DETROIT – The Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist — which has exploded in size from four sisters in 1997, when it was founded, to 113 today and was featured on a segment of “Oprah” this year — is burnishing its national profile with a tentative purchase of the John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, D.C.
The Ann Arbor, Mich., congregation is made up mostly of young women who adhere to old-fashioned dress, wearing floor-length habits and taking new names upon entering the convent.
At a time when the number of Catholic sisters is declining, the traditional methods of the Dominican order attracted 22 new members this year alone. The average age of women who enter is 21, and the average age of the sisters is 26, a sharp contrast to many other long-established Catholic congregations.
