Spirited Lives: How Nuns Shaped Catholic Culture and American Life, 1836-1920

by Carol K. Coburn, Martha Smith

Overview

Reveals the critical impact of nuns on the development of Catholic culture and American society between 1836 and 1940. Focusing on the sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet, this book shows how nuns directly influenced millions of Americans through their work in schools, hospitals, orphanages, and other social service institutions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807875711
Publisher:	The University of North Carolina Press
Publication date:	10/12/2005
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	344
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Carol K. Coburn is professor of religion and history at Avila University in Kansas City, Missouri.
Martha Smith is professor emerita of history at Avila University.

Table of Contents

Contents

Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1. The French Connection: Founders, Origins, and Early Activities Chapter 2. Creating an American Identity: Survival and Expansion in the American Milieu Chapter 3. Educating the Good Sister: Gender and Religious Identity Chapter 4. Expanding American Catholic Culture: Life in the Trans-Mississippi West Chapter 5. Promulgating the Faith: Parochial Schools and American Catholic Identity Chapter 6. Educating for Catholic Womanhood: Secondary Academies and Women's Colleges Chapter 7. Succoring the Needy: Nursing, Hospitals, and Social Services Epilogue Notes Selected Bibliography Index

Illustrations

First CSJ convent in Carondelet, Missouri Sister Celestine Pommerel Members of the Ireland family Young postulant dressed as a bride before receiving the habit Irish "recruits" for CSJ communities Young girls feeding the chickens at St. Joseph's Girls' Home Sister Monica Corrigan and her sister companions CSJs and Native American students at San Xavier del Bac Mission Our Lady of Lourdes School St. Vincent de Paul School, first CSJ parochial school Music class at St. Peter's School Sister Francis Joseph Ivory and her class Senior class, St. Joseph's Institute Physics class, St. Teresa's Academy Latin class at the College of St. Catherine Art class at the College of St. Catherine Horse-drawn ambulance in front of St. Mary's Hospital CSJ nurses and soldiers at the military hospital at Matanzas, Cuba Surgery, St. Mary's Hospital Immigrant child before and after entering Aemilianum Orphan Asylum Toddlers at lunch, St. Joseph's Infant Home

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Clearly documents the contributions of the Sisters of St. Joseph to American culture and dispels myths about the kind of women who lived in convents. . . . Humorous anecdotes, poignant reminiscences, and insightful observations about the comforts and struggles of convent life abound. . . . An important book for readers interested in a more broadly inclusive story of women’s experience in America.” — American Historical Review


“An invaluable resource for anyone seeking to understand the history of women’s religious communities in the nineteenth- and early twentieth-century United States.” — Comptes Rendus


“Spirited Lives makes an important contribution to the history of women religious through its use of current scholarship and methodology. Its analysis of gender, religion, and power places sisters firmly in the context, not only of the history of American Catholicism, but of American history and women’s history as well.” — Catholic Historical Review


“Coburn and Smith move beyond the story of one congregation and write a history which addresses this question of the sisters' role in shaping American culture, one sorely neglected in American Catholic church history and in the secular history of the United States.” — Canonical Counsel


“[Brings] into sharp focus something that needs regular emphasis: the historical role of women in the church.” — Commonweal


“A great historical perspective on religious life and puts today’s discussion of vocations and religious life in a new light.” — Catholic News Service


“An important contribution to a neglected corner of American religious history. Highly recommended.” — Library Journal


“We know too little about women religious, who staffed U.S. Catholicism’s most influential institutions and thereby shaped American life. Focusing on an important religious order, the Sisters of St. Joseph, Spirited Lives persuasively documents their pivotal role in teaching the young, nurturing the forgotten, and tending the sick. A wonderful book on a neglected topic.” — Thomas A. Tweed, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill


“This book makes a vital contribution to the burgeoning new field of the history of Catholic sisterhoods by integrating that history into the larger narrative of American history. It should become required reading for students of American religious history and will appeal broadly to readers of women’s history, immigration history, and Western history. An outstanding achievement.” — Kathryn Kish Sklar, State University of New York at Binghamton

Editorial Reviews

A great historical perspective on religious life and puts today s discussion of vocations and religious life in a new light.

"Catholic News Service"

ÝBrings¨ into sharp focus something that needs regular emphasis: the historical role of women in the church.

"Commonweal"

"Spirited Lives" makes an important contribution to the history of women religious through its use of current scholarship and methodology.

"Catholic Historical Review"

[Brings] into sharp focus something that needs regular emphasis: the historical role of women in the church.

"Commonweal"

An important book for readers interested in a more broadly inclusive story of women's experience in America.

"American Historical Review"

An invaluable resource for anyone seeking to understand the history of women's religious communities in the nineteenth- and early twentieth-century .

"Comptes Rendus"

From the Publisher