St. Ambrose, Recalling His Sister’s Consecration

(About the image: this is the statue of St. Ambrose’s sister, St. Marcellina, which situated above her tomb in Milan.)

Continuing my amateur Patristics commentary on St. Ambrose’s De Virginibus, here is the first chapter of book III. De Virginibus, or in English “On Virgins,” is one of St. Ambrose’s several works addressing the value and practice of consecrated virginity. It was written while St. Ambrose was bishop of Milan, in the year 377 AD.

St. Ambrose wrote De Virginibus in the form of a letter to his sister, St. Marcellina, who herself was a consecrated virgin. (For an interesting article on St. Marcellina, see this post from the archives of the blog, “What Does the Prayer Really Say?”)

In this particular chapter, St. Ambrose reflects on his sister’s solemn consecration to a life of virginity, which she received in Rome at the hands of Pope Liberius (who reigned in the years 352-366).

One thing which makes this chapter especially interesting to me is that it gives us clear evidence that a liturgical ritual for the consecration of virgins existed at least as early as the fourth century. This is significant, because our oldest written copies of the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity are found in the Leonine and Gelasian Sacramentaries. And even while these are two of our oldest written liturgical sources, they only date back to the sixth and seventh centuries, respectively.

Also, you’ll notice that this section of De Virginibus is focused more on Pope Liberius’ homily for St. Marcellina’s consecration than it is on St. Ambrose’s commentary. This could be considered an example of what is called a “fragment”—i.e., when discussing ancient authors, often those authors’ complete, original works have been lost to us. But, sometimes we can still have an idea of what those lost works contained, based on surviving quotations (the “fragments”) in works by other authors. So here, although we don’t have a treatise written by Pope Liberius on consecrated virginity, we still have a record of some of his thoughts on the matter.

You can read De Virginibus in its entirety here, on NewAdvent.org. For more of this blog’s discussion on De Virginibus, see my previous posts on the writings of St. Ambrose. Emphases, in bold, and commentary, in red, are mine.

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St. Ambrose now goes back to the address of Liberius when he gave the veil to Marcellina. Touching on the crowds pressing to the bridal feast of that Spouse Who feeds them all, he passes on to the fitness of her profession on the day on which Christ was born of a Virgin, and concludes with a fervent exhortation to love Him.

1. Inasmuch as I have digressed in what I have said in the two former books, it is now time, holy sister, to reconsider those precepts of Liberius of blessed memory which you used to talk over with me, as the holier the man the more pleasing is his discourse. For he, when on the Nativity of the Savior in the Church of St. Peter you signified your profession of virginity by your change of attire (and what day could be better than that on which the Virgin received her child?) (This, and some other passages in the Church Fathers’ writings, seem to indicate that in at least some places and time periods during the Patristic era, consecrated virgins did wear distinctive clothing. It’s also interesting to me that St. Marcellina was consecrated on Christmas—the modern Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity indicates that it’s appropriate to celebrate a consecration on a feast celebrating the Incarnation, so apparently this reflects a very ancient tradition.) while many virgins were standing round and vying with each other for your companionship. (I’m wondering if this isn’t a reference to the ancient Rite of Consecration’s equivalent of the two women who accompany a virgin to the sanctuary at her consecration.) You, said he, my daughter, have desired a good espousal. You see how great a crowd has come together for the birthday of your Spouse, and none has gone away without food. This is He, Who, when invited to the marriage feast, changed water into wine. (John 2:9) He, too, will confer the pure sacrament of virginity on you who before were subject to the vile elements of material nature. (The consecration of virgins is not a “sacrament” in the same way as the Seven sacraments—which, incidentally, were not numbered in St. Ambrose’s time. The Latin word “sacramentum” here probably refers more generally to the Rite of Consecration as a being a “sign” or sacred “mystery.”) This is He Who fed four thousand in the wilderness with five loaves and two fishes. (Luke 9:13) He could have fed more; if more had been there to be fed, they would have been. And now He has called many to your espousal, but it is not now barley bread, but the Body from heaven which is supplied.

2. Today, indeed, He was born after the manner of men, of a Virgin, but was begotten of the Father before all things, resembling His mother in body, His Father in power. Only-begotten on earth, and Only-begotten in heaven. God of God, born of a Virgin, Righteousness from the Father, Power from the Mighty One, Light of Light, not unequal to His Father; nor separated in power, not confused by extension of the Word or enlargement as though mingled with the Father, but distinguished from the Father by virtue of His generation. He is your Brother, (Song of Songs 5:1) without Whom neither things in heaven, nor things in the sea, nor things on earth consist. The good Word of the Father, Which was, it is said, in the beginning, (John 1:1) here you have His eternity. And, it is said, the Word was with God. (John 1:1) Here you have His power, undivided and inseparable from the Father. And the Word was God. (John 1:1) Here you have His unbegotten Godhead, for your faith is to be drawn from the mutual relationship. (The above discourse seems like a reference to, or a reiteration of, one of the Creeds. It’s not surprising to me that this discussion of Christ’s nature should be included here, since the forth century was “prime time” for Christological heresies, which virtually all of the Church Fathers labored to refute. N.b., Pope Liberius ascended to the papacy at the height of the Arian controversy (which called into question the divinity of Christ), and was one of the few bishops who refused to sign a letter in condemnation of St. Athanasius.)

3. Love him, my daughter, for He is good. For, none is good save God only. (Luke 18:19) For if there is no doubt that the Son is God, and that God is good, there is certainly no doubt that God the Son is good. Love Him I say. He it is Whom the Father begat before the morning star, as being eternal, He brought Him forth from the womb as the Son; He uttered him from His heart, as the Word. He it is in Whom the Father is well pleased; (Matthew 17:5) He is the Arm of the Father, for He is Creator of all, and the Wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30) of the Father, for He proceeded from the mouth of God; (Wisdom 24:3) the Power of the Father, because the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Him bodily. (Colossians 2:9) And the Father so loved Him, as to bear Him in His bosom, and place Him at His right hand, that you may learn His wisdom, and know His power.

4. If, then, Christ is the Power of God, was God ever without power? Was the Father ever without the Son? If the Father of a certainty always was, of a certainty the Son always was. So He is the perfect Son of a perfect Father. For he who derogates from the power, derogates from Him Whose is the power. The Perfection of the Godhead does not admit of inequality. Love, then, Him Whom the Father loves, honor Him Whom the Father honors, for he that honors not the Son, honors not the Father, (John 5:23) and who so denies the Son, has not the Father. (1 John 2:23) So much as to the faith.

—St. Ambrose, De Virginibus; Book III, chapter 1

A Blog Award

Normally, I don’t really participate in blog awards, but I’ll make an exception for this one since it was awarded to me by my long-time friend (and blogging inspiration) Sr. Mary Blogger, VHM—editor of the Georgetown Visitation Monastery’s community blog “Live + Jesus!”

Part of accepting the award includes listing six little-known facts about yourself, and naming six other “Gorgeous blogs.” So here it goes:

1. Before I went to earn my bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, I spent three years training to be a professional artist in a fine arts program. (I was a painting major.) Even now, I think if I went back to finish that last year, I could have a B.F.A. It took me two years to earn a Philosophy degree at my new university, only because I was lucky enough to have a lot of my credits transfer—and because I was willing to take four Philosophy courses a semester (on top of a language, which for me was classical Greek).

2. My favorite psalm is psalm 116. Aside from its obvious beauty, I’m not really sure why it has such a particular draw for me, or why it feels like “my” psalm. But I’m always especially moved when it comes up in the Breviary.

3. My patron saint is St. Genevieve of Paris—my real first name is “Jenna,” and my mother chose this as a diminutive form of my grandmother’s name, Genevieve. St. Genevieve was a consecrated virgin who lived during the fifth century, and she is credited with saving Paris from an attack of Attila the Hun through her prayers and fasting. I was consecrated on St. Genevieve’s feast day, January 3.

4. In studying theology, I’m much more of an “Augustinian” than a “Thomist.” I certainly appreciate St. Thomas Aquinas’ writings, but the Summa Theologica just doesn’t make my heart sing the way the writings of the Church Fathers do!

5. I taught myself to say the Liturgy of the Hours by reading the rubrics…for the most part, anyway; I would also button-hole the local parish priests as necessary! I started off when I was eighteen by saying just Lauds, Vespers, and Compline with a copy of “Shorter Christian Prayer.” Then I was able to add one of the daytime hours when Sr. Mary Blogger gave me her old copy of the regular version of “Christian Prayer.” Finally, when I was twenty, I was able to “graduate” to saying the full, four-volume Liturgy of the Hours when our New York Vocation Director gave me the second-hand breviaries of a local religious Sister who had recently entered into eternal life—and these are actually the same books I use today.

6. My petition to receive the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity was approved just ten days before the Pope came to visit New York. And then I was fortunate enough to attend the Mass for Clergy and Religious in St. Patrick’s Cathedral. I often think of this timing as akin to a small miracle!

And now for six other “Gorgeous blogs” worth visiting:

1. Emily, a young aspiring consecrated virgin from Louisiana, writes the blog “Witnessing Hope.”

2. The other “Sponsa Christi”—the Passionist nuns of St. Joseph’s monastery in Kentucky write the blog “In the Shadow of His Wings.”

3. Dawn Eden stopped writing her blog “The Dawn Patrol” just this past summer (much to my disappointment!) but you can still read her archives for insightful commentary on issues relating to Catholicism vis-à-vis contemporary culture.

4. The Redemptoristine nuns of Esopus, New York write the blog “Contemplative Horizon.” Their monastery is located in my archdiocese, and for a long time we had the same Vicar for Religious (who is the one who gave me permission to write this blog—under the condition that I didn’t talk about him! I hope this doesn’t count.) This autumn the posted beautiful photos of the foliage by the Hudson River, which I really appreciated since I’m stuck in Florida for the entire season!

5. Sr. Marla Marie, MSCL is founding the first apostolic Maronite-rite Catholic women’s religious community in the United States. (And, coincidentally, though the smallness of the “Catholic world,” someone asked her to pray for me in the days leading up to my consecration!) Her blog is called “Radiate His Light.”

6. I’m sure that the “Gorgeous blog” award button is MUCH too feminine for the administrator of “Roman Catholic Vocations” ever to consider posting. But I think that this is one of the most helpful blogs for people discerning vocations, so I link to it every chance I have.

Consecrated Virgin Saints of the Early Church

In celebration of the Solemnity of All Saints, I thought I would take this opportunity to share this list of consecrated virgin-saints from the first centuries of the Church. Although consecrated virginity might be viewed as a "new" vocation, I admit that I do enjoy pointing out that we have a list of saints that could rival those of some of the Church's greatest religious Orders! But more importantly, I'm always moved to relflect on the courageous lives of so many of my holy "sisters."

This list is based on the one complied by Fr. Francisco Vizmanos, S.J., in his book Las Virgenes Cristianas de la Iglesia Primitiva (published in 1949 in Madrid, Spain). You can also find a version of this list here on the USACV website.

In his introduction to the list, Fr. Vizmanos notes that these names include only those saints who, based on archeological evidence and reliable traditions, can be assumed to have existed as historical people. (I.e., legandary or apocryphal saints are not included here.) So when a question mark [(?)] occurs after a name, this is only to indicate that there is some doubt regarding the exact city or location in which the consecrated virgin saint is thought to have lived.

The dates given indicate the years in which the saints entered into eternal life. Martyrs' names are in red, and I have put into bold type the names of those saints who are most likely to be familiar to my readers.

Please also note that this list isn't yet complete. I plan to continue updating it throughout the day, or over the next few days. There's no really good reason for this--I'm just a busy graduate student who ran out of time!

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Consecrated Virgin Saints of the Early Church

Apostolic Era

Palestine and East Africa:

St. Martha of Bethany + the daughters of Philip the deacon, of Caesarea + St. Marcela of Palestine or Dalmatia (?) + St. Iphigenia of Ethiopia (?)

Near East:

The daughters of Nicholas the deacon, of Antioch + St. Pelagia of Antioch + St. Thecla of Iconium + Sts. Cenaida & Philonila of Tesalia + St. Irene of Byzantium

Italy and Spain:

Sts. Euphemia & Dorothea of Aquileia (?) + Sts. Thecla & Erasma of Aquileia (?) + St. Justina of Padua + St. Flavia Domitilla of Rome + St. Petronilla of Rome + St. Felicula of Rome + Sts. Euphrosina & Theodora of Terracina (?) + St. Polixena of Spain (?)

Second Century

Greece and Italy:

St. Parasceve of Tracia (c. 150) + St. Olivia of Brescia (c. 117-138) + St. Serapia of Syria-Vindena/Umbria (c. 119) + St. Theodora of Rome (c. 132) + St. Balbina of Rome (c. 132) + St. Pudenciana of Rome (c. 160) + St. Gilceria of Rome (c. 177) + St. Praxedes of Rome

France and Spain:

St. Veneranda of Gaul (?) (138-161) + St. Blandina of Lyon (178) + St. Marina of Orense (?) (117-138?) + St. Liberata of Galicia (?) (c. 139) + St. Quiteria of Northern Spain (?)

Third Century

Near East:

St. Reparata of Caesarea (251) + St. Amonaria of Alexandria (250) + St. Apollonia of Alexandria (249) + St. Barbara of Heliopolis, Syria (?) (c. 235?) + St. Aquilina of Biblos, Phonecia (293) + St. Margaret of Antioch (c. 273) + St. Paula of Nicomedia (273) + St. Maura of Byzantium (273)

Italy:

St. Justina of Trieste (289) + St. Eusebia of Bergamo + St. Mesalina of Foligno (c. 236) + St. Anatolia of Tora (250) + St. Mustiola of Chiusi (c. 275) + St. Domnina of Terni, Umbria (272) + St. Agape of Terni, Umbria (273) + St. Sophia of Fermo (249-251) + St. Taciana of Rome (225) + St. Martina of Rome (226) + St. Cecilia of Rome (229) + Sts. Digna & Emerita of Rome (254) + St. Victoria of Rome (256) + St. Anastasia of Rome (257) + St. Basila of Rome (257) + Sts. Rufina & Segunda of Rome (257) + St. Eugenia of Rome-Alexandria (c. 257) + St. Agripina of Rome (c. 262) + St. Benita of Rome (262) + St. Prisca of Rome (c. 270) + St. Restituta of Rome (270) + St. Susanna of Rome (c. 295) + St. Aurea of Ostia (250) + St. Secundina of Anagni (250) + St. Albina of Formio, Campania (249-251) + St. Agatha of Catania (251) + St. Eutalia of Sicily (257)

Africa:

St. Restiuta of Ponizara (255) + St. Gundenia of Carthage (203) + St. Irene of Carthage (250)

France:

St. Alvera of Luxeuil + St. Protasia of Senlis (c. 282) + St. Regina of Autun (c. 250) + St. Pascasia of Dijon + St. Julia of Troyes (275) + St. Sabina of Troyes (c. 280) + St. Poma of Chalons + St. Macra of Reims (287) + St. Albina of Paris + St. Honorina of Normandy (c. 300) + St. Valeria of Limoges + St. Eustela of Saintes + St. Solina of Aquitaine + St. Faith of Agen (287)

Spain:

St. Beata (c. 270) + St. Marta of Astorga (c. 250) + Sts. Justa & Rufina of Seville (c. 287) + St. Columba (273)

Fourth Century

Palestine and Egypt:

Meuris and Teca of Gaza (c. 307) + St. Susanna of Eleutheropolis (c. 362) + St. Isidora of Tabennisi (c. 365) + St. Iraida of Memphis + St. Theodora of Alexandria (c. 304) + St. Potamiana of Alexandria (c. 304) + St. Catharine of Alexandria (310) + St. Sincletica of Alexandria (350) + Sts. Theodora, Theodoxia, & Theopista of Canopo (312) + St. Sara of the Egyptian desert (c. 400)

Asia and Greece:

St. Theodosia of Tyre (308) + St. Justina of Antioch (c. 304) + St. Drosis of Antioch (c. 304) + St. Pelagia of Antioch (c. 306) + St. Febronia of Nisibe, Assyria (310?) + St. Christina of Persia (c. 343) + St. Gudelia of Persia (c. 343) + St. Christina of Georgia + St. Macrina of Pontus (c. 380) + St. Dorothy of Cesarea, Cappadocia (c. 304) + St. Eutochium of Tarsus (362) + St. Parasceve of Iconium (c. 304) + St. Basilisa of Nicomedia (c. 303) + St. Dominica of Nicomedia (c. 304) + St. Euphemia of Chalcedon (307?) + Sts. Menodora, Metrodora, & Ninphodora of Bitinia (306) + St. Anysia of Thessalonica (304) + St. Matrona of Thessalonica (304)

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Holy Virgins, Pray For Us!

What Kind of Rings Do Consecrated Virgins Wear?

Here is an enjoyable question I received from a reader recently:

“I have a question about consecrated virgins, if you do not mind. I know that nuns have to wear a ‘wedding’ ring to signify their spiritual marriage, and normally it is a ring that signifies the Order they belong to. What about consecrated virgins? I know they wear rings but are they plain bands? What do you wear? I hope this is not a silly question, I’m just genuinely curious!” —Vesper

Thanks for your question, Vesper!

Actually, not all nuns (and I’m assuming that you mean women in all forms religious life, and not just those Sisters who are considered “nuns” in a strict technical sense—i.e., cloistered Sisters who make solemn vows.) are required to wear “wedding” rings. Like many of the more minor elements of religious life, there is a great deal of diversity among the various Orders and congregations in their traditions surrounding this. And sometimes even in different monasteries of the same Order, the nuns do not always have identical practices regarding rings.

And, the specific details about which communities do and don’t wear rings might surprise you. Some of the more “traditional” women’s communities do not wear wedding rings, even if they otherwise have a strong emphasis on “Bride of Christ” imagery. E.g., I don’t think that the Nashville or Ann Arbor Dominicans wear rings—readers who may know more than I do about these two communities are welcome to correct me on this if I’m wrong. But at the same time, many non-habited religious communities still attach a lot of significance to the rings they wear and to their customs in presenting or receiving rings. (There’s an interesting discussing about this here on the blog “A Nun’s Life.”)

I believe there are a few communities which used to wear rings but stopped after Vatican II, even while retaining a fairly conservative habit. On the other hand, I know of one congregation of Sisters (who are and have always been habited) who only just began to wear rings as a result of their community’s response to the second Vatican council.

However, all consecrated virgins wear rings as a sign of their spousal relationship with Christ. Just as in an earthly marriage, the ring is a sign that she has made a permanent commitment to another Person. In the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity, immediately following the consecratory prayer itself, the presiding bishop places a ring on the newly-consecrated virgin’s hand with the words:

Receive the ring that marks you as a bride of Christ.
Keep unstained your fidelity to your Bridegroom,
that you may one day be admitted to the wedding feast of everlasting joy.

The ceremony for the giving of the ring is a non-negotiable part of the Rite of Consecration. A similar ritual can be, but is not necessarily, included in the rite for religious profession, since the Church gives individual religious communities a great deal of freedom to follow their own customs and traditions regarding things like vow formulae, special blessings, and the presentation (or non-presentation) of insignia such as rings.

From a historical perspective, I believe the custom of women religious receiving a profession ring actually originated from the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity. Since the earliest nuns were also consecrated virgins, they probably would have received their rings at their consecration. And it seems that the custom of receiving a ring endured in many monasteries, even as the Rite of Consecration fell widely out of use. Religious Orders and congregations which developed in later periods—such as the mendicant Orders of nuns like the Poor Clares, Reformation-era Orders like the Discalced Carmelites, and the modern congregations of active Sisters like the Daughters of Charity—may have kept the custom of a profession ring as an imitation of the Rite of Consecration, or perhaps as a intuitive reflection of the rite. (I think the same process might have been at play regarding the tradition of consecrated women wearing veils, since consecrated virgins were invested with veils long before religious life existed. But that’s a topic for another post!)

If a nun or religious sister does wear a ring, she often receives it during her final or solemn profession, as this represents the point at which she has definitively chosen to follow our Lord in the consecrated life. I think that within most communities, all of the Sisters’ rings are probably of the same style and design. But I’m not sure that this is intended as a way to identify the community to which she belongs—although this sort of “easy identification” is part of the purpose of a religious habit. Instead, I think a shared ring design is probably meant to represent the Sisters’ unity in their common life and vocation, ect.

As far as consecrated virgins are concerned, for the most part we choose and obtain our own rings, which are later presented to us during the Rite of Consecration. (Although I personally think that it might be a nice gesture if, eventually, the diocese actually supplied consecrated virgins’ rings, or if they “recycled” the rings of consecrated virgins who had already entered into eternal life. But I haven’t heard of these things happening anywhere as of yet.)

So basically, each consecrated virgin can decide what kind of ring she will have. But although presently there aren’t any official guidelines about this, I do think that consecrated virgins’ rings should be kept simple, for a few reasons:

First, although consecrated virgins do not make an explicit vow of poverty, it seems to me that entering into any public state of consecrated life obliges one to live very simply. And this “spirit of evangelical poverty” should truly affect every aspect of your life—right down to what kind of ring you wear.

Likewise, we should keep in mind that consecrated virgins are marrying the same Jesus who “emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave” (Philippians 2:7); who was “a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity” (Isaiah 53:3); and who had “nowhere to rest His head” (Luke 9:58) during his earthly ministry. And my thought is that something like a humongous diamond, rare gemstones, or anything similarly “over the top” would probably not be the best reflection or reminder of this!

Also, while naturally I believe it is totally and completely appropriate to refer to a consecrated virgin as a “Bride of Christ;” I think it’s also good to keep in mind that consecration to a life of virginity is ultimately more similar to a betrothal than it is to a honeymoon. In a very important sense, the REAL wedding feast is the moment when a consecrated virgin finally meets her Spouse face-to-face. So in order to resist confusing the “already” with the “not yet,” I feel that it’s best for consecrated virgins to avoid extravagance in all things pertaining to their consecration, including their rings.

As for me, my ring is a plain silver band. But around the outside, it has an inscription from the Song of Songs: “Ego dilecto meo et dilectus meus.” (Song of Song 2:16) Usually, this translated into English as: “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.”

One funny story about my ring: At the reception right after my consecration, everyone of course wanted to see my ring and to know what the inscription said. One priest—who can read in Latin probably as well as I can read in English—for some reason just couldn’t figure it out! He kept reading and re-reading the inscription and muttering things like, “Umm…is that in the ablative case?” But, it seemed like every single consecrated woman there, whether they were a consecrated virgin or a religious Sister, knew exactly what it meant as soon as they saw it!

This is a photo of me holding a (hatched!) lizard egg in the palm of my hand. But it’s also the best close-up picture I have of my consecration ring.

New Vocations Website for the Diocese of Raleigh, NC

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh, North Carolina just launched an excellent new diocesan Vocations website last month: http://www.raleighvocations.org/. And, they included a page on consecrated virgins!

As far as I know, this is the first diocesan vocations website in the country to give consecrated virginity such a prominent place.

Special thanks to Brad Watkins (administrator of the “Roman Catholic Vocations” blog) and the Diocese of Raleigh Vocation Office for inviting me to write an article on consecrated virginity for their website. As always, I’m specially grateful to those who help make this vocation better understood and appreciated.

Feast of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus

Here is today’s second reading from the Office of Readings in the Liturgy of the Hours, taken from St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s autobiography, The Story of A Soul. Although this section is already quite well-known, I thought I would still reprint it here for the benefit of my readers who may not have seen it before.

Even though St. Thérèse was only twenty-four when she died (the same age as I am now—hard to believe!), she was fairly recently named a “Doctor of the Church.” This title is bestowed on canonized saints who have made a significant contribution to our understanding of the faith. Usually, Doctors of the Church are renowned scholars, like St. Thomas Aquinas or St. Augustine. Yet St. Thérèse, who never studied any academic theology, was given this honor because she contributed so greatly to Catholic spirituality. (Emphases, in bold, are mine.)

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In the heart of the Church I will be love

Since my longing for martyrdom was powerful and unsettling, I turned to the epistles of St. Paul in the hope of finally finding an answer. By chance the 12th and 13th chapters of the 1st epistle to the Corinthians caught my attention, and in the first section I read that not everyone can be an apostle, prophet or teacher, that the Church is composed of a variety of members, and that the eye cannot be the hand. Even with such an answer revealed before me, I was not satisfied and did not find peace.

I persevered in the reading and did not let my mind wander until I found this encouraging theme: Set your desires on the greater gifts. And I will show you the way which surpasses all others. For the Apostle insists that the greater gifts are nothing at all without love and that this same love is surely the best path leading directly to God. At length I had found peace of mind.

When I had looked upon the mystical body of the Church, I recognized myself in none of the members which St. Paul described, and what is more, I desired to distinguish myself more favorably within the whole body. Love appeared to me to be the hinge for my vocation. Indeed I knew that the Church had a body composed of various members, but in this body the necessary and more noble member was not lacking; I knew that the Church had a heart and that such a heart appeared to be aflame with love. I knew that one love drove the members of the Church to action, that if this love were extinguished, the apostles would have proclaimed the Gospel no longer, the martyrs would have shed their blood no more. I saw and realized that love sets off the bounds of all vocations, that love is everything, that this same love embraces every time and every place. In one word, that love is everlasting.

Then, nearly ecstatic with the supreme joy in my soul, I proclaimed: O Jesus, my love, at last I have found my calling: my call is love. Certainly I have found my place in the Church, and you gave me that very place, my God. In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and thus I will be all things, as my desire finds its direction.

Concluding Prayer:

God Our Father,
you have promised your kingdom
to those who are willing to become like little children.
Help us to follow the way of St. Theresa with confidence
so that by her prayers
we may come to know your eternal glory.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Some Questions from a Reader

Even if I can’t always answer and post them in as timely a fashion as I would like, I’m always happy to take questions from readers. Here’s one I received about a month ago:

“Thank you for your honest advice on the consecrated life. I am 23 years old and know that for health reasons marriage is—unfortunately—not a realistic aspiration. I am committed to living the spiritual life of a consecrated virgin even if I never receive the title. I am curious about the particulars of possessing the title. I am wondering what it means—practically speaking—when in the rite of consecration the young woman promises to ‘serve God and the Church.’ Does the bishop have certain expectations of her besides faithful and joyful service in whatever job she possesses? Does he check up on her regularly? Also, how was it possible for you to be consecrated at so young an age? I was under the impression that you had to be at least 25 for the bishop to consider your case. Thank you again!” —Niki

Dear Niki,

Thanks for your questions and I’m glad you like my blog! While I’ll do my best to be helpful here, it’s actually somewhat difficult to give simple and universally applicable answers to your practical questions, because as of right now the Church has issued very few official directives regarding the concrete details of the daily lives of consecrated virgins.

Our primary source of authoritative information about the vocation of consecrated virginity lived “in the world” is the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity itself, along with similar liturgical sources such as the Ceremonial of Bishops. In terms of non-liturgical magisterial writings, we have one canon (can. 604) in the most recent Code of Canon Law. There are also a few paragraphs in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and some brief mentions in the documents Vita Consecrata and Apostolorum Successores.

But as you have probably noticed, these sources tend to deal with consecrated virginity in a more abstract way—i.e., they describe the theological foundations of this vocation, but they don’t always give us guidelines as to the ways in which these theological foundations are to be concretely expressed. Obviously, the theoretical theology behind consecrated virginity is crucial to understanding it as a state in life, and I would even venture to say that it’s sufficient for discerning a vocation. But by itself it might not be enough to answer all the practical questions that could be asked about the most appropriate way to live one’s vocation to consecrated virginity.

For example, from the Rite of Consecration and the other documents I mentioned, we know that consecrated virgins are properly called “Brides of Christ” and that they are called to pray the Liturgy of the Hours for the needs of the Church. These things are very clearly defined, and are therefore not up for dispute by anyone. Yet this alone doesn’t tell us what other (if any) ways a consecrated virgin should pray, or what else she could be doing in order to manifest her vocation most fully.

For instance, you could certainly present some extremely strong arguments that consecrated virgins should set aside time for private prayer, have some sort of theological formation, live in a spirit of evangelical poverty, et cetera; but strictly speaking, in an objective sense you could also legitimately disagree that consecrated virgins are required to do these things insofar as the universal Church has not explicitly defined them as obligations for consecrated virgins.

My thought that this lack of specific, concrete directives for consecrated virgins is due to the fact that this is still a relatively “new” vocation. Although the Order of Virgins flourished in the early Church, for about a thousand years the Rite of Consecration was only made available to woman living in cloistered monasteries. This didn’t change until the revised Rite was promulgated in 1970. And even today, consecrated virgins living in the world are still somewhat rare.

Therefore, in my opinion I don’t think that consecrated virginity as a vocation has been widespread enough for the Church’s legislators to have the practical knowledge necessary not only for answering certain specific questions, but even to understand fully what questions should be asked in the first place! Yet do keep in mind that this situation could be completely different in ten or twenty years, as consecrated virginity as a vocation becomes more widespread. (And to put things in perspective, consider the fact that although the priesthood was instituted while Christ still walked the earth, it took the Church over 1500 years to develop anything like our modern seminary system for priestly formation.)

However, even if the universal Church has not provided much specific direction regarding the day-to-day concerns of consecrated virgins, an individual diocesan bishop does have the power to determine authoritatively the concrete ways in which the consecrated virgins of his diocese will live their consecrated lives. This is indicated in the introduction to the Rite of Consecration itself,* and is strongly implied in the other above mentioned documents.

So even if the Church has not (or at least not yet) explicitly named particular set of practices or mode of living as a universal norm for all consecrated virgins everywhere, a consecrated virgin may still be bound to do or observe these things if her bishop specifically asks her to. E.g., the consecrated virgins of a particular diocese may be required to make a silent retreat every year—despite the fact that as of right now Canon Law says nothing one way or the other about annual retreats for consecrated virgins—because their bishop decided that this was an appropriate condition under which they should live consecrated lives.

Similarly, each bishop is free to adopt within his own diocese whatever policies seem most suitable to him regarding the formation of consecrated virgins, the standards for accepting candidates for consecration (this would include things like age limits), the frequency of their official contact with the diocese, the nature of their service to the local Church, and so forth. While knowledgeable individuals, or organizations such as the United States Association of Consecrated Virgins (USACV), are free to have opinions or to make recommendations about such things, ultimately these recommendations become mandatory or authoritative for a consecrated virgin if and only if her own bishop deliberately chooses to accept them as normative in his diocese. A bishop’s freedom to determine these issues within his diocese would only change if the Vatican decided introduce a new universal requirement or practice, or to present an official clarification of a vague or disputed point.

For example, in their literature on formation the USACV states several times that a candidate for consecrated virginity should have a spiritual director—an objectively good idea which seems like common sense to me, and hopefully to everyone who reads this blog. But since Canon Law is actually silent on this point, technically an aspiring consecrated virgin is not strictly required to have a spiritual director UNLESS: 1.) her bishop himself makes having a spiritual director a precondition to receiving the Rite of Consecration, or 2.) her bishop decides specifically to set the USACV formation literature as the standard for the candidates under his own jurisdiction.

So basically, Niki, the answer to all your questions is “it depends on the bishop!”

But since I know that’s not really a satisfying answer, I’ll try to address your points based on my own experiences:

“I am curious about the particulars of possessing the title...”

In a nutshell, the main difference (at least on an exterior level) between actually receiving the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity and simply living the lifestyle of a consecrated virgin is that the former involves a public commitment and a change of your canonical state in life.

It’s difficult to explain briefly all the implications of what this means, especially in trying to describe some of the spiritual aspects of such a distinction. But basically, in making a private vow of virginity, your vocation remains essentially between you and God. When you become a consecrated virgin through reception of a public rite, your vocation “belongs” in some sense to all of God’s faithful people who make up the Church.

While living in a public state of consecrated life presents one with a greater opportunity for serving the Church and witnessing to the Gospel, it also comes with more challenges, obligations, and responsibility.

“How was it possible for you to be consecrated at so young an age?”

I was permitted to receive consecration at age twenty-three because the people who were directly involved with my formation determined that I was mature enough to be capable of making a lifetime commitment and that I had a sufficient understanding of what a life of virginity entailed. And on my part, this was an age when I felt “ready.”

I think that right now in my archdiocese, the age for consecration is determined on a case-by-case basis. But when I first began discerning this vocation in 2004, there was a local policy that all candidates had to be at least thirty-five years old! Although now I would assume that the Archdiocese of New York is generally open to younger vocations for consecrated virginity.

In the early Church, the age for consecration varied from place to place and in different time periods. But since the promulgation of the revised Rite of Consecration in 1970, the universal Church has set neither an upper nor a lower canonical age limit.

“Does the bishop check up on a consecrated virgin regularly?”

When I’m away at school, I usually write to the Vicar for Religious (who acts as the bishop’s delegate in situations like mine) in my archdiocese once every month or two, or whenever I have a question or concern that I feel needs to be addressed. We also try to meet in person whenever I’m home on a break, and also right before I leave to start a new semester.

In terms of meeting with the Ordinary himself, in New York we really don’t have a “system” in place yet, since our new Archbishop was appointed fairly recently.

“Does the bishop have certain expectations of a consecrated virgin besides faithful and joyful service in whatever job she possesses?”

All consecrated virgins are ordinarily required to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. In New York, consecrated virgins are also asked to attend daily Mass. Consecrated virgins are generally expected to spend time in private prayer as well, but exactly how much or what kind is left to the discretion of the individual consecrated virgin, in conversation with her confessor or spiritual director. I always try to take a personal spiritual retreat every year (making my own individual arrangements and plans about where I’ll go), and as far as I know the other consecrated virgins in New York do this as well. But I’m actually not sure that this is strictly required of us, since it’s something I would have done anyway.

In the Archdiocese of New York, the Vocation Office also asks the local consecrated virgins to pray especially for our seminarians. But I don’t think that this will ever be made into a formally binding request, because the New York consecrated virgins are already more than happy to do this.

“What does it mean—practically speaking—when in the Rite of Consecration the young woman promises to ‘serve God and the Church?’”

Right now in New York, this is another thing that’s decided on a case-by-case basis, in the context of an on-going dialogue with the Vicar for Religious. Since there are presently only four consecrated virgins, including myself, who are actively associated with the Archdiocese of New York, this allows for a lot of one-on-one discernment as to how an individual consecrated virgin can best manifest her vocation to be “dedicated to the service of the Church.” (Sometimes I’m tempted to joke that consecrated virginity is the vocation you continue to discern after you discern!)

But speaking for myself and about my own consecrated life, I do hope to work for the Church in some direct and full-time capacity after I finish my theological studies. Although at this moment I don’t know exactly what form this will take—right now, my future is in the hands of Providence.

*The exact phrase I’m thinking of is: “It is for the bishop to decide on the conditions under which women living in the world are to undertake a life of perpetual virginity.” It can be found in the general introduction (i.e., the introduction before the two specific rites for nuns and for women living in the world) to the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity, on page 158 of my copy of vol. II of the “Rites” book. But it’s not in the link I provide to the Rite of Consecration, because this link only gives you the Rite of Consecration specific to women living in the world, which unfortunatly doesn’t include the “general” introduction. However, I do think that many phrases in the Rite of Consecration for Women Living in the World express the same idea, though perhaps not in quite as explicit and unambiguous a manner.