HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

A religious sister (abbreviated ''Sr.'' or Sist.) in the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
is a woman who has taken public vows in a religious institute dedicated to apostolic works, as distinguished from a nun who lives a cloistered monastic life dedicated to prayer. Both nuns and sisters use the term "sister" as a form of address. The ''HarperCollins Encyclopedia of Catholicism'' (1995) defines as "congregations of sisters institutes of women who profess the simple vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, live a common life, and are engaged in ministering to the needs of society." As William Saunders writes: "When bound by simple vows, a woman is a sister, not a nun, and thereby called 'sister'. Nuns recite the Liturgy of the Hours or Divine Office in common ... ndlive a contemplative, cloistered life in a monastery ... behind the 'papal enclosure'. Nuns are permitted to leave the cloister only under special circumstances and with the proper permission."


History

Until the 16th century, religious orders in the
Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.
made vows that were perpetual and solemn. In 1521,
Pope Leo X Pope Leo X ( it, Leone X; born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, 11 December 14751 December 1521) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1513 to his death in December 1521. Born into the prominent political an ...
allowed tertiaries of religious orders to take simple vows and live a more active life dedicated to charitable works. This provision was rejected by
Pope Pius V Pope Pius V ( it, Pio V; 17 January 1504 – 1 May 1572), born Antonio Ghislieri (from 1518 called Michele Ghislieri, O.P.), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1566 to his death in May 1572. He is v ...
in 1566 and 1568. Early efforts by women such as
Angela Merici Angela Merici or Angela de Merici ( , ; 21 March 1474 – 27 January 1540) was an Italian religious educator, who is honored as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. She founded the Company of St. Ursula in 1535 in Brescia, in which women dedi ...
, founder of the
Ursulines The Ursulines, also known as the Order of Saint Ursula ( post-nominals: OSU), is an enclosed religious order of consecrated women that branched off from the Angelines, also known as the Company of Saint Ursula, in 1572. Like the Angelines, they ...
(1535), and Jane Frances de Chantal, founder with Francis de Sales of the
Visitation Sisters , image = Salesas-escut.gif , size = 175px , abbreviation = V.S.M. , nickname = Visitandines , motto = , formation = , founder = Saint Bishop Francis de ...
(1610), were halted as the cloister was imposed by Church authorities. Into the 17th century, Church custom did not allow women to leave the
cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...
if they had taken religious vows. Female members of the mendicant orders ( Dominican, Augustinian, Carmelite, and Poor Clares) continued to observe the same enclosed life as members of the
monastic orders Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic life plays an important ro ...
. The work of religious women was confined to what could be carried on within the walls of a
monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...
, either teaching boarding students within the cloister or nursing the sick in hospitals attached to the monastery.Giles, Elizabeth
"Mary Ward
. ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'', Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912.
Mary Ward was an early proponent of women with religious vows living an active life outside the cloister, based on the apostolic life of the
Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...
. There was to be no
enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...
, no common recitation of the
Liturgy of the Hours The Liturgy of the Hours (Latin: ''Liturgia Horarum'') or Divine Office (Latin: ''Officium Divinum'') or ''Opus Dei'' ("Work of God") are a set of Catholic prayers comprising the canonical hours, often also referred to as the breviary, of the ...
, and no religious habit. In 1609 she established a religious community at Saint-Omer and opened schools for girls. Her efforts led to the founding of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary or Sisters of Loreto (IBVM). Her congregation was suppressed in 1630, but continued to exist in some countries in various forms. Other women's congregations with simple vows continued to be founded, at times with the approval of local bishops. Vincent de Paul insisted that the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, which he founded, would have no convent but the hospital, no chapel but the parish church, and no cloister but the streets. They renew their vows annually. The 19th century saw the proliferation of women's congregations engaged in education, religious instruction, and medical and social works, along with missionary work in Africa and Asia. After nearly three centuries, in 1900
Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...
by his constitution ''Conditae a Christo'' gave his approval to these congregations with simple vows.


20th century

The 1917 Code of Canon Law reserved the term " nun" (Latin: ''monialis'') for women religious who took solemn vows or who, while being allowed in some places to take simple vows, belonged to institutes whose vows were normally solemn. They lived under cloister, "papal enclosure", and recited the Liturgy of the Hours in common. The Code used the word "sister" (Latin: ''soror'') for members of institutes for women that it classified as " congregations"; and for "nuns" and "sisters" jointly it used the Latin word ''religiosae'' (women religious). The bishops at Vatican II, in their document '' Perfectae Caritatis'' on the religious life, asked all religious to examine their
charism A spiritual gift or charism (plural: charisms or charismata; in Greek singular: χάρισμα ''charisma'', plural: χαρίσματα ''charismata'') is an extraordinary power given by the Holy Spirit."Spiritual gifts". ''A Dictionary of th ...
as defined by their rule and founder, in light of the needs of the modern world. Some religious who had led a more contemplative life responded to modern needs of the apostolate outside the monastic walls. Throughout the post- Vatican II document '' Ecclesiae Sanctae'' (1967),
Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...
used the word "nun" to refer to women with solemn vows. The
1983 Code of Canon Law The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the second and current com ...
uses the expression "monastery of nuns".E.g., 609 §2, 614, 616 §4, 630 §3, 667 §3,4 The new code did not force traditional orders that were taking on works outside the monastery into uniformity. In response to Vatican II there has been "vigorous discussion among monastics as regards what kinds of work and life-styles are genuinely compatible with monastic life".


See also

*
Catholic sisters and nuns in the United States The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...


References

* This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). ''Catholic Encyclopedia''. New York: Robert Appleton. {{Catholic Church footer *