Religious vows today: between promise and renunciation
From 18 to 21 May 2025, this year’s General meeting of the German Conference of Superiors of Religious Orders (DOK) took place in Vallendar. Our Secretary General, Sister Marjolein Bruinen, was there. Focusing on the theme of ‘religious vows’, superiors, religious sisters and brothers came together to reflect on what it means today to live a life of poverty, obedience and celibacy in the midst of a rapidly changing society.
In a highly acclaimed lecture, the Capuchin friar and theologian Dr. Stefan Walser spoke about the tension between ‘promise and renunciation’. His core idea: those who choose religious life do not do so to renounce something, but because they have discovered something so precious that they cannot live without it. Renunciation is a consequence of this – it is a means, not an end. Especially in times of climate crisis and social reorientation, this spiritual approach to renunciation can be inspiring.
The theologian and Franciscan Sister Dr. Margareta Gruber approached the topic from a different angle: she spoke about ‘devotion’ as a basic attitude – not as passive surrender, but as active, free ‘abandonment’. She pointed out how important it is to question outdated interpretations, especially where devotion has been associated with oppression. Her contribution made it clear that obedience in religious life today means more than ever making decisions together and taking responsibility for one another.
In various workshops, participants discussed how religious rules and vows can be lived out in a concrete and realistic way today – in different stages of life, cultures and communities. There was also open discussion about spiritual autonomy, co-determination and protection against spiritual abuse of power.
Bishop Dr. Michael Gerber, Vice-Chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference, was a guest in Vallendar and called for people not to lose courage in the current crisis facing the Church. Instead, he said, it was necessary to rediscover one’s vocation in the “now” – not from the past, but from the reality of today. It was important to remain alert to new beginnings.
The meeting ended with a heartfelt congratulatory message written by all participants to Pope Leo XIV, who is well known to many as the former Prior General of the Augustinian Order. The DOK welcomed his focus on synodality as an important path for the Church and offered to contribute its own experiences from Germany to the global exchange.
