Sponsa Regis - October 1962 - Volume 34 - Number 2 - A Spiritual Review for Sister S

Sep 21, 2026

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October 1962 issue of Sponsa Regis presents a spiritual review with featured articles on the meaning and excellence of the religious vocation and on the challenge of poverty. The issue includes a poem and additional editorial and administrative information, along with book reviews and publication credits. It frames vocation as a distinctive divine gift within salvation history and emphasizes that no one is better than another without receiving a greater grace from God, offering reflective, faith-based guidance for readers.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages40

Reading Time1 h 41 min

AccessFree to download

The Meaning and Excellence of the Religious Vocation

The Challenge of Poverty

Poem

The Cliff Face

Book Reviews

Gladly therefore I woill glory in my infirmifies, that the strength of Christ may dvoell in me. II Cor.12:9 SPONSA RECIS A SPIRITUAL REVIEW FOR SISTER S OCTOBER 1962VOLUME 34NUMBER 2 The Meaning and Excellence of the Religious Vocation 35CHARLES A.SCHLECK,C.S.C. The Challenge of Poverty 49KARL RAHNER,S.J. Poem 57 EVE TRIEM The Cliff Face 58BARBARA DENT Book Reviews 63 NIHIL OBSTAT:Reinold Theisen,O.S.B.,Censor deput.IMPRIMATUR:※Peter W.Bartholome,D.D.,Episc.Sancti Clodoaldi. Published monthly by monks of Saint John's Abbey,Collegeville,Minnesota.Rev.Kilian McDonnell,O.S.B.,Editor;Rev.Ronald Roloff,O.S.B.,ManagingEditor;Rev.Raymond Roseliep,Poetry Editor.Advisory Board:Sister Rita-mary Bradley,C.H.M.,Sister M.Rose Emmanuella Brennan,S.N.J.M.,Sister M.Emmanuel Collins,O.S.F.,Mother Mary Robert Falls,O.S.U.,Sister M.Jean Frances Fiffe,O.P.,Sister M.Jeremy Hall,O.S.B.,Sister M.JeromeKeeler,O.S.B.,Sister M.Teresa Francis McDade,B.V.M.,Sister Mary VirginiaMicka,C.S.J.,Sister M.Charles Borromeo Muckerhirn,C.S.C.,Sister MaryEmil Penet,I.H.M.,Sister.Mary James Walsh,S.N.D.,Sister Annette Walters, C.S.J.,Mother Mary Florence Wolff,S.L.,Sister M.Francine Zeller,O.S.F. Address all correspondence except poetry to Sponsa Regis,Saint John's Abbey,Collegeville,Minnesota.(Checks payable to Sponsa Regis.)Poetry shouldbe addressed to Rev.Raymond Roseliep,Loras College,Dubuque,Iowa.1 year $2.50;2 years $4.00;single copy 25 cents.Sterling area(exceptAustralia):1 year 18s;2 years 29s;single copy 1s 11d.Australia:1 year 23S;2 years 37s;single copy 2s 3d.Indexed in the Catholic Periodical Index.Printed by Sentinel Publishing Company,413 East Saint Germain Street,Saint Cloud,Minnesota.Second class postage paid at Saint Cloud,Minnesota.(Do not send mail to this address.) # The Meaning and Excellence ofthe Religious Vocation CHARLES A.SCHLECK,C.S.C. So often we speak about the excellence of a religious vocation,andyet the full meaning of such a phenomenon in the orderly beautyof the plan of faith is often overlooked.Perhaps this is becausethe eyes of so many of those whom God has called to the romanceof romances and to the most beautiful of all love stories—thelove story of a human soul with its God—have not been squarelyfocused on the gift.And so its deep knowledge and meaning,itsuniqueness as a singular intervention of God in the salvation historyof both the Church and certain of its members,has either beenlost,or neglected,or only partially understood. We often speak of the grace of a religious vocation,and yetso often fail to analyze what it is:And that is a pity,a divinepity we might say;because it is one of the most beautiful giftswhich God could possibly have given to human creatures.For itis a mark of his special love for one that he does not show toanother,any more than he showed the vocation and grace of thedivine maternity to anyone but the Virgin of Nazareth.Her grace,as we know,was singular in the over-all dimensions of God's deal-ings with men.In speaking of Mary's vocation we are told thatshe received an abundance of grace both by way of intensity andextension,or by way of intimacy with God and universality ofoperation,that was second only to that of her divine Son himself.This was necessitated by the role for which God had cast her—the physical motherhood of the God-man and the spiritual mother-hood of his Mystical Body and spouse,the Church.While Marywas,in a sense,owed the grace necessary for her to fulfill thisrole,still her election to that role was the effect uniquely of God'sgood pleasure,of his special and singular love for her beyond herfellows. In a way,this was out of the ordinary;yet in another way itwas not.For the whole love story of God with man which is sacred history presents us with a series of similar incidents.Thereis the story,for example,of Cain and Abel:how God preferredthe sacrifice of Abel to that of Cain even though he did not rejectthe sacrifice of the latter.There is t

FAQs

What theme does the issue present regarding the religious vocation?

It explains the religious vocation as a uniquely divine gift within the orderly beauty of God’s plan, rooted in grace and salvation history.

How does the issue relate vocation and election in sacred history?

It connects the mystery of specific callings—such as Abel, Abraham, Moses, Israel, and Mary—showing that God’s preference is an extra gift rather than injustice.

What is the issue’s stance on inequality among people in God’s love?

It states that no one is said to be better than another unless he has received a greater gift from God, and that divine love is special, intimate, and personal for each.

Sep 21, 2026

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