The "Visitation" Revisited

In a post a few days ago, in which I posted a reader's (Tom White's) comments, I referenced Sandra Schneiders (here).  Well, in his column today, Fr. Richard McBrien, of Notre Dame's Theology Department, writes about Sr. Schneiders.  Here's an excerpt:

Sandra Schneiders is a member of Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Monroe, Mich., and is professor of New Testament Studies and Christian Spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, California.

Her four-page article [1] in the Oct 2 issue of the National Catholic Reporter is the best, most compact, and most significant study of the biblical and historical foundations of ministerial religious life available today.

Anyone who claims to have an opinion about the current "visitation" of U.S. communities of religious women and the "doctrinal assessment" of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious has a serious obligation to read this article.

As Schneiders notes at the outset of her substantial essay, too many critics of religious life in the United States "have no lived experience of or academic competence" in regard to it.

Note that statement:  "Anyone who claims to have an opinion about the current "visitation" of U.S. communities of religious women and the "doctrinal assessment" of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious has a serious obligation to read this article."  Hmml, I guess that means Tom White, Robert Araujo, and yours truly, among many, many others.

Here's Fr. McBrien"s column.

And here's Sr. Schneider's essay.