The community faithfully responded to the call of Vatican II and Perfectae Caritatis to update their lives.
The years following the conclusion of Vatican II and into the 1970’s were years of study, discussion, experimentation, adaptation, and change. Some changes were visible, such as attire and the expansion of the types of ministries in which Sisters were engaged. Other changes were less visible outside the community, such as greater collegiality in community decision making and changes in how Sisters discerned their ministries with the Prioress.
A key question in this era and in the years following was the nature of monastic identity in 20th century America given the Sisters’ unique history of having been called from European cloister into active ministry among a 19th century immigrant population by virtue of the task for which they had been called to North America. With European cloister as a distant heritage and active ministry, mostly in education, as their North American context and recent history, the Sisters made significant efforts to delve into their monastic heritage.