace to not be attached, but if I'm allowed to bring them then I would. 

Edited May 23, 2015 by MarysLittleFlower

[marigold]

The more I think about it, the more I like the possibility of walking in with just the clothes on my back. Once I start trying to sift through things and decide what's important or spiritual enough, my brain starts getting in tangles. Heirloom items! Photos of family! Photos of my nanny kids! Icons! Bottles of holy oil brought back from pilgrimage! All these things have meaning for me and I'm desperately attached to all of them.

Books might be the one area where I'd like to really sit down and sort through. It's good for everyone when monastery libraries are well-stocked, and I have a lot of newer titles in particular that a community might not have been able to afford yet, or even have heard of.

[LaPetiteSoeur]

Most of the sisters I've worked with brought things of significance--a particular picture of Mary or Jesus or the Trinity, some books that went into the communal library, photos of family members, etc. Like most things, it depends on the community

[MarysLittleFlower]

Most of the sisters I've worked with brought things of significance--a particular picture of Mary or Jesus or the Trinity, some books that went into the communal library, photos of family members, etc. Like most things, it depends on the community

I see! One of the things I was wondering about is a very rare third class relic of a servant of God that I'm praying for to be canonized. I also have a third class relic of the true Cross and some other ones. I don't know if this sort of thing can be given to a monastery or brought to a cell?

[MarysLittleFlower]

The more I think about it, the more I like the possibility of walking in with just the clothes on my back. Once I start trying to sift through things and decide what's important or spiritual enough, my brain starts getting in tangles. Heirloom items! Photos of family! Photos of my nanny kids! Icons! Bottles of holy oil brought back from pilgrimage! All these things have meaning for me and I'm desperately attached to all of them.

Books might be the one area where I'd like to really sit down and sort through. It's good for everyone when monastery libraries are well-stocked, and I have a lot of newer titles in particular that a community might not have been able to afford yet, or even have heard of.

Me too! I like the idea of not bringing much. I don't even have very much on my too bring list. But a few things have been very special spiritually. I guess this could be a way to practice detachment, to let it be as God decides my worries about this show I'm not totally detached! Still trying haha... God's Will is most important though! I think we gain more from His Will than anything even if its His Will to bring these things and we're allowed.

[Spem in alium]

 

I expect that before you enter ANY Community--active or cloistered--you will be told what you can bring. If you are not specifically told, then it would not be out of place to ask.

However, it would seem to me (and others please speak up if you disagree) that the number and nature of religious objects you are allowed to bring should not be one of the first questions you ask a Community, but a question you ask after you have been admitted, or at the time you make application to a Community. I would expect that by the time you ask to be admitted to a Community, you would already understand how your possible future Community interprets the vow of poverty. Whether or not you were allowed to keep a certain number of religious objects shouldn't be a factor in choosing a Community. (Note: I am NOT saying you have ever suggested you would do this. Your original post is very clear that you are simply collecting general information about customs of various Religious Communities.)

I agree, it is not a question that really needs to be asked straight away. In terms of the vows, I have actually learnt about them not by asking questions, but by living in community. When I applied to enter my Congregation, I knew what the vows were in essence, but not how they were practiced. Now I witness my Sisters practicing poverty, chastity, and obedience, and this gives me a clearer idea not only of what the vows mean, but of how I should approach them. However, I don't think I will understand them properly until I learn about them as a novice and make my professions of vows. Through seeing how my Sisters live, I have learned what is appropriate - particularly in terms of my living space and the items I should have. I have progressed from someone very enthusiastic about religious items to someone living quite sparsely and simply, and I find this to be something which has helped me greatly.  

Thanks for the replies!

One of the things that I'm wondering about is that I've joined certain associations or confraternities where one of the obligations is to wear a blessed object. For example I'm part of the St Philomena Achconfraternity and one of the obligations is wearing the St Philomena cord. I'm also enrolled into the Miraculous Medal and the Brown Scapular. Because of the Brown Scapular promise I hope to wear it till death.. So I'm wondering how this works with entering religious life because I've already been enrolled into these things. 

​Each congregation may be different. I know one of my Sisters wears a scapular medal under her habit. I have been enrolled in the St Joseph scapular and have one in my room. It seems like something you just need to ask.

Edited May 25, 2015 by Spem in alium