Thank You, Sister.

Cynthia L. Crown, Ph.D.

David C. Flaspohler, Ph.D.

Women religious have had an incredible impact on the life of the Catholic Church in the United States.    They have started and maintained schools and influenced the education of both Catholic and non-Catholic students at all levels from early childhood through graduate programs.  They created and administered hospitals serving the health needs of huge numbers of Americans.  They developed and continued social service programs that served the poor.  Their service to the nation is unmatched by any other group.  These sisters gave of themselves totally as they did the work of the Lord.

The numbers of sisters have declined significantly in recent years.  Recognizing that fact, they turned over some of the work to others but found ways to preserve their community mission in the institutions, leaving their influence even in their absence.  As their numbers decreased, they found other methods for continuing their works.  Instead of large numbers of sisters dominating a ministry, they work individually.  In many ways they are now more influential in their good work.  As professors at Xavier University, we saw first-hand the major contributions of individual sisters in their exceptional work teaching, expanding knowledge, and serving the community.  They are outstanding colleagues in the university community.  Meanwhile we have seen many others who are having similar impact elsewhere in higher education.  Similarly we see their continued impact on the health-care community and some amazingly creative approaches to serving the marginalized in our society.  Many sisters are major leaders for good in local and national ministries.

Given our high regard for religious women and their work, we found it very disconcerting to learn of the two efforts to study the state of women religious in the United States: the Apostolic Visitation and the doctrinal assessment of Women Religious.  We hope that these studies are intended to support the sisters in their work and help to make them even more effective.  The purpose of these investigations, however, has not been clearly announced resulting in anxiety and suspicion, not only on the part of those being investigated but also their supporters.  Ambiguity concerning the motivation for the investigations has generated a variety of concerning conjectures. For example, some have argued that the investigations are motivated by a basic distrust on the part of the hierarchy of the orthodoxy of Religious women in this country.  Some have expressed concern that the motivation is rooted in a plan to take control of their financial resources.  The Apostolic Visitation questionnaires add to these concerns.  Transparency could help to reduce the anxiety.

Similarly we are concerned that the sisters will not be permitted to see the reports of the investigations.  It seems to us that it is easy for an investigator with a short time to examine a situation to make an error in judgment.  Allowing access to the reports could correct such errors with minimum difficulty.  There is a tradition in this country that the accused is able to face the accusers.  The tradition in the Church seems to be the opposite.  Perhaps it is time to change that tradition.  The sisters are intelligent, educated, and dedicated human beings.  It seems reasonable to allow them to read and react to investigators’ reports prior to action being taken.

We believe that the communities of religious women in the United States are not being treated with the respect their history and works would demand.  We wonder why that is the case and hope that the process can be changed to reflect their worth.  We look forward to your reply.