The Sisterhood: Becoming a Nun

[Palimpsest]

My predictions weren't accurate in all cases. :)

Eseni and Francesca, as I predicted, flamed out in an ignominious blaze of immaturity, inconsistency, and over-dramatics. It's worth noting that Francesca was a drama major in college. The whole Darnell sub-plot seemed producer driven, but if he is wasn't just acting major control issues then Eseni should run far away from him fast.

Claire (still sanctimonious and annoying) and Christie (I ended up liking Christie much more than I expected) found their niches. I was quite wrong - apparently - about those two. I'd love a follow-up in a couple of years to see whether they stay. I think Claire is too arrogant to fit in easily, but Christie toned down the St. Teresa of Avilla visions and started sounding sensible and mature. I think Christie may actually end up being a good fit.

Stacy wisely decided to discern some more before making a decision. She is still my favorite by far of the group but some of her vocation may be family pressure.

All the sisters acquitted themselves well and presented their vocations and missions eloquently. I really enjoyed the sisters.

[Daenerys]

Thoughts as I go along (Ep 5)

- It's not really shocking to be a virgin in your 20s especially when you are meant to be observing a religion that teaches you should do so until you get married. Do the others not realise that nuns are meant to be chaste?

- I'm becoming pretty confident that Eseni and (maybe) Francesca are plants to try and create drama and mess the whole thing up. The other three are genuinely interested for sure.

-Eseni thanks God for her patience but it seems that honesty and commitment still elude her. Francesca is a complete child and I can't stand either of those two. I hope they get taken down a few pegs - I'd like to say kicked out but this is reality tv.

-AHHH NO WHY ARE THE NICE PEOPLE APOLOGISING? Like, Francesca and Eseni aren't even sorry and clearly think they are right to act so awfully. Excellent example of forgiveness right there.

-Oh gosh, here we go. Sex. Obviously the be all and end all of a woman's life. I bought into the lie that having sex would totally change me as a person, and be the most important thing ever. It wasn't. Whilst I am not asexual I feel like if I never had another intimate relationship it wouldn't be the end of the world. I completely believe you can have a fulfilling life without having sex, and surely anyone discerning to be a nun feels the same way.

-Claire, sometimes I really like you, and then you say something that sounds really self-righteous. Maybe if she sees herself on TV it will make her realise how she sounds and change. I don't think it's malice but obliviousness. She's grown on me a lot, though.

[Toothfairy]

I like the way the Sister nun explained modesty. It's not only about clothing. Take notes fundies....

And usually Nuns won't allow cameras or anyone inside to see what they do

[ladyaudley]

Does anyone have a link to the later blocked episodes?

[Daenerys]

Does anyone have a link to the later blocked episodes?

I just PMed it to you. I think? Tell me if it worked, anyway.

[moreorlessnu]

Thoughts as I go along (Ep 5)

-AHHH NO WHY ARE THE NICE PEOPLE APOLOGISING? Like, Francesca and Eseni aren't even sorry and clearly think they are right to act so awfully. Excellent example of forgiveness right there.

I thought Christie and Stacey (did I get the names correct??) were out of line in calling out Eseni and Francesca about their rolled up skirts and lying about their cell phones. Let Mother Superior handle the situation (w/ the cell phones) as she sees fit. She knew they were lying and she chose to handle it her own way. Christie and Stacey need to focus their time on their own actions, their own discernments, and not stick their noses into other people's business.

Claire doesn't listen when people ask her a question. It's like she has a pre-canned "Jesus" answer in her head that she begins to spew. Francesca made a very good point about being in the arms of someone who cares about you romantically, and Claire just blew her off w/ her "Agape" answer. I do think Claire is sincere, but she's been raised to believe she's "better" religiously and spiritually than everyone else. She is handicapped by her arrogance.

[yetanothermeg]

Ok, I loved this series. I am also a cradle Catholic, and I've even been to the church where they went to Adoration (where Christy prostrated herself on the floor). I thought all the sisters were awesome; I especially liked the Carmelite sisters. My take on the "discerners":

Eseni was a plant

Francesca has some sort of anxiety disorder. Her reactions were way over out of proportion for every single situation, needing to speak with her mom every day (did you notice all her therapy speak - projection, coping mechanism, etc). Maybe she was interested in being a nun because she thought a more structured life would be calming? She is also terribly immature.

Christy, while at first coming off as creepy, seemed sincere. I thought she would want a contemplative order (cloistered) since they spend like 6 hours of day in prayer and that seems to be her thing. She seems like she would be a good fit in Chicago though. She really had a connections with the developmentally disabled residents.

Stacey is very mature and committed to her faith, but as someone said up-thread, I wonder if her call to a vocation is something placed in her head by her parents, since her siblings were all, "I thought you wanted to get married and have kids". My two cents? She is called to the vocation of marriage, not religious life. She just hasn't met the right guy yet.

Claire. Aw, Claire. I did a little googling around and it looks like she used to have a Botkin-esque blog, however the last post seems to be in 2011. She is the fundie we love to snark on, but in Catholic form. Homeschooled, scrupulous, stay at home daughter, teaches Suzuki violin and she even had the modest-wear swimsuit! I laughed out loud when Sister Beth Ann said it was overkill! I was glad to see how relaxed she was around the homeless people in Chicago. I used to live in Chicago and have had some scary run-ins with homeless people a couple times. The sad reality is most of them are suffering from an untreated mental illness, some can be volatile and unpredictable and it is reasonable to be wary (not in an ew-gross way the other girls were, but in a street-smart way). That said, she really put herself out there and showed some unconditional love (something she was having a hard time showing her fellow discerners).

http://catholicyoungwoman.blogspot.com/ ... econd.html

[Coconut Flan]

Not in the least surprised by Eseni. The entire time it was more like was she going to be or stay Catholic than any consideration of becoming a sister. I don't think she ever gave that any consideration.

I was surprised that Christy and Claire actually made a decision on an order. I wasn't expecting any of them to make a firm decision or if one did, I thought it would be Stacy. I could see Christy with the order she chose though. I tend to agree with Claire's dad that she should visit again before making a decision and should consider finishing her degree. Stacey picking Chicago based on having a friend there is a little concerning. I was glad she began rethinking that.

Francesca should just go home, grow up, and deal with her issues. I'm so glad she isn't trying to enter an order in the near future although I never expected her to enter one.

[Eternalbluepearl]

Was there a finale and i missed it? I didn't see the discerners make decisions?

[Coconut Flan]

There were two episodes this week and the second was the finale where their decisions were shown.

[lilwriter85]

I watched the last two episodes live on Tuesday. Maybe we should wait awhile to discuss the last episodes. I'm probably in the minority, but I liked this show more than other recent reality shows. I know some behind the scenes manipulation likely went on. But I have to say I liked some of the women and the nuns.

If any of have OWN on your cable or satellite packages/providers keep your eyes out for reruns of Our America with Lisa Ling. Lisa did an episode about young women becoming or wanting to become nuns. It was pretty good.

[Coconut Flan]

I wasn't going to watch this series, but ended up with a cold and needing something to do quietly and ended up liking most of it. I liked the way it showed that sisters are much more regular people than most people think. I also recommend the Lisa Ling episodes.

[Daenerys]

I wasn't going to watch this series, but ended up with a cold and needing something to do quietly and ended up liking most of it. I liked the way it showed that sisters are much more regular people than most people think. I also recommend the Lisa Ling episodes.

I loved the Lisa Ling nun episode, but it's sadly not online ANYWHERE any more so unless you have OWN you can't watch it!

I think Claire would be a good fit for this Order (Dominican Sisters of Mary) as well - they run a school and are very into teaching, but are bigger and more established and might give her greater opportunities to use her talents. I was surprised they never visited this order but it's good that some other ones wanted publicity as well.

[DrPusey]

And looking at Claire's old blog posts, I see that she was touting the virtues of Fireproof. Why am I not surprised? :lol:

[misslady]

Finally caught up.

First off I just want to say that I am super jealous of Claire's hair. I don't know how she got it to do that updo when they were working picking weeds but it was gorgeous.

And now for actual input ... I think they all wound up where they're supposed to be for now. I'm glad that Stacey isn't going yet; I know she's looked at other orders too and if she hasn't found one with a charism that appeals to her then it's good to be doing something else. Claire ... we'll see how that goes. If she wants to be teaching, shouldn't she finish whatever degree her father was talking about? But that convent seemed to be pretty traditional and maybe the most in line with how she was raised. (Interestingly on their website you can see a picture of the one sister when she was a postulant. She looks maybe 19, and Claire said they were close in age, which makes me think they had similar upbringings.) Christie seems happy and definitely had a gift for that work. And Francesca is definitely doing the right thing by going out and adulting for a while.

I really liked this show overall. I'd be interested to see another season (although that might just be because I'm nosy about nuns) and I definitely want to see what's up after a year.

Did anyone watch that "So you wanna be a priest?" type show a few years back? It was very similar to this but with guys, I remember one of them walking for miles with a giant wooden cross for some reason? I'm really glad this show didn't pull any of those stunts. It was, for the most part, "here is the actual work we actually do", and I liked that.

[Daenerys]

I really liked this show overall. I'd be interested to see another season (although that might just be because I'm nosy about nuns) and I definitely want to see what's up after a year.

Did anyone watch that "So you wanna be a priest?" type show a few years back? It was very similar to this but with guys, I remember one of them walking for miles with a giant wooden cross for some reason? I'm really glad this show didn't pull any of those stunts. It was, for the most part, "here is the actual work we actually do", and I liked that.

Do you remember the actual name of that show? I'd be interested in giving it a watch if I can find it online anywhere.

I'd love another season of this with different convents: they showed a very small selection of the great diversity of nuns and it would be fascinating to see some more.

[misslady]

Do you remember the actual name of that show? I'd be interested in giving it a watch if I can find it online anywhere.

I'd love another season of this with different convents: they showed a very small selection of the great diversity of nuns and it would be fascinating to see some more.

Per Wikipedia, looks like it was called "God or the Girl". 6-part A&E miniseries that aired in 2006. Which feels like not that long ago but suddenly it's almost a decade? how did I get so old?

[Daenerys]

Per Wikipedia, looks like it was called "God or the Girl". 6-part A&E miniseries that aired in 2006. Which feels like not that long ago but suddenly it's almost a decade? how did I get so old?

Tell me about it! I work with kids, and writing their DOBs can be painful, I'm there thinking "you were born in 2006? How are you 8 years old?" because I see that DOB and picture a baby.

[yetanothermeg]

If you are interested in nuns, you might also want to check out the This Inspired Life podcast. One of the episodes is an interview with a young nun (I think she is in her late 20s).

[ViolaSebastian]

I have the flu, so I just started watching this to take my mind off of things. After watching the first episode, I'm stuck by how deeply awesomesauce the sisters are--they seem like just amazing people of incredible strength. I was puzzled, though, by the girls whinging about their clothes and the size of their rooms. FFS, didn't they learn that the word "cell" was originally referring to cloistered nunneries or monasteries in their bazillion years of Catholic schooling? And why on earth do they seemed surprised that they have to wear plain, dark clothing and no make-up? Isn't that what sisters are famous for the world over? Hasn't it always been that way since the dawn of religious orders? And of course you're gonna wear flats, for Pete's sake, hunky surfer Jesus is not a leg man.

It's apparent already that a couple of these young ladies need some psychological help.

[Daenerys]

I have the flu, so I just started watching this to take my mind off of things. After watching the first episode, I'm stuck by how deeply awesomesauce the sisters are--they seem like just amazing people of incredible strength. I was puzzled, though, by the girls whinging about their clothes and the size of their rooms. FFS, didn't they learn that the word "cell" was originally referring to cloistered nunneries or monasteries in their bazillion years of Catholic schooling? And why on earth do they seemed surprised that they have to wear plain, dark clothing and no make-up? Isn't that what sisters are famous for the world over? Hasn't it always been that way since the dawn of religious orders? And of course you're gonna wear flats, for Pete's sake, hunky surfer Jesus is not a leg man.

It's apparent already that a couple of these young ladies need some psychological help.

I don't think anyone on here thinks Eseni was genuine: nothing about her behaviour in the show indicates she has the first idea about what being a nun actually means, and apparently her boyfriend Darnell has been on another reality show soooo... I think they are just a famewhore couple and she was brought in to add drama.

Jury's still out for me when it comes to Francesca.

[ViolaSebastian]

Whenever Christie starts talking about dancing with Jesus, I can't help but think of this. I'm sort of bummed now that Jesus didn't ask me to senior prom. ;)

[Daenerys]

Whenever Christie starts talking about dancing with Jesus, I can't help but think of this. I'm sort of bummed now that Jesus didn't ask me to senior prom. ;)

But did you leave room for Him when you danced with your partner!!!1!!!1!

[Buzzard]

I really liked the show as well. I hope they do a follow up with the girls in a year to show where they are.

I'd also like to know the back story on Eseni and Darnell. She seems to live in the city and he lives in a gated house in Tenafly? There was no mention of what kind of work either of them do so I'd really like to know if they are a real couple or just someone stuck in there for drama. How does someone "happen" to find there way onto not one, but TWO reality shows?

I was very taken at the varying reactions from the parents. While moving away and taking vows is a big step, I'm not sure its as much of a "losing your daughter" thing as it was in the past. None of these girls would be cloistered and while they wouldnt have cell phones I'm sure they would be able to have contact with their families. Moving away is part of life.

[lilwriter85]

What reality show was Darnell on? There have been a quite of people that have managed to find their ways onto more than one reality show. You sometimes see it more on reality show competitions. American Idol has been known to take former contestants from other shows. I always thought Eseni was a plant. Not sure if Francesca was plant.