Sister Act, Whoopi, and images of nuns: discuss

hi – as a sister – many people ask me if i live as the sisters in this movie do – well – ehrrr- nope! and sometimes it urks me that the sisters in this movie are portrayed as being a bit naive and childish – like you said – what group of sisters wouldn’t know the needs right outside there door??? but – i do think it opens the door to conversation and when people learn that i am a sister – and the difference between me and the ones in the movie are about 40 years – and a whole different way of living – there are ‘nuns’ that live a cloistered life and are dedicated to prayer – and wear the habit – and there are the apostolic sisters that are out in the trenches – that would be me and you too, julie!! i love your blog – very good!

Sometimes the movies and people sharing the nun stories about Catholic school make nuns seem kind of scary. Mother Superiors do get a bad rap. The Mother Superior in The Sound of Music was kind and gentle and the kind of Mother I would want to have if I were a nun.

When I saw Sister Act, I was amazed by how much some of the other sisters (the background ones who made up the choir) resembled my own sisters (even me–GASP!) When my sisters all get together, we run the gamut in personalities, life experiences, etc. One of our elderly sisters, like Peter Pan, never really grew up, but she just keeps all of us young at heart. There are some sisters that are so far into justice issues and they keep us aware and informed. I know one sister who has always prayed the morning paper and the evening news (She kept us up on current events through her petitions at Mass when as novices we couldn’t watch TV!)

Yeah, the nuns in Sister Act were naive and sterotypical, but you got to admit that they also had some great scenes. One of my favorites is when they ask the helicopter pilot to fly them to Reno but he refuses so they start praying for him. My favorite line is, “(When he is in his time of need) Don’t leave him howling and yowling in the street.”

Uh, BTW, Did I tell you that I am in the crowd scenes at the end of “Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit”? (In my post Vatican II beige habit. Now I wear the optional habit). See the Joyful, Joyful video. See those pair of hand clapping under the blue light? That’s me! I also get a millisecond of face time at the end of the movie when the winning choir is announced.

Over the years I have debated with myself if this was a good idea or not to be in this movie. Today I think it was a good idea. I provided a contrast from the fake nuns in the movie. I got to share with some people about the faith. I even got to sing on that big ol’ stage between takes. (I did “I Could Have Danced All Night” from “My Fair Lady” (peppered with on-liners jokes) because, gee, “Ave Maria” seemed so inappropriate for this crowd.)

I do think many of the images of nuns in these films are stereotypical. Some sisters may be naive, others stern and yet others bubbly. But there is so much more. The Sister Act films are light-hearted, upbeat comedies. They are not realistic nor do they try to be. I feel neutral about these productions. They don’t do any harm nor do they do any good for the image of religious life out in the world.

Hey Sister Julie, I grew up being taught by nuns/sisters in the mid 60′s to early 70′s and they definitely had a positive impact on my life. And, when I saw The Blues Bros. when it first came out I have to admit I did laugh at the scene with the Sister and Jake and Elwood scene and the desk going down the stairs scene. Similarly, the Sisters in Sister Act were light hearted and fun(ny). I believe these types of portrayals have their place and resonate with so many of us that had interaction with and were taught by nuns/sisters. Not a bad thing , but not the complete story either. That is where Sisters , like yourself and one of my other personal favorites Sister Mary Martha, come into play. Both of you , by your blogs and in your own individual ways, break the mold of the perception people hold of nuns/sisters. Through these blogs I have come to admire and appreciate the fullness and unique life of nuns/sisters that I never experienced. This is indeed an exciting time for young people to get connected and plugged into this beautiful way of life and living. And, so through and with you ( and your Sister bloggers), the story continues.

I’m guessing Sister Mary Robert’s habit was different because she was still in formation. Someone asked what order they supposedly were. I think Carmelite, since one sister says “Has anyone seen a nun, a Carmelite nun?” I loved the movie despite its obvious flaws and inaccuracies. I had a better idea of fact and fiction, but admittedly some people won’t. My friends and I did a lip sync to Hail Holy Queen my senior year of college dressed in old cassocks and homemade stapled-together veils. We had so much fun and won first place. Dressing as a nun CAN be habit forming! 

Despite the silliness of the movie, I thought in a way it helped to dispel stereotypes. Not so much of nuns in general, but just of how sometimes you can have an image embedded in your mind and it takes exposure to change that. Dolores had an image of “white women dressed as nuns” that went back to her elementary school teacher who yielded a ruler. Whether her memory of her teacher was real or not, it affected her, in the sense that nuns frightened and confused her. Then she has to hide out in a convent, and despite her arguments with the Mother Superior she starts to realize that these are just people. In turn, Maggie Smith’s character judges Dolores as being completely unfit to spend any time in a convent, but as time goes on she grows to like her, and at the end even says that in some ways, Dolores has become a nun – much to Dolores’ shock. In that way, I thought the movie was actually quite thoughtful.

Yes, the Sisters’ naivite about the world outside was quite ridiculous, like a group of Sisters would really ignore the poverty in their neighbourhood. In addition, the movie takes place in Las Vegas, and in 1994 (though aren’t they wearing typical pre-Vatican II habits for the most part? And why is Sr. Mary Robert’s habit different from the rest of them?).

I still love the movie though, because it’s just too darn funny. Perhaps what bothers you is that you know that those producing the movie were out to make money, and not to portray nuns thoughtfully? I felt that way about the portrayal of Sr. Helen on Grounded for Life, which is a hysterical family sitcom. In the beginning they did portray her quite thoughtfully, but in later seasons, as they perhaps ran out of time or patience, they made her quite stereotypical and it was a disappointed.

Anyway, unforgettable Sister Act scenes for me are when Sr. Mary Robert asks Dolores when she got “the call”, and Dolores is looking at her and visibly panicking because she has NO IDEA what she’s talking about; Dolores praying at lunch, starting with “Bless us oh Lord…” and then going onto who knows what, and Dolores’ interaction with the cop – “You can do whatever you want as long as you keep me alive!” And then seeing Mary Wickes, who is so funny, in her third movie appearance as a nun (without counting her role as a parish housekeeper in the Father Dowling Mysteries!).

Oh, and the music rocks! 

Annie- I had been drawn toward religious life since grade school, but perhaps that made me more inclined to dress in a pieced together habit in front of over 300 of my peers. Even funnier was we enlisted the campus minister who was a real sister, but had never worn a habit. Fun times.

I’m showing my age: The Trouble with Angels, 1966, with Rosalind Russell as Mother Superior in a girls’boarding school. As a veteran of 16 years of Catholic education, including four years as a boarder, this movie seems very real and accurate. I also still love A Nun’s Story, with Audrey Hepburn, portraying the conflict between self and self-abnegation, conscience and obedience. …and of course there is always Mary Tyler Moore flirting with Elvis Presley in Harlem… just kidding.

In the Poor Clares (like Colletines and Mother Angelica’s group), a postulant wears a jumper and a short veil. In fact, the Colletine Poor Clare postulant gets a short white veil when she first enters (She’s called a Neo [aka, "newbie"] then) and is given the short black veil after the first six weeks. She will get the habit when she is invested as a Novice when she gets the white veil and her religious name.

I don’t understand the extended name, such as Sr. Therese of the Holy Child Jesus. What’s with the title? Is she called by the whole name + title, or is it only for important occsions like profession of vows? Being called by my whole religious name reminds me of when I was a little girl. If Mom called me by my Baptismal name and my surname, I’d better think about coming into the house, but if she threw in my middle name AND my Confirmation name, I knew I was in deep trouble!! So, can anyone explain to me the reasoning behind the titles after some sisters’ names?