‘THE SISTERHOOD: BECOMING NUNS’ PORTRAYS THE ‘REALITY’ OF RELIGIOUS LIFE

Catholic Vote ^ | November 27, 2014 | KATE O'HARE

[NYer]

The series continues on Tuesday at 10/9c on Lifetime.

[NYer]

Watched the first installment. These young ladies are a far cry from what one would expect. The nuns, however, impressed me as quite astute in their understanding of the cultural influence on contemporary youth. When one of the sisters commented that "something needs to be done about the nails", one of the girls seemed shocked, exclaiming: "I just had them done 2 days ago!" Another young girl is dismayed to learn she cannot wear makeup to cover up her acne. Their cell phones were also set aside during the visit.

Ping!

[Tax-chick]

none of the young women seems particularly well-suited for religious life

It's funny that the authoress considers herself qualified to make this judgment.

[GreyFriar]

Re-finger nails. I have the feeling the sister was hinting at the young lady cleaning off whatever was on them and leaving her nails in a natural state.

[floridavoter2]

Being that it’s on the Lifetime network, I’m guessing they picked a bunch of soon-to-be nuns who are social liberals, as in, “I’m personally opposed to abortion but think it should be legal.” But by golly, we need to feed, clothe and shelter all those illegal immigrants, damn it.
It’ll be interesting to see how many actually end up becoming nuns. Guessing zero.

[GeronL]

They must have picked one of those very leftwing order of nuns we hear about

[NYer]

They must have picked one of those very leftwing order of nuns we hear about

Actually, this is a full habit Carmelite community.

[GeronL]

then the girls are plants, hired for the part

[Talisker]

All I need to know about this show is in this picture, plain as day.

[timeflies]

Could not have said it better myself. It is just wrong.

[SevenofNine]

Oh great another trashy reality show count me out

If I am going watch Trashy reality show I watch Real Housewive francise on Bravo

[RBStealth]

CatholicVote.org is a good website.
However, the article could have gone a long way towards telling us what order of nuns and their location.

For this kind of show, how could they not pick an LCWR outfit of nuns.

[NYer]

However, the article could have gone a long way towards telling us what order of nuns and their location.

Since daily prayer and personal reflection probably wouldn’t make for good television, the show takes a different approach to revealing what monastic life is like. Over the six weeks, the five women from the Lifetime series will visit three religious communities: the Carmelites for the Aged and Infirm in Germantown, New York, the Daughters of St. Mary of Providence in Chicago and the Sisters of St. Joseph the Worker in Walton, Kentucky.

‘The Sisterhood’ Reviews: Nuns React To Lifetime Reality Show’s Debut

The first program was at the Carmelites for the Aged and Infirm

[NYer]

Being that it’s on the Lifetime network, I’m guessing they picked a bunch of soon-to-be nuns who are social liberals, as in, “I’m personally opposed to abortion but think it should be legal.” But by golly, we need to feed, clothe and shelter all those illegal immigrants, damn it. It’ll be interesting to see how many actually end up becoming nuns. Guessing zero.

Ping to my post #13.

[trisham]

This is silly.

[Tax-chick]

It is silly, but seems harmless, even good publicity for some excellent apostolates. Many people know nothing about religious life other than stereotypes, so seeing the Carmelites taking care of old people would be very informative.

[NYer]

My thoughts, exactly. What was most striking in the first episode, was having to acknowledge the impact contemporary society has had on young women. Granted, these girls approached the possibility of religious life for different reasons, the most glaring aspect was the young black woman whose boyfriend drove her to the convent and dropped her off at the bottom of the driveway so that they could share a few last kisses and embraces. This is the same girl who had nail extensions. She was drawn to the possibility of religious life as a result of a happy relationship with the nuns during her childhood. (My childhood was also filled with nuns but my memories were in sharp contrast with hers ;-) Of the 5 women, I picked out one (Claire) who is in her late 20’s and is sincerely interested in pursuing this lifestyle.

[Tax-chick]

These young women are just on a “come and see” program. They’re not novices or even applicants to the orders. There’s nothing wrong with following up an interest in religious life, even if you find it’s not for you.

If nothing else, they’ll see another way of life. Who knows what seeds might be planted, if not of religious vocations then of more virtuous lives in the world, or even just a kinder attitude toward those who are doing something different.

[trisham]

Good point.

[MDLION]

I watched the first episode and will be watching the rest. The girls weren’t made into plaster saints but were shown to have problems and struggles like other human beings. “Claire” is quite devout and seems like nun material. Pray for “Eseni”. She comes from a home filled with “drama” and had to sit down and then leave the first Mass because of what seemed like a panic attack. Life can be quite difficult when you come from a screwed-up home. I can’t agree with the assessment in the comments that they’re “plain”. Two or three of them are quite attractive.