Clothed For Mission

From its foundation, the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity (SOLT) has been intensely focused on mission — going wherever the Church has great need. The emphasis has always been on the work of evangelization, serving the poor, providing access to the sacraments, and working for the salvation of souls. What we wore was always of lesser importance than the work we were called to do. As a result, there was not as much of a drive to make sure that every member of our community owned a habit or that they were all made the same way or that they were easily accessible. 

But today, the world and the communities we serve also need visible signs of who we are. In a culture where religious identity is often hidden or misunderstood, the public witness of a priest or brother in habit speaks before he says a word. "The Church must always seek to make her presence visible in everyday life, especially in contemporary culture, which is often very secularized and yet sensitive to the language of signs" and the Church is "strongly recommending to men and women religious that they wear their proper habit" (Vita Consecrata, 25). The habit makes our consecration a visible sign. It tells the world that we have been set apart by our consecration to God through the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience. It tells the world that we are His. The religious habit is "a sign of consecration, poverty and membership in a particular Religious family" (VC, 25). It tells the world that we are a member of SOLT and that we are proud to be a member of SOLT.

This witness has a profound impact on vocations. And we need your help to provide this witness.

The 2023 General Chapter commissioned a task force to address the issue of systematizing the style, material, and production of the SOLT habit such that consistency, uniformity, and availability be achieved. While the majority of our men legitimately wear black clerics in everyday life, the General Chapter also described the need to express a greater emphasis on our common consecration by highly encouraging our men to wear their SOLT habit on:

• Foundation Day (July 16th)
• The Solemnities of Annunciation (March 25th), Trinity Sunday, Assumption (August 15th), and Christ the King
• The days when SOLT priests/brothers, sisters and lay make public professions or commitments
• World Day of Consecrated Life / Presentation (Feb 2nd)
• When attending formal ecclesiastical events

The only problem is: Not every priest has a habit that fits. Not every priest has a habit in good shape. Not every priest has a habit.

The committee has been hard at work finding the right pattern, the right material, the right tailor. And now we are ready. The only thing we need now is the funds to make this happen.

The cost is:

• $150 habit
• $15 crucifix/leather cord
• $20 belt
• $15 shipping

Total: $200

(A habit roughly lasts 8-10 years depending on the wear and tear of the mission.)

We have about 50 active members in the American Region and 6 novices who hope to receive their habits this July.

We are looking to raise somewhere between $10,000-$12,000. 

Your generosity can directly support the production and availability of SOLT habits for our priests and brothers - ensuring that those called to visible consecrated life have access to a dignified, unified, and a mission-ready habit.

By investing in a habit, you are investing in evangelization, identity, a public witness to Christ, and future generations of vocations in SOLT.

Would you prayerfully consider sponsoring a SOLT habit today for one of our priests or brothers?