Vision Statement

The National Religious Vocation Conference has a vision to set the world ablaze with the fire of God’s love through the prophetic, joyful witness of religious sisters, brothers, and priests as radical disciples of Jesus.

Mission Statement

The National Religious Vocation Conference is a catalyst for vocation discernment and the full flourishing of religious life as sisters, brothers, and priests for the ongoing transformation of the world.

Purpose

To accomplish its mission, the National Religious Vocation Conference, in collaboration with its members and strategic partners, provides professional development, advocacy, education, resources, and networking opportunities to support vocation ministry and religious life.

Values

In presenting religious life as a viable, prophetic option that remains mystery and gift, the NRVC seeks to:

1. Provide professional development, best practices, and shared wisdom to animate the elements of vocation ministry: encounter, invitation, and accompaniment;
2. Foster a culture of vocations in a spirit of collaboration, joy, and hope to inspire and be inspired by the minds and hearts of the young church;
3. Celebrate the charism of each Catholic religious institute as part of the mission of Jesus; and
4. Grow and nurture an intercultural approach to vocation ministry.

Strategic Goals 2019-2023

• Enhance collaborative efforts for engaging the culturally diverse young church in discerning and impacting the future of religious life.
• Provide leading-edge resources, formation, and research to advance the field of intercultural vocation ministry, assessment skills, and discernment to religious life.
• Increase the visibility and awareness of the NRVC to fulfill our mission. 
• Create the organizational structure and financial model needed to sustain and grow NRVC.

More about NRVC

The National Religious Vocation Conference is a professional organization of vocation ministers that promotes vocation awareness, invitation, and discernment to life as a religious sister, brother, or priest. NRVC reflects all forms of religious life and provides educational opportunities, resources, and other supportive services for spiritual, professional, and personal growth. NRVC has an annual membership of nearly 1,000 women and men representing over 300 religious institutes, organizations and dioceses, most of whom are vocation ministers for religious congregations. 

NRVC's Global Reach infographic

Contact Us

National Religious Vocation Conference (NRVC)
5416 South Cornell Avenue
Chicago, IL 60615-5664
Phone: 773.363.5454
Email: nrvc@nrvc.net
Click here to see a map showing where we are located.

We are pleased to announce the publication of the Religious Life Today Storymap based on the NRVC's 2020 Study on Recent Vocations. The Religious Life Today Storymap brings the research to life and we hope to inspire broad engagement around the results of this Study.

Please be assured of the viability of religious life today.

As you scroll through the features of the storymap, we hope you will experience renewed hope in the future of religious life.

We are: 

• the official religious vocation conference in the United States as recognized by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USSCB.)
   
• the professional organization for religious vocation directors whose primary goal is to help women and men discern a religious vocation, assess candidates interested in becoming Catholic sisters, brothers and priests, and welcome new members to religious life.
   
• 1000 members strong representing 300+ religious institutes and organizations in 23 countries.
   
• providing those in vocation ministry the tools they need to effectively promote vocations,  invite others to consider religious life, and assist in the discernment process.
   
• creating exceptional programming, training and resources for spiritual and personal growth which positively impact the future of religious life.
   
• educating connecting and inspiring all those interested in the future of religious life, including thousands of young Catholics exploring religious vocations each year.
   
• initiating and sponsoring groundbreaking research on religious life, including the 2020 and 2009 Recent Study on Vocations, the 2012 Study on Educational Debt and Religious Vocations, 2014 Study on Cultural Diversity, and the 2015 Study on the Role of Family. 
   
• publishing award-winning resources including VISION Vocation Guide, VocationNetwork.org, VocationMatch.com, and HORIZON Journal.
   
• in need of your help to successfully create a culture of encounter, engagement, and vocations to showcase the future vitality of religious life.

Donate today!

For more information contact
Phil Loftus, Director of Development
ploftus@nrvc.net

The GHR Foundation awarded a $200,000 grant to the National Religious Vocation Conference (NRVC) to provide extensive data mining and visual display of the responses to its 2020 Study on Recent Vocations, to be released in Spring 2020, which the GHR Foundation also helped fund.

With the goal of helping vocation directors in their ministry and using the most current data-mining and story-mapping software, NRVC will gather information on the newest entrants to religious life to create a vivid portrait of the characteristics, influences, and touch points that help shape the individual vocation journeys of men and women who chose to become Catholic religious sisters, brothers, and priests.

NRVC Development Director Mr. Phil Loftus recognizes this major gift “not only as an investment in NRVC, but as a commitment to using the latest technology to capture and share a fuller picture of religious life today. We are very grateful to GHR Foundation for their continued support of our mission."

NRVC hopes that the data-mapping program to be developed will have a broader application among religious communities and dioceses in creating up-to-date information about contemporary men and women religious and the ministries where they serve and the people whose lives are enhanced by their work.

The National Religious Vocation Conference (NRVC) was founded in 1988 as a professional organization of men and women committed to vocation awareness, invitation, and discernment to consecrated life as brothers, sisters, and priests. The NRVC serves its 1,000 members by providing continuing education, resources, and services for professional growth. The National Religious Vocation Conference serves as a catalyst for vocation discernment and the full flourishing of religious life as sisters, brothers, and priests for the ongoing transformation of the world.

GHR Foundation applies entrepreneurial creativity and universal Catholic values in the areas of health, education, and global development. Started in 1965 by Opus founders Gerald A. and Henrietta Rauenhorst, the Foundation seeks transformational change, and partners with the world’s experts to achieve impact. This results in a powerful exchange of ideas, and a community of thought leaders providing locally-driven solutions. GHR is anchored with a belief in responsibility, action, and the knowledge that we are all deeply connected. Despite global challenges, GHR meets each task with entrepreneurial optimism because the Foundation has seen the impact of strategic, thoughtful change.

Conrad N. Hilton Foundation grant to NRVC in 2020

The National Religious Vocation Conference (NRVC) is pleased to announce that a generous grant recently received from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation Catholic Sisters Initiative will support ongoing efforts toward the achievement of two major objectives from its 2019-2023 strategic plan.

The first objective is to create sustainable solutions to challenges in the organizational structure and financial model needed to build for the future of NRVC in its leadership, mission, and vision. The NRVC Board and staff will commit to operational and strategic decision-making criteria to integrate the new team leadership model for its national Board and staff with standards of accountability in its Articles of Incorporation, Constitution, Bylaws, Board Manual, and Member Area Coordinator Binder.

The second objective is to continue to offer lifelong formation and education for Catholic sisters that fosters spiritual renewal and leadership skill-building. As part of the grant, the NRVC invited 35 newer entrants, 61 elected congregational leaders, and 10 collaborators to its bi-ennial Convocation in October 2020. In additiona, 51 Abundant Hope videos were recorded by newer entrants on how they experience intercultural and intergenerational vowed life. 

Through the Conrad N. Hilton grant, the NRVC is extending invitations to members of the following collaborating organizations to participate in Summer and Fall Institute workshops: Association of Latin American Missionary Sisters, Giving Voice, National Black Sisters Conference, and the National Conference of Vicars for Religious. 

For more information about the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation grant, please email Sister Deborah Borneman, SS.C.M. at debbiesscm@nrvc.net.

Conrad N. Hilton Foundation support for NRVC 2014-2016

The National Religious Vocation Conference is delighted to announce that the board of directors of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation has awarded NRVC a $2 million dollar grant to continue to build the organization’s capacity and sustainability. This generous grant will provide NRVC with additional personnel, the ability to create an effective development program, resources for the Year of Consecrated Life, and other important vocation-promotion services over the next three years (2014-16).  Further details are here.  

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