The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, who operate the Village of St. Joseph and teach in archdiocesan schools, have approved a program of renewal.

Twenty-seven delegates to the general chapter held in St. Louis have approved a program which will, in effect, serve as a rule for the 4,500-member community.

At the local level, superiors, in consultation with members of their community, will now set their own prayer schedules and make other decisions affecting their houses.

A new body at the provincial level will be a policy-making group elected in each province by all Sisters in the province. The group is expected to number 50 in each province and will be responsible for viewing community work and making decisions on phasing out some programs and initiating others.

Each Sister of St. Joseph will be free to choose the traditional religious habit or a more contemporary religious dress, with a veil. She may choose to use both forms of dress.

The nuns also agreed to open a new house of prayer on an experimental basis. While not a cloister, the house will be open to sisters whose apostolate would center exclusively on prayer.

Experiments in group living, such as sisters living outside of the convent or dividing large convents with 30 or more nuns into smaller groups, were also approved by the chapter.

The sisters also decided to ask Rome for permission to adopt a more flexible program of formation. Under the proposal, a nun would take her final vows on her own initiative, although within a time limit.

The election of provincials by the sisters at large was also approved by the chapter. The current provincials will complete three years remaining in their terms before elections are held.

Sister Hilaria, secretary general of the community, said that the renewal program will serve as a rule for the sisters until a more permanent rule is drawn up, possibly at the congregation’s special chapter on the conciliar decree on religious life, which will be held in 1969.