Taste and See
- Anglican Religious Life
Br Martin SSM
What happens when you have glimpsed the infinite beauty and majesty of our gracious God? When you are laid to waste by the devastating reality of a God who, free of the vagaries and trials of human life chooses to assume human nature and go willingly to death on the cross to reconcile us to God’s self?
For thousands of Anglicans and for hundreds of thousands of other Christians the only response can be to take our small gift: everything we are and everything we have, and offer it to God’s glory and in the service of God’s Church.
For some, the realisation of that call is as dramatic as that, for others it is emergent - over time we understand how we are meant to be by recognising how we are not meant to be!
In our Anglican tradition the professed religious life is its most radical expression and is offered by people who repudiate the secular focus on money, sex and power and make promises of poverty, chastity and obedience. The willingness of people to pursue what is foolishness and absurdity to the world is one of the most powerful affirmations of our faith.
As well as the professed life, some orders such as the Society of the Sacred Mission (men and women) and the Society of the Sacred Advent (women) invite membership to the vowed life. Vowed members may be partnered, they support themselves and generally continue to live in the circumstances in which they are called, but take on the titles of ‘brother’ or ‘sister’ and share in the governance of their respective societies with professed members.
There are other members of the religious life called oblates and tertiaries who may follow a Rule adapted to their circumstances. Here in Western Australia we have a number of Benedictine oblates attached to abbeys in Australia and the UK and a lively contingent of tertiaries belonging to the Third Order, Society of St Francis. These diverse expressions of religious life are a strength, allowing us to witness to the gospel in every diverse area of human life.
Are you interested in exploring a call to religious life, or are you wrestling with a call to a dual vocation of religious life and ordained ministry? Our support is inclusive and we would love to encourage you in your journey! In the future we hope to provide more information here, hold events and sponsor bursaries to allow people to explore their call alongside religious communities.
Make contact with our ACARLA representative (Advisory Council for Anglican Religious Life in Australia): Bishop Kate Wilmot, bpgnamma@perth.anglican.org and let’s get together!
Sisters of the Society of St Margaret, Duxbury, Massachusetts, USA
