Eremitic life continues today. Some hermits live alone, others are a part of religious communities.
"There is a resurgence," Sister Kathryn said. "I think it’s a response to the troubles of our times, and they are not small ones."
She contacted Bishop Coakley, who had just come to the Diocese of Salina, to ask that her vocation be formalized.
"I have been working with Sister Kathryn since shortly after my arrival in the Diocese of Salina," Bishop Coakley said. "For over four years, I have been privileged to guide and encourage Sister Kathryn in discerning her response to this very special vocation in the Church."
The Code of Canon Law recognizes a hermit "as one dedicated to God in a consecrated life if he or she publicly professes the three evangelical counsels, confirmed by a vow or other sacred bond, in the hands of the diocesan bishop and observes his or her own plan of life under his direction."
In addition to guidance from the bishop, Sister Kathryn drafted her plan of life, which spells out how she will live her vocation.
"It is one of assiduous prayer, silence, solitude and penance. It’s an ascetic endeavor," she said. "I try to live in the utmost simplicity — the idea of poverty of heart, pureness of life. It means a simplicity of living, to gaze toward God so pure that he can commune with the soul. Nothing is loved like God is loved.
"I’m here alone, but everyone is with me because of my prayers. No one prays alone," she added.
She knows it won’t be an easy life to live.
"I lived a greater life of solitude and silence when I was married than after he passed away," she said of Len. "Then I became so exposed. Nobody had really seen me. Some saw me for the first time at the funeral.
"Now it’s not as complete with solitude. It’s more of a battle," she said.
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She does leave her hermitage when necessary, although she relies on a close friend for many necessities. She prefers attending a Latin Mass in Maple Hill, 50 miles to the east, but that also forces her to cut short the time she spends in prayer. Other times she will go to Mass at nearby St. Patrick’s in Ogden because there are fewer people in attendance than her home parish of Seven Dolors in Manhattan.
Although she owns the home that she and Len shared, her income is meager. She accepts small donations and gifts of food or labor.
"I haven’t gone hungry," she said.
She supplements her income by making and selling rosaries via the Internet.
"A hermit with a Web site and e-mail. That’s very strange," she said, laughing. But, adhering to that tenet of simplicity, she has dial-up Internet service, not broadband.
And not unlike St. Benedict, she has been found by people seeking guidance and counsel.