RELIGIOUS LIFE SISTER SHANNON FOX, S.S.J.-T.O.S.F. is joined by Sister Kimberly Mulhearn, S.S.J.-T.O.S.F. and a fellow sister from Giving Voice during Pope Francis' 2015 visit to Washington, D.C.
9 Sister Shannon Fox, S.S.J.T.O.S.F. is a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of St. Francis, based in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. She lives in Chicago and ministers as a special education teacher at Clare Woods Academy.
things religious life has to offer
by Sister Shannon Fox, S.S.J-T.O.S.F.
Sometimes people think religious life is mostly about giving things up. But there is much to be gained when your true vocation is to be a sister, brother, or priest.
A
N ARTICLE I recently read listed all the things you have to “give up” when entering religious life: marriage, children, a personal house, and—at least for singles—a great deal of autonomy. It’s true you make sacrifices when you join a religious community, just as with any life commitment, but I have found the sacrifices I make help me to be a better person. They have left me free to live more fully. I have gained much in the process of living out my call as a Franciscan, and I share with you my own list, knowing that each religious would write his or her list a little bit differently.
54 | VISION 2017 | VocationNetwork.org
