By Angela E. Pometto
Herald Staff Writer
(From the issue of 10/21/04)

"It’s meant to be a celebration of the women," said Dan Callahan, director of the newest exhibit at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center. "God’s Women: Nuns in America" celebrates the impact that religious sisters have had on American history and culture.

The overarching theme is that of joy. The women called to serve God are filled with joy in their vocation, and this reaches out to the people they serve and to society as a whole.

"They are woven into the history of this country," said Penny Fletcher, the center’s deputy director. "Their vocation won people over."

The exhibit, set in a smaller room of the Cultural Center, is a tribute to nuns in America. It begins with a collection of over 50 nun dolls from the 1950s that was assembled by A.R. Kirschling of Green Bay, Wis., and is on loan from the Museum of Catholic Art and History in New York City. The dolls’ habits were made by the various orders and are authentically detailed from the special medals and rosaries to the fabric used.

"It’s a time capsule of what habits were like in the 1950s," said Callahan.

The accompanying exhibit cases are dedicated to different aspects of the religious life as seen through American history.

In the early 1800s, nuns were feared by many, said Fletcher. During the Civil War and the Spanish American War, many nuns helped care for wounded soldiers. This dispelled many of the misconceptions.

According to Callahan, Abraham Lincoln once entered a nursing tent and witnessed a nun caring for a soldier. He was so moved that he had a painting commissioned, a copy of which is now on display, to honor the nuns and their work in the field.

"Of all forms of charity and benevolence seen in the crowded wards in the hospitals, those of some Catholic sisters were among the most efficient," Lincoln said in a quote displayed at the exhibit.

Other displays pay tribute to religious sisters of color as well as nuns who worked in medicine and education. Several items were donated from old schools, including a desk and ink well, and some old science lab equipment, showing that nuns were teaching science in the 1890s, Fletcher said.

Two American saints especially honored are Sts. Katharine Drexel and Elizabeth Ann Seton.

In a cavalcade of video clips, the familiar faces of Ingrid Bergman, Audrey Hepburn, Debbie Reynolds, Mary Tyler Moore, Rosie O’Donnell, Jodi Foster, Maggie Smith and Whoopi Goldberg all appeared behind a nun’s habit.

In every decade since the invention of moving pictures, there has been at least one major movie involving a nun as a main character, said Fletcher.

The movies hint at what Americans thought of nuns at the time, said Callahan.

On the farthest wall, six contemporary women religious tell their stories and offer advice to those still discerning. The one repeated word is joy, Fletcher said.

Among these examples, are Benedictine Mother Dolores Hart and Sister Helen Prejean, of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Medaille. Mother Hart acted in old movies such as "King Creole" with Elvis and "Where the Boys Are." Her final role was St. Claire in "St. Francis of Assisi." While acting, she felt drawn to that way of life. After the film was completed, she joined a cloistered order.

"There is a great joy that comes out of her letters," Callahan said of Mother Hart.

Sister Prejean wrote Dead Man Walking, the story about a man on death row, turned into a movie starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn.

According to Fletcher, the nuns have been excited to contribute to the exhibit. She and Callahan hope to make arrangements to expand it in the future and feature the different orders for their anniversaries.

"We know this is an exhibit that awakens curiosity," Fletcher said. "It tells a compelling story."

The exhibit runs through Jan. 30 at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, 3900 Harewood Rd., N.E., Washington. For information call 202/635-5400 or go to www.jp2cc.org.