ADDITIONAL FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (cont.) - Can one use "OCV" or "CV" after her name after she receives the Consecration of a Virgin?
No, she should not use these initials because she is not a member of a Religious Institute.
The Order of Virgins is not a Religious Institute in the Church. In this use of the term "order," it signifies a category of consecrated life, as the various categories are listed and explained in Vita Consecrata.
- Can one be called "Sister" after having received the Consecration of a Virgin for a Woman Living in the World, according to Canon 604?
No, for the same reason as given in the previous question.
- Should the Consecration of a Virgin be recorded in one's baptismal record?
Yes, it should be recorded, just as one records marriages or Religious Profession. Also, she herself should receive a document testifying to her Consecration and a copy of this document should be filed in the diocesan archives.
- Can the Consecration of a Virgin be delegated to a priest to perform?
It is very clear from history and from the Roman Pontifical that this Rite is reserved to the bishop of the diocese. The bishop of the virgin's diocese, however, may delegate it to another bishop to perform, but not to a priest.
- What should a consecrated virgin do when she must move her residence from the diocese in which she was consecrated or in which she now lives?
She should write a letter to inform her current bishop that she will be moving and write a letter to the bishop into whose diocese she will be moving to let him know who she is and of her plans to change residence.
It is helpful for the bishop of her current diocese to write a letter to the bishop into whose diocese she will move to introduce her to him.
- Is physical virginity necessary in order to receive the Consecration of a Virgin?
Yes. Can someone offer to God what she does not have?
Return to Q & A (Part 1)
| 
