HI PA, been a while

Hi Jan!  Nice to see you posting.   I will come across really stupid here, I know, but I just have to clarify...why are you looking for a job???   I thought "Sisters" were always employed, at least that's how they portrayed it at "Vocation Day" in grade school.   I thought you just got traded around to new schools, and doesn't the Archdiocese pay your salary, housing, food etc.??   I thought that's what my Sunday donations were for.   (Sorry to be nosey but I always thought I knew how it worked; you are the first cool Nun I've ever known I could ask; I don't like to think you are hoofing it like the rest of us ordinary folks.) 

Hi Jackie!

You are not stupid or nosey!  Well here it is but you are probably going to wish you had not asked:

I AM a religious sister ~ vowed and living in community.  We all work in some capacity or another whether that be in direct service to the poor as volunteers or evenb paid (very little), or as a teacher where we are paid a stipend that goes directly to our communities, or as a nurse, etc.   You see some work and earn fair wages to help sustain those who volunteer or who can no longer work.  You may be aware that each year in the Catholic parishes around the US, many religious, both from womens communities as well as mens communities (not diocesean priests) speak on the need to support our elderly.  For many, many, many years the sisters and brothers who taught in Catholic schools only received housing at the convents but no wages so now that these same sisters and brothers are much older and they need care but have no pension or means or support other than the rest of us can bring in.  Our numbers have dewindled as you also probably know so the amount of cash flow coming in to a religious community is very, very small and the out flow for the care of the elderly members and those who can no longer work grows in leaps and bounds ~ ~ always in the red.  Considering the average age in religious life today is like 76 and the number of members is decreasing at a rate I can't even guess at these days, we basically will all be out of money to survive soon. Some communities do have any newer members, mine is not one though.  I am the newest and youngest and I have been with my community going on 12 years now. 

So in a nut shell, nuns/brothers work to earn wages to turn over to our community where we put all of our support together to take care of each other, live and continue the mission and ministries of our communities.  We can't do that if there is no money to pay the bills and ours these days with the cost of health care for the elderly, are greater than the amount of the money coming in.  If you also think about it, nuns and brother never seem to truly retire . . . they continue working until the body begins to fail them.

Way more information than you wanted isn't it?  LOL  Sorry, as you see I believe in the value of educating people on the needs of the religious and the injustice of the early days of no wages.

Jan

Like I said, you are the coolest Sister I've ever known.   Sorry if I put you on the spot but Thank You for explaining that, I never knew how it all worked.   I understand the $ aspect.   My Dad was self-employed with no pension or anything, my Mom a homemaker.   He's passed but she's just gone into home and has only enough $ to keep her there 2 years.   Her health issues are such she can't live with any of us.   What are these old folks to do??   I applaud your sense of community and devotion to your brothers and sisters, there's too little of that these days.

Hope to see you in person soon!   Take Care! and thanks again!

Hi Jan,
Sorry I wasn't able to get to Barix tonight.  I really wanted to be there, as I am coming up on my three year surgiversary in a week.

How goes the job search?  Hope something materializes soon.  Philly is almost always looking for teachers.  Of course I teach in the public schools.  Not sure about the Archdiocese.

Hugs,
Trish

Hi Trish,

Sorry you couldn't make it last night.

I have check out the schools in Philly and I haven't seen any openings for a tech teacher.  I have a couple of leads on jobs and have an interview tomorrow I am very hopeful about. Storm heaven with Prayers that this is the one!!!!

Jan