Catholic author Emily Stimpson published companion articles at OSV Newsweekly last week on the single life. The first one is entitled “Being single in the universal Church,” while the second one is entitled, “Is the unconsecrated single life a vocation?”

These thoughtful pieces explore the growing phenomenon of single Catholics. Is there such a thing as a “vocation” to the single life? Is it necessarily a mere “transitional” phase before marriage, priesthood, or consecrated life? And how effective is the Church in reaching out to single Catholics?

These questions are not as easy as one may think at first blush, and Stimpson does an excellent job of setting forth legitimate Catholic perspectives on the subject. Do our readers have any insights on this subject to share?