Outspoken nun Joan Chittister visits Chicago for Benedictine Sisters’ 150th anniversary

Katie Drews
Chicago Catholic
Sept. 26, 2011


One hundred fifty years ago three young nuns from Pennsylvania rode the Lake Shore Michigan train to Chicago, sent to teach children of German immigrants.

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In honor of their anniversary, the community hosted Sister Joan Chittister, a Benedictine nun from Pennsylvania and internationally known writer and speaker. Chittister often addresses contemporary social justice issues of peace and equality, and she is a staunch advocate for women’s rights, both in the Church and in society. She once went against a request from the Vatican to speak at a women’s ordination conference in Dublin.

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In facing today’s struggles in the Church – and in the world — Chittister (pictured) challenged laity to form “radical Christian communities” rather than remain “fossils of a bygone reality.”

“Now we need new wisdom and new actions to become what we must be if we are really to be a spiritual people in these changing times,” she said. “And our choices are clear: we can go forward again, … or we can go backwards in an attempt to maintain what we know better but which we also know is already long gone.”

She added, quoting author John Gardner, “The last act of a dying institution is to get out a new edition of its rule book.”

Drawing on the roots of the Sisters, Chittister explained that St. Benedict laid a foundation that today’s Christians should model. Through creativity and adaptation, St. Benedict started a movement in the sixth century that was grounded in the people.

Following his example, people today should develop communities “with a clear spirituality” that will bring “a strong common voice, a cry for humility,” Chittister said.

She also stressed the importance of asking the “revolutionary” question — Why? – and put a special emphasis on the power of the laity, noting that good ideas rarely come from the top.

“What you recognize, the Church will eventually recognize,” she said. “Start training your children with these questions, with these answers. Get them in these groups, and then watch the world change under their feet.”

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America needs a spiritual answer, Chittister said.

“Spiritually doesn’t mean we take passively the destruction of our country and our Church,” she said

full article at Chicago Catholic