Read the story of Ane Kirstine Wynn, a 25-year-old woman who recently entered Saint Joseph’s Monastery, a cloistered community of Passionist Nuns in Kentucky. Becoming a Passionist nun: Ane Kirstine Wynn by Amy Wilson of the Lexington Herald-Leader (April 4, 2010) tells the story of Ane Kirstine’s journey to religious life. It is a remarkable story that includes her shift from the Lutheran faith to the Catholic faith, struggles with her parents over her decision to become a nun, the fear and joy of discerning a call to religious life, and reflections on her first 3 months in the monastery.

Writer Amy Wilson paints an intimate picture of Ane Kirstine’s journey and conveys a sense of feeling and adventure. I appreciate the evident care that she took in preparing for and writing this article. What’s cool is that Amy kept up an email correspondence with Ane Kirstine since she entered in January. The superior of the monastery agreed to this correspondence which is a wonderful testimony to the community. By virtue of their cloistered life, the life of Passionist nuns, like other cloistered nuns, isn’t publicly accessible. Yet, allowing such a correspondence gives the world a glimpse of the life as well as the choice to enter into that life. This can be encouraging to people who might be attracted to cloistered life and it can also help in providing accurate, “real” information about cloistered life, not the variety you’d most likely find in the entertainment industry. You can read these emails on Kentucky.com.

Here are a few quotes from the article itself:

Mother Marie Catherine, head of the monastery, on discerning a call to religious life:

“God’s gifts,” says the Mother Superior, “are God speaking His will. The religious life is a gift from Him to you. The price tag is about bucking against the odds. Every one of the sisters walks that path.”

Ane Kirstine’s “ah-Ha” moment with the Passionist nuns:

In March 2007, she wrote in her blog: “I think I’m going to join this community. Like, seriously. When Mother spoke to us about the Passionist charism, my heart just started burning in me, because it was like she was describing myself to me! My spirituality, my understanding of God and prayer and my place in the world, every little thing she said resonated exactly with my own heart. They take five vows: poverty, chastity, obedience, enclosure and dedication to Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection. They have a striking joy and vivacity that stems from contemplating the lifeblood of Jesus, poured out in love for the world.”

Ane Kirstine on “simplicity of heart” in religious life:

“One of the most beautiful — and most challenging — facets of convent life, at least that I have noticed,” she writes, “is its ability to foster a simplicity of heart. Nearly every time I speak with a sister who has lived her vocation for many years, I am struck by how unified her love is, indeed, how wholly she is God’s. She has become simple, not so much in her mind or actions — for nuns have sharp wits and manifold pursuits, just like the rest of us! — but certainly in her being and in her heart.

What thoughts do you have after reading this article? Questions? Uncomfortable nudgings? Inspirations?

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Join Sister Maxine and Sister Julie for evening prayer
at 6 p.m. Central Time (check your time zone)
at http://aNunsLife.org/LIVE.

Question from Shelly …

Dear Sister Julie, I would like to know if it is possible or allowed to become a friend of a semi-cloistered nun? The spiritual guidance and witness of this nun has brought me closer to God. God has blessed me with such a beautiful gift of fellowship.

Dear Shelly, Thanks so much for writing. How wonderful to hear of your relationship with Sister. I am not sure how to answer your question because my religious community is not cloistered. However, there are a number of such sisters that visit and/or have blogs. I’ll get in touch with them and invite them to respond to your question today.

Stay tuned!

Yesterday I went with a couple friends to Lifeline Theatre to see Mariette in Ecstasy, a performance based on the novel by Ron Hansen. Before the performance even began, I was in love with the theatre and the set — small, warm, artistic and welcoming. The theatre’s tagline says it well:
“Big Stories, Up Close”.

Mariette in Ecstasy is about a cloistered community of nuns, the Sisters of the Crucifixion, who “live quiet lives of prayer and devotion until the intriguing Mariette is initiated into their cloister.” The postulant Mariette experiences what she (and some of the sisters) believe to be divine encounter, but other sisters are not so sure about the authenticity of the experience. The faith of the sisters, their trust in one another, and their community life is all put into question as the sisters try to deal with Mariette and their own conflicting feelings.

Overall, the story and the performance were amazing. I felt like I was a part of the performance because of the wonderful choreography and the intensity of the actors. Because it was a story about nuns, I was particularly attentive to how the nuns were portrayed, how their community life and spirituality were expressed.

My favorite nun was the prioress, Reverend Mother Céline, played by Patrice Egleston. She was probably the nun shown with the most depth. I particularly liked how she was showed the dynamic of being a nun who was responsible for the common good and the community, but also a nun who had a family, who struggled, who prayed, who cared deeply. I also loved how graceful Mother Céline was — her every movement was effortless and when she walked it was as if she were floating just above the floor!

Brenda Barrie was very good as Mariette Baptiste, the new postulant and sibling of the prioress. She kind of freaked me out a bit when she was in ecstasy which meant she was doing an excellent job acting!

In the end, the question that begs to be answered is whether Mariette was having authentic experiences of God (stigmata, trances, visions) or if she was making it up to get attention or because she was sick.

A deeper question, however, and one that is pertinent for all of us, is whether or not we are open to being surprised by God. Are we open to the sometimes strange and totally unreasonable ways that God is present to us in our lives?

If you live in the Chicago area, go see this performance of Mariette in Ecstasy at Lifeline Theatre. I highly recommend it. Hurry! You only have until April 5.

Also, check out the book by Ron Hansen.