Why would consecrated virgins deprive themselves of a fulfilling and lifegiving human marriage? Isn’t a life of chastity just a life of deprivation? Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn talk about how chastity is feasting as well as fasting. Being dependent only on Christ’s love is not to be empty or lacking, but to be full. They talk about how chastity is a deep integration within ourselves, so as to be able to make a complete self-gift. Chastity allows for a life where, “He will have your heart for himself alone, and he will sit a King upon his own throne” (The Imitation of Christ). Key quote: “This is the vocation of the bride: to be full of love. …And you know that any vessel that is brimming full will always spill over. You cannot move it without it spilling over.”

What do we do when we experience big emotions, crises or overwhelming fear? How do we stay in the ‘sacrament of the present moment’? Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn talk about how we walk steadily forward as brides of Jesus Christ. They discuss being vigilant and attentiveness to signs that we are ‘declining’ from our vocation as brides.    We continue our book study of “My Beloved Is Mine and I Am His: Meditations on Brideship” - by Mother Mary Francis PCC, particularly the sections Walking on in Faith, Non Declinare, Inclinare, and Reclinare.    Buy the book here: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Beloved-Mine-His-Meditations-Brideship/dp/1685951597⁠ or download here: ⁠https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hAdD_WW1xNglsgWHR90HDlUme2Rs4H1y/view?usp=share_link⁠  Key quote: "When things seem wrong, it is only because my vision is limited and will never be corrected except in the trust of leaning back in his arms. This is what all contemplative prayer is meant to be."

Are we not vulnerable as brides of Christ? In this episode, we talk about how, living with Christ as our "Head," we rightly have tremendous bridal confidence. St. Therese's Little Way teaches us the confidence that complete surrender and reliance on Christ gives us. In Mother Mary Francis' words, "A bride who is confident puts down the anchor of her soul, and then she was ready for all that God would send her." We continue our book study of “My Beloved Is Mine and I Am His: Meditations on Brideship” - by Mother Mary Francis PCC, particularly the sections Eternal Values and Churchliness. Buy the book here: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Beloved-Mine-His-Meditations-Brideship/dp/1685951597⁠ or download here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hAdD_WW1xNglsgWHR90HDlUme2Rs4H1y/view?usp=share_link  Key quote: “No one who is not willing to suffer at times the great loneliness of soul Christ our Lord himself suffered should try to live as a consecrated person.” 

"To be a woman is to love and to suffer."  Is this not a demeaning statement to make about the vocation of woman? Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn talk about discovering the fullness of life and of womanhood. They talk about the risks of the opposite of bridal surrender: pettiness and self-absorption. The bride of Christ is completely surrendered when she is "totally occupied with what we are supposed to be doing" (p27). We continue our book study of “My Beloved Is Mine and I Am His: Meditations on Brideship” - by Mother Mary Francis PCC, particularly the sections All the Days of Her Life, Nurturing, and Complete Surrender. Buy the book here: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Beloved-Mine-His-Meditations-Brideship/dp/1685951597⁠ or download here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hAdD_WW1xNglsgWHR90HDlUme2Rs4H1y/view?usp=share_link  Key quote: "A woman is most a woman when she is giving: giving her service, giving herself. A nun [or consecrated virgin] is most a nun when the fullness of her surrender to God is evidenced in her consuming desire to give her energies to souls." p33

The spirituality of brideship is at the heart of consecrated virginity, but isn't it sentimental, sugary, or even spiritual eroticism? Karen, Hannah, Simi and Dawn talk about the true and all-demanding reality of brideship. It is the vocation of allowing Jesus to provide everything. It is the strongest force there is.  We begin our book study of “My Beloved Is Mine and I Am His: Meditations on Brideship” - by Mother Mary Francis PCC. Buy the book here: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Beloved-Mine-His-Meditations-Brideship/dp/1685951597⁠ or download here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hAdD_WW1xNglsgWHR90HDlUme2Rs4H1y/view?usp=share_link  Key quote: “[A bride] has a woman’s security of being greatly loved and cherished by a Lover. And when a woman has this security of being loved, there is really nothing that she cannot do. There is nothing that she cannot bear; there is nothing that she cannot find courage to face.” p66

What does it mean to live a “public” vocation? How do you discern public consecration, versus taking a private vow? And what does this look like in different aspects of our lives, including our online lives? In this final episode of season 1, Karen, Hannah, Simi and Dawn share their experiences of living their witness as consecrated virgins publicly.  Season 2 Announcement! Join us in September as we read together “My Beloved Is Mine and I Am His: Meditations on Brideship” - by Mother Mary Francis PCC. Buy here: https://www.amazon.com/Beloved-Mine-His-Meditations-Brideship/dp/1685951597

How can we as brides of Christ live radically guided by the Holy Spirit? What are the practical ways that we respond daily to the promptings of the Counsellor and Comforter? How do we experience him as the greatest Formator of our lives? In the days leading up to Pentecost, Karen, Hannah, Simi and Dawn talk about the profound and unique relationship between virginity and life in the Spirit. 

What is it like to tell your family and friends for the very first time you are discerning consecrated virginity? How do you navigate your family not understanding or rejecting your vocation? What are the best ways to approach your diocese? Karen, Simi, Dawn and Hannah share their own experiences, and offer advice for broaching the subject with family and friends. 

How can consecrated virgins be spiritual mothers? In this month of May dedicated to Mary, we explore the topic of spiritual motherhood. What does it mean to foster a hospitable interiority to receive others? How can our motherhood be both tenderly soft and fiercely protective? And is spiritual motherhood is fulfilling as biological motherhood? 

It’s Holy Week and we are diving into experiences of desolation in our lives. Why is it especially important for consecrated virgins to learn how to live and pray through desolation well? When do we need to push in further, and when might we need to make a change? And does darkness ever make us doubt our vocation?

What does it mean to live a vocation that is at the heart of the Church - as well as at the heart of the world? What does the relationship look like with our dioceses and bishops, and what is the formation process like for consecrated virgins? Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn also talk about avoiding temptations to bitterness and developing a perceiving and interceding feminine heart for the local Church.

What are the differences between consecrated virgins and religious sisters? If sisterhood is not essential to the life of a consecrated virgin, why do we seek it out? Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn talk about what sisterhood with other CVs can look like, and the pitfalls of not having such sisterhood in our lives.

If consecrated virgins don’t have community built into their lives in the form of family, or religious community, does that mean being lonely? If we are called to pour out in ministry, who is pouring into us? Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn talk about the essential nature of friendship - of having those in my life who love me as “another self” - in order to enjoy the fullness of life as consecrated virgins.

Is it really possible to find silence and solitude in the busyness of the world? How do we keep solitude at the service of mission? What does it look like for an extrovert and for an introvert? (And which of us are which??!) Karen, Simi, Hannah and Dawn discuss these questions.....alongside a little light-hearted chat about fashion! 

Karen, Hannah, Simi and Dawn talk about how they experienced the call to live “in the world.” What does it mean about God’s love for the world, and why is it such a gift to this particular moment in history? How is our life different from how religious sisters live in the convent, and what are the challenges of living in the world? And, how do we know what the line is between being “in the world” and “just worldly”?

Karen, Hannah, Simi and Dawn talk about what daily life looks like a consecrated virgin. What work do they do? What are the joys and challenges of consecrated virginity lived in the world? How do they find balance between prayer, work, and time for others?

Karen, Hannah, Simi, and Dawn share more about the inspiration behind the 'Wildflower Reunion' podcast. Why 'Wildflower Reunion'? What is consecrated virginity? They share more about who they are, how they were called to the vocation of consecrated virginity, and how they came to be friends. You can find 2018 Instruction from the Vatican on consecrated virginity, Ecclesiae Sponsae Imago, here.