How wearing religious clothing publicly can work conversions

Wearing religious garb publicly, whether cassock, biretta, habit, etc., was at one time a no-brainer act for all priestly and religious vocations.  It was always understood to give a public witness to the Faith, and serve as a tool for evangelization.  Even Hollywood has picked up on this, and invariably portrays priests and religious in traditional habits.  But many in the Church have forgotten this elemental truth over the past few decades.  A very handy post from Fr. Peter Carota – who you should read daily! – notes the conversion experience of one secular woman who found herself having a strange fascination towards nuns once she saw some habited nuns in Rome.  From that simple witness, a heart was gradually changed:

“I went to live in Spain for the college “Junior Year Study Abroad” program. I was raised Protestant (though 3 of my 4 grandparents were Catholic), but I did not like religion much, and really didn’t care one way or the other about Catholicism — about which I knew nothing. I visited Rome during my Christmas break, and became completely mesmerized by the beautiful nuns in full black habits who seemed like angels to me. I was at the point of making a very big decision in my life. I was deciding, at the age of 21, that I did not need God. I never had felt any closeness to Him, and I believed it was time for me to decide whether or not I wanted God in my life. I decided, “no I did not.” Still I loved the nuns.

A few weeks later I found myself — traveling alone — in a train station somewhere outside of Madrid late one night. I had travelled out of this station a few days earlier and had boarded the wrong train because the trains came flying in, stopped for a few seconds, then disappeared into the night. I nervously watched the trains come and go, trying to understand the staticky Spanish over the P.A. system announcing each train. Suddenly two beautiful nuns came up to me and asked me where I was going. I said, “Madrid.” They said, “We are too. Come on.” They each took my by the arm, one on each side, and whisked me onto the right train. We arrived in Madrid in the middle of the night.The train station was full of a lot of scary-looking men, but the nuns held on tight to me as we sailed past. I was amazed to see those rough men cross themselves at the sight of these two holy women. The sisters saw me to my destination – at 3 o’clock in the morning.

I did stick to my plan of rejecting God. I became a very immoral college girl! But I always cherished those sweet sisters who took care of me. I collected all kinds of things with nuns — pictures, dolls, magnets, you name it. Everyone who knew me bought me nun gifts because they knew of my fascination. So I guess no one was really surprised when I eventually converted to the Catholic faith. (That’s another story.)

Now I’ve discovered Tradition, and I pray that more nuns will wear those beautiful habits. That simple act of dressing in the habit will bring many souls to the Church. Cradle Catholics, especially priests, have no idea of the positive outcome they would have if more of them dressed like priests in public. People are fascinated by men and women in traditional Catholic religious garb. Sad to say that the last time I saw a “priest” wearing clerical garb in public was at my neighbor’s son’s birthday party. The “priest” was a woman from the Episcopal church sporting her black shirt and Roman collar, and shorts!” [Sheesh]

————-End Quote————–

Simply wearing the habit of one’s God-given vocation can make a huge difference in the lives of people outside the Church.  They see that cassock or that habit and they know they are seeing something beyond them, beyond normal experience.  It makes me sad when priests only wear their “clerics” around church, and doff them at the earliest opportunity.  And it makes my heart sing when I see young priests in cassock and biretta, giving public witness to our faith.  We need much more of that.

Fr. Carota has really been on a roll of late. Here and here are two more really good posts you should read.  I should really take up a Novena for Fr. Carota. Speaking the Truth so plainly, hitting so many of the forbidden topics and outrageous hypocrisies of the post-conciliar Church, I fear the hammer will fall on him at some point.