pat loughery

In the coffeeshop this morning I noticed this front-page article in the NY Times (or the Wall Street Journal, I’m not sure which.  However, I found the online article at NYT…).

Seems there’s an evaluation of American nuns underway, and as you can read below, it’s unclear what the goal is.  It’s going to be interesting seeing how this issue develops, and I hope and pray that the issue is explored with grace and humility.

Here’s a quote, but clickthrough the link below to see the whole story.

The Vatican is quietly conducting two sweeping investigations of American nuns, a development that has startled and dismayed nuns who fear they are the targets of a doctrinal inquisition.

Nuns were the often-unsung workers who helped build the Roman Catholic Church in this country, planting schools and hospitals and keeping parishes humming. But for the last three decades, their numbers have been declining — to 60,000 today from 180,000 in 1965.

While some nuns say they are grateful that the Vatican is finally paying attention to their dwindling communities, many fear that the real motivation is to reel in American nuns who have reinterpreted their calling for the modern world.

Read the whole article – via U.S. Nuns Facing Vatican Scrutiny – NYTimes.com.