DURING THE 16th-CENTURY PROTESTANT Reformation, Catholicism was outlawed in Great Britain. In response, Catholics simply kept their faith and their pastoral leaders hidden. A network of safe houses sprung up across the British Isles for traveling clergy and religious, who were often stashed in secret compartments, or priest holes, when Crown authorities came knocking. Jesuit Brother Nicholas Owen was a chief architect of many of these ingenious concealed spaces, some of which are still being uncovered. Unfortunately, Owen wasn’t able to keep himself safely out of the law’s reach, and in 1606, he was captured, tortured, and put to death in the Tower of London. He was canonized as a martyr in 1970 by Pope Paul VI.
No one sets out to “put the light of their faith under a bushel basket,” but sometimes circumstances require it. The same holds true for our vocations. Often in the early phases of discernment, we would be ill-advised to share our plans with too many others. We need time to pray, seek wise counsel, and truly listen to where God is calling us.
But for each of us there comes a time to bring our vocation to light. This issue of VISION captures just that moment for the featured sisters, nuns, brothers, and priests who now gladly shine a light on their life choice because they “are responding to something deeply personal that they sense will be the meaning-making core of their life,” as theologian Sister Sandra Schneiders, I.H.M. describes it.
The vocation to religious life is not without its frustrations, disappointments, and sorrows, but it also comes with a deep sense of place, satisfaction, and joy that the life you’ve committed to is worth living and the faith you confess is worth dying for.
— Patrice J. Tuohy, VISION Publisher
In the current issue:
Find much, much more in VISION 2022!
