Why take the veil?

After the success of “The monastery”, “The Convent” and “The silence”, all programs on life in the convent, on October 25, BBC broadcast on Channel 1 a documentary that follows the stories of two young women as they prepare to become nuns. Clara is 23. She recently graduated but she’s considering entering the Benedictine convent of Saint Cecilia in Ryde, on the island of Wight. Catherine is 25. She holds a degree in foreign languages. She’s considering her vocation with the Dominican Sisters of Saint Joseph in the New Forest. For the first time we share the experience of women as they choose religious life and their families’ reactions. Sr. Cathy Jones, from the National Vocations Office, and the BBC program’s director and producer Vicky Mitchell, told SIR Europe how the documentary came into being.How come you decided to tackle this specific subject?“When I was in college I remember observing the nuns going in and out of the convent located across the campus and ask in myself what could have brought women from my generation to make such a radical, difficult choice. Ten years later, having become a TV producer, I decided to dedicate my free time and weekends to answer that question. I went on religious retreats organized by the ‘Youth 2000’ organization and by the National Vocations Office, and I lived in religious communities, for a total of approximately eight months. Then I proposed the idea to the BBC, and they accepted”.How come did it take you so long only to carry out background research on the program prior to presenting the project to the BBC? And were you motivated by a personal interest? “I was fascinated by a topic of which I knew very little. I also thought that as it was a very delicate time in the lives as these young women, who were choosing their vocation, it was important not to approach them with the anxiety of wanting to produce a documentary. The sisters I have met said they thought that deep down, I myself was interested in religious life. I must say that if it is true, I certainly was unaware of it. But I must say that a part of me has changed after having shared these religious experiences, although at the moment I do not know where it will bring me”.Sr. Cathy Jones, what do you think of the documentary “Young nuns?”“It’s very well done. I believe that it could attract new young vocations since it delves into the reasons that brought these young women to decide to enter a Convent”.In the programs we see young women preparing to enter the convent. In 2010, in England and Wales, 14 out of 20 women preparing to take the veil were 20 to 30 years old. According to the National Vocations Office in the past five years the percentage of women under 40 preparing to enter the convent raised from 42% in 2006 to 70% in 2010. Is it true that vocations to religious life involve increasingly younger age brackets? “Indeed, this has been the trend over the past two years. At the Invocation Festival, out or more than one hundred young women and men discerning whether to start a religious life. This was unconceivable a few years ago, when on average, those preparing for the priesthood or for the convent were no younger than fifty”.Why do vocations involve twenty-year-olds today? “I think there are greater opportunities for discernment, to understand if there is a real call from God. The program ‘Compass’ launched by Worth Abbey, in the South of England, is having success also in the rest of the Country. It is a major commitment, involving a weekend a month and the entire Holy Week. There are also other groups where one meets once a month with a spiritual direction. On these occasions the youths find that the support of the group of their peers is very important. I also think that the Pope’s visit and the beatification of John Henry Newman contributed to the emergence of the question of what God wants from them”. How do you explain the interest of such a secular society like that of Great Britain for the BBC religious programs, which attract high numbers of viewers? “It is my belief that everyone seeks a meaning to one’s life and happiness. ‘Young nuns’ shows the life of happy people, deeply in love with themselves and with God. I believe that this is what we are all seeking. Unfortunately in our societies many people are too busy seeking to achieve different targets that they consider crucial for their happiness, while they loose track of what really counts. In my opinion many people, also in England, identify themselves as Christian. This is why there is a deep interest for Christian life and for the life of the religious”.