Collection for retired religious Dec. 6-7

Published: December 5, 2014

The 27th national collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious will be held Dec. 6-7 in the Diocese of Little Rock. The annual, parish-based appeal is coordinated by the National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) in Washington and benefits more than 35,000 senior Catholic sisters, brothers and religious order priests.

Last year, the Diocese of Little Rock contributed $147,174.24 to this collection. In 2014, the Benedictines at St. Scholastica Monastery in Fort Smith and Subiaco Abbey, Discalced Carmelite nuns and the Olivetan Benedictine sisters received financial support made possible by the Retirement Fund for Religious. Women and men religious who serve or have served in the diocese but whose communities are based elsewhere may also benefit from the annual collection.

The 2013 appeal raised nearly $28.4 million, enabling the NRRO to distribute $23 million in financial assistance to 424 religious communities.

Learn about the religious who are serving in Arkansas by reading about 12 sisters and one brother who are celebrating 25 to 75 years of service to the Church this year in Dec. 6 issue of Arkansas Catholic. These women and men continue to serve in their religious communities in any way they can, even in retirement.