There Are Nun Greater Than History of Abbeys Quiz

Answer: To pursue a more pure and radical devotion to God

After Christianity was legalized under Emperor Constantine in 313 AD, it became integrated with the Roman Empire and, for some, way too worldly. The Desert Mothers sought to flee this corruption by going to the deserts to avoid distractions. The desert was also seen as the biblical place of encounter with God.

The Desert Mothers practiced rigorous fasting (often eating only bread and water in the evening), deprivation of sleep, simple manual labor (like weaving baskets), and strict silence. Some women lived as solitary hermits for decades on end, only gathering on Saturdays and Sundays for communal worship. Silence was a core practice for cultivating inner quiet and attentiveness to God's presence. The Desert Mothers generally lived in simple cells, or huts, and were revered as spiritual teachers and counselors.

Answer: Her mother

After the death of Macrina's father, brother and fiance, she consoled her grieving mother (Emmelia) and suggested they dedicate their lives entirely to God. As the matriarch of the family and a wealthy landowner, Emmelia provided the physical location for a community-the secluded family estate on the banks of the Iris River in Pontus.

Macarine and Emmelia abolished all social and economic distinctions. The wealthy aristocratic women and their former servants and slaves lived together as equals ("sisters"), sharing all aspects of life. While many early Christian women who gave their life to God focused on extreme solitude and harsh self-punishment, Macrina's community emphasized a balanced, communal life of prayer, work, study of the Scripture, and service to the poor. Emmelia served as the first official superior (abbess) of the women's convent.

Answer: Saint Scholastica

After St Benedict established his famous monastery at Monte Cassino in Italy, his twin sister, Scholastica, founded a convent for women nearby at Plombariola (about five miles or 8 km away) around 535 AD. Her community adopted and followed the Rule of St Benedict.

The Rule the covent lived by balanced a life of prayer (meeting seven times a day to pray the Psalms) with manual labor and study. Core tenets included remaining in the community (stability), obedience to the superior, poverty, and chastity. The convent was under the authority of an abbot or abbess and provided the framework for countless nunneries throughout the Middle Ages and beyond.

Answer: True

St Clare, a noblewoman from Assisi, Italy, was inspired by St Francis's preaching and sought to embrace the same simple, Gospel-centered life of poverty. In 1212 AD, she founded the Order of the Poor Clares (also known at the time as the "Order of Poor Ladies"). It was the foundation of the second branch of the Franciscan family and was a groundbreaking order for women that embraced a radical commitment to contemplative life and total poverty.

St Clare was the first woman in the Catholic Church to write a monastic rule specifically for women. Her rule emphasized "perfect poverty". She fought for this stance of no ownership of property for years. Pope Innocent IV finally approved her rule just two days before her death in 1253! Poor Clares are contemplative, cloistered nuns. This means their life is primarily dedicated to prayer, penance, and contemplation, lived within the physical confines of a monastery enclosure. The communities rely entirely on the generosity of benefactors and their own manual labor (such as making altar breads or vestments) for sustenance.

Answer: Enclosure

The Periculoso, known as the "decree of perpetual cloister" was issued by Pope Boniface VIII in 1298 AD. All nuns, regardless of their specific order or location, were required to remain strictly and perpetually cloistered within their monastery precincts. They could not leave and unauthorized outsiders were forbidden from entering. The decree also required convents to be financially self-sufficient.

Instead of protecting nuns from a violent world, this decree was aimed at protecting them from themselves and potential temptations. It also effectively prevented nuns from engaging in active public ministries like teaching or nursing outside the convent walls for centuries.

Answer: Paris

Co-founded by St Vincent de Paul and St Louise de Marillac in Paris, France, their mission is centered on serving Christ in the "poorest of the poor". Breaking from the tradition of strictly cloistered nuns, the Daughters of Charity were established to be mobile and available to those in need. They declared their convent to be the houses and streets of the city.

The Sisters profess simple vows (poverty, chastity, obedience, and service to the poor) annually, which are renewed each year. They originally wore the simple grey dress and large white head covering of 17th-century French peasant women to blend in with the people they served. Their work helped in paving the way for numerous active religious congregations in years to come.

Answer: Ursulines

A group of twelve Ursuline nuns from France, sent by King Louis XV and the Company of the Indies, arrived in New Orleans in August 1727 AD. Their mission was to provide education and healthcare in the fledgling, "wild" colony. Right away, they founded the Ursuline Academy for girls where they educated French and Spanish girls from wealthy families, as well as enslaved African-American girls, free women of color, and Native American women.

They established one of the first hospitals in the U.S. and provided medical care during epidemics such as malaria and yellow fever. Sister Francis Xavier, one of the original nuns, is recognized as the first female pharmacist in the United States. They also ran an orphanage and a retreat center. Their work set a precedent for women's contributions to American civic life.

Answer: Nurses

When the U.S. Civil War began, military officials from both sides recognized the medical and organizational skills of Catholic sisters and called upon them for help. Motivated by their faith and the love of God, the sisters provided care without discrimination, nursing soldiers from both armies, regardless of their background, religion, or the uniform they wore.

The sisters assisted in surgeries, cleaned wounds, changed beddings, and prepared food. And they did all this, often, in very primitive and dangerous locations. They risked their own health tending to patients with contagious diseases like typhoid fever and dysentery. At a time of widespread anti-Catholic prejudice in the predominantly Protestant United States, the sisters' selfless dedication won the admiration of soldiers, doctors, and military leaders.

Answer: False

Vatican II (or the Second Vatican Council) produced 16 documents, including four major "constitutions" that fundamentally changed many aspects of Church life and practice. It also had a profound and multifaceted impact on nuns, leading to significant changes in their lifestyle, ministries, and identity.

There was a mandate for renewal that specifically instructed all religious orders to re-examine their missions, return to the founding spirit of their founders, and adapt their practices to contemporary needs. It also encouraged movement from the cloisters to active engagement in the outside world. Nuns gained more personal autonomy, making individual choices about daily life. The changes led to a sharp decline in vocations in Western countries and a mass exodus of many existing sisters who found the rapid changes disorienting or felt they had lost their traditional identity.

Answer: St Teresa of Ávila

Saint Teresa of Ávila was a prominent Spanish mystic, writer, and reformer of the Carmelite order and lived from 1515-1582 AD. She is considered one of the great spiritual figures of the Catholic Church and was one of the first two women to be named a Doctor of the Church in 1970. She founded 17 reformed Carmelite convents dedicated to contemplative prayer, austerity, and poverty.

She also wrote several works in her life, including her autobiography and "The Interior Castle", which uses the allegory of a castle with seven mansions to describe the soul's journey through successive stages to achieve union with God in the innermost dwelling. In 1970, Pope Paul VI declared Teresa a Doctor of the Church, a rare title given to saints whose writings and teachings have had a significant impact on theology and doctrine. Her feast day is celebrated on October 15.