BALTIMORE (RNS) Ten Maryland nuns — almost an entire religious
\ncommunity — converted from the Episcopal Church to Catholicism on
\nThursday (Sept. 3), saying their former denomination had become too
\nliberal in its acceptance of homosexuality.<\/p>\n
\nThe ten members of the All Saints Sisters of the Poor, who were
\nreceived into the Catholic Church by Baltimore Archbishop Edwin O’Brien,
\nwill continue to live with two nuns who decided not to convert at their
\nconvent in Catonsville, Md. The community’s chaplain, the Rev. Warren
\nTanghe, also converted on Thursday with the nuns.<\/p>\n
\n“Our archdiocese and our church’s mission of caring for the poor are
\nnow greatly enriched for having the All Saints Sisters among us,”
\nO’Brien said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\nMembers of the order had been considering conversion for seven
\nyears. Mother Christina Christie, superior of the order, told the
\nBaltimore Sun: “We were drifting farther apart from the more liberal
\nroad the Episcopal Church is traveling. We are now more at home in the
\nRoman Catholic Church.”<\/p>\n
\nBy allowing gay bishops and blessings for same-sex relationships,
\nthe Episcopal Church is “way off the boat,” Christie said. Dozens of
\nparishes and the majority of four dioceses have split from the Episcopal
\nChurch since it consecrated an openly gay man as bishop of New Hampshire
\nin 2003. The church lifted a de facto ban on consecrating more gay
\nbishops at its General Convention in July.<\/p>\n
\nThe All Saints order, whose members wear traditional black habits
\nand white wimples covering their heads, was founded in England and came
\nto Baltimore in 1872.<\/p>\n
\nEpiscopal Bishop of Maryland Eugene Sutton said in a statement that
\n“despite the sadness we feel in having to say farewell, our mutual joy
\nis that we remain as one spiritual family of faith, one body in Christ.”\n<\/p>\n
By Daniel Burke BALTIMORE (RNS) Ten Maryland nuns — almost an entire religious community — converted from the Episcopal Church to Catholicism on Thursday (Sept. 3), saying their former denomination had become too liberal in its acceptance of homosexuality. The ten members of the All Saints Sisters of the Poor, who were received into the Catholic Church by…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n
\nCopyright 2009 Religion News Service. All rights reserved. No part of
\nthis transmission may be distributed or reproduced without written
\npermission.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"