thank you for this one, we can’t wait to see it, we will watch Oprah as well, “just this once”!

I won’t miss it!

Oprah’s show summary says “Lisa Ling Goes Inside the World of a Modern Geisha and a Real-Life Nunnery”.  That’s interesting…having those 2 topics in the same show…well, I will watch it and hopefully the Nuns will be portrayed well.

Whats funny about this episode is that Lisa Ling also reports on the life of a geisha.

The Dominican Sisters, Mary Mother of the Eucharist have been great friends of CatholicTV.  We were pleased to offer footage of other orders for the Oprah show so be on the lookout for the Sisters of Mercy and Sisters of Notre Dame!

Also - the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious taped their Formator’s Workshop at our studios check it out at the website above

They were interviewed on Al Kresta the other night and it sounded like the sister’s were pleased with how respectful the Oprah crew was.  Apparently they were very curious and could not understand WHY a woman would CHOOSE to live a life as a nun!  But supposedly Lisa Ling wants to go back for a retreat?  Let’s pray it will be a witness to the world!

I am setting the DVR to check this out.  The juxtaposition of geisha/nun is interesting to put it mildly.  Thanks for letting us know as I NEVER pay attention to what Oprah is doing on her show and would have missed it.  This order iof nuns is so amazing!  They are really flourishing and it is great to see.  Looking forward to the show.

Thank you for the alert.  I have to say I wonder at her motive in including them in her program.  Perhaps it’s the total juxtaposition of the two groups.  Her comments following the segments may be interesting.  Somehow, I just can’t imagine her being complementary to the sister’s choice of life, or understanding their inner call to follow Christ—especially since she herself, as far as I can understand, sees Him as being a “Cosmic Master”, which we can all become.

Despite what Oprah may try to do to or say about the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, the point is they will have a national audience and God can reach so many hearts through what may be unthinkable means.  I applaud the sisters for opening themselves up to the world in this way.  Our prayers are with them!

I can’t wait to watch this.  We have a mission in Loomis, California run by the sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist.  I get to share daily morning mass with them, before they run off to teach school and I go to work, and I even had the pleasure of taking a Catechism class at the University of Sacramento where one of the sisters taught a portion of the class.  They are sweet and genuine people.  For a while before I got married to my wonderful husband I contemplated joining this order because of their devotion to the church, it’s teachings and they embrace the wearing of a full habit.  Such inspiration.  I truly hope that Oprah “sees” what a true vocation looks like and becomes interested in the Catholic faith.  Maybe she’ll be so inspired by these sisters she could possibly convert?  Who knows?  Only God.

From what I’ve seen so far, it is a misunderstanding that Geishas are prostitutes or consorts.  Geisha literally means artist and it seems to be a discipline or way of life that these women share with others and not something immoral in any way.  Like any profession, the woman said, would you judge all the women based on what just a few have done?  She said at the end of the piece that she wanted to emphasize that sex has never been a part of who a Geisha is and when Japan banned prostitution the Geishas were not even included in the ban because the Japanese have never made the mistake, like many Americans and Europeans, of believing Geisha were prostitutes or engaged in such behavior.  Fascinating!  Amazing that these women have preserved the arts of dance, music and tea pouring and dress in super modern Japan!

AMAZING!  I thought the Dominican Sisters were treated with such respect!  They women who spoke on the show are so articulate and explained their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience so eloquently and I actually cried at how very beautiful they spoke of being married to Christ - they did not mince words or dilute the truth AT ALL! They spoke the truth of their love for Christ boldly and without apology.  One woman even spoke of how God takes care of everything - she said she was dating a young man who she loved very much and they were even going to marry - his sister became a nun and soon after she felt the calling and I burst into tears when she said that he would be ordained a priest nearly the same time she would take her final vows!!!!  AMAZING!  God is good, they kept saying it.  And they all spoke of their calling - which was tough to express adequately, but they often equated it to lacking peace in their lives and no matter where they turned or what they did to fill their lives with stuff, a career and even the right man, there remained something missing… so it seems the calling is a very real and obvious thing.  They spoke of marriage and sexuality and how they lived a very integrated life where they are married to Christ and express their sexuality as having reclaimed their dignity as a person and it manifests in their expressions of love and service to others.  Beautiful!!  These women are PERFECT spokespersons for the faith and for the religious life!!!  I was truly truly impressed!!  They should do youtube videos on the religious life and spread the word!!!!

I am so truly moved by this show!  Oprah LEARNED so much from these women!  Such a beautiful testament to the Catholic faith!!  I cannot say enough how wonderful this is and it should be seen by young women as even the head sister, oh dear, what is her proper title?? - she even carried a blackberry with her to stay in touch with young women interested in religious life!  the sisters pray and play together and they all seem so very happy.  They entire subject of religious life was treated so reverently.  Thank God!!  The sisters all talked of the troubles of modern life (dropping such key terms as facebook) and even Oprah could agree how materialistic we’ve become as a society.  She didn’t even argue with the struggles and ills of a misused sexuality and how healing might actually be found in a convent of all places!  And the sister who spoke of her troubled youth and growing up in poverty and around drug use and how when she went away to college she discovered her calling and knew she could help others and lead a better life through Christ!!!  oh I will be talking about this show for weeks!!!!

I am NOT an Oprah fan, but this really was for the greater glory of God! The sisters were so well spoken and answered such absurd questions with absolute grace and confidence.  One sister did an absolutely miraculous job of explaining how sexual desire is a natural part of being human, just like one might desire chocolate.  The desire does not have to be indulged in, and not indulging in a particular desire does not equal repression.  She explained it so much better, believe me!

WOW! I am so glad you sent an alert that the sisters were going to be on Oprah! It was fantastic to see their beautiful. living witness of God’s love. I hope it inspire people everywhere!

Wow… I was very impressed by today’s show! Of course Oprah asked those typical questions of “How can you live without sex, or how can you take a vow of poverty?” The nuns answered so well and so full of joy! And Oprah DID learn…she even admitted she was ignorant on a lot of things regarding relgious life. I think this was a door opened to a lot of people out there in our overly-secular culture who don’t have a clue about religious life!

I was pleased that the sister’s did such a great job. I believe many hearts were touched. I also was impressed with Lisa Ling, she actually stuck up for the sisters and shared how the sisters were “free” living in the convent. I canl’t wait to see what God has in store for those who were touched by this show.

My prayer after seeing that program and listening to the sisters is that someone whose heart is yearning for something they have not been able to define will search a little farther. As the sisters mentioned many are from homes where their vocations were discouraged, might they never have been open to vocations as well ? Many of these girls ( like the young girls on the streets on Japan ) , may not have ever considered the life of a sister, since they are removed from contact with women such as these. Another note, as the pope has asked priests to go forth and blog, so have the sisters followed the cultural approach, by allowing a respectful look into the windows of their lives.

I would call this interview “thinking ourtside of the box”; Opah was courteous and respectful with her QS.  The themes of the interview was apparent: how to avoid stereotyping, misconceptions and prejudgements regarding an individual’s choice of vocation.  In this case, the first interview was about a profession; the second, about a vocation.  The most important theme that surfaced from the second inteview was “family spirit” and I believe, the Dominicans examplified this most appropriately by their honest and insightful responses to Opah’s QS.  Ophah represents us who continue to eface the priesthood and religious life by the media and our own insuffient understanding of God’s calling and accepting a vocation rather than profession; these Domincans have broken the mold of steretyping, that the “the nun with ruler in hand”.  I pray in this Year of the Priest, my brother priests review this interview and accept the challenge of “thinking outside of the box” in regards to inviting men and women to the accept God’s calling as a priest, bother, or sister.  “Be not afraid!”

I loved Lisa Ling’s comment at the end.  She pointed out how everyone thinks nuns live these strict lives with no freedom, yet really it is the opposite.  Those who do not dedicate their lives to God are usually controlled by society so they can never feel skinny enough or rich enough or successful enough and are tied down by the constraints of society.  However, these nuns have no ties to objects or finances so they are completely free and therefore full of joy.