Anyone attending to the emerging patterns in religious life today is aware that increasing numbers of religious, especially women, no longer live in 'traditional' religious communities, i.e., in large groups composed exclusively of members of their own congregation living together under the same roof. The least startling modification is so-called 'small community living' which has all the characteristics just mentioned except that, instead of being composed of twenty or more religious, the group is composed of three to five. Beyond this modification, which was considered radical a few years ago, are such variations as intercongregational living (members of more than one congregation living together), mixed community (religious and laity, of the same or both sexes, living together), and religious 'living alone'.