Nun Sense

In 1965 there were 180,000 nuns in the U.S. In 2009 there are 59,000. The median age is 75. So, the Presbyterian Church has something in common with nuns.


But here is something interesting: There seems to be a liberal caucus of nuns and a conservative caucus. A national organization called the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) relates to the liberal nuns. And the Conference of organization. (I'll refer to them as the L nuns and the C nuns.)


These two types of nuns come from different theological perspectives. Father Timothy Radcliffe compares the two groups. He says that the L nuns emphasize the Incarnation of Christ. The C nuns emphasize the Cross. The L nuns see Christ as breaking through boundaries; the C nuns see Christ as gathering folk into community. The L nuns see religious life as being in solidarity with the poor and working for justice for the oppressed; the C nuns see religious life as divine espousal with Christ. Of course these polarities are generalizations and are about emphases. This dichotomy of sisterhood represents two different responses to Vatican II. The whole Catholic Church continues to debate the meaning of that historic Council of the Church. Pope Benedict was there as a theological advisor. And he takes a conservative view of the implications of the Council. But there is a diversity of opinion about Vatican II among theologians, priests, etc.


Sister Ilia Delio, writing in the Jesuit publication America (Oct. 12, 2009) says that from her perspective (as an L nun) the difference between the two groups is the fear of change. Her personal experience began as a C nun and journeyed beyond that perspective into the land of L nuns. She felt restrained and claustrophobic in the C nun world. It wasn't the type of spirituality she was made for. When she came in contact with a different breed of nuns, a more activist, liberal-minded order, she discovered that there are nuns and there are 'nuns.' The newly discovered nuns had none of the numbing characteristics of the old nuns. The new nuns had a habit of wearing jeans and sweatshirts. They seemed more alive. Her vocation as a nun was saved by her connection with fun nuns.


My own perspective is that there is a place for both C nuns and L nuns. It takes all kinds. Recently the Vatican has begun an investigation of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (L nuns). Let's hope this doesn't become a habit.