Numerous religious sisters in various congregations are engaged in the service of education, the poor, the elderly, and the sick. They mark the presence of the Church in the world; they are the novelty of the Gospel among mankind.
(LifeSiteNews) -- Throughout his apostolic journeys, Jesus was followed by many women who went up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. In the account of the Passion according to St. Luke, it is noted that a multitude accompanied him on the way to Calvary with the Cross, and women wept and wailed. Jesus turns to them and says: “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children, for the days will come when it will be said, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that did not conceive, and the breasts that no one nursed at.’ And they will say to the mountains and hills, 'Cover us' (Hos. 10:8), for if they do this to the green tree, what will they not do to the dry one?” (Lk. 23:27 ff).
Several of Jesus' miracles benefited women: for example, the healing of the woman suffering from a flow of blood (hemorrhoids), the healing of Peter's mother-in-law's fever, the compassion of the widow of Nain, and the resurrection of Jairus' little daughter. But in establishing his Church, the Lord chooses men, the Twelve. This fact points to the future of women in the Church.
Several passages of St. Paul's letters establish or advise feminine attitudes: Col. 3:18 says, “Let women be subject to their husbands (respect them), as is fitting in the Lord.” 1 Tim 2:9 ff: “Let women be properly dressed, demure and modest, not wearing elaborate hairstyles, or gold or pearls or costly apparel. Let them rather adorn themselves with good works, as is fitting for people who practice godliness.” Paul adds: “I do not permit them to teach, nor to seek to impose their authority on their husbands, but rather to remain silent in the assemblies” (1 Tim. 2:12). “A woman will be saved by fulfilling her duties as a mother (dia tēs teknogonias), provided she perseveres in faith, love and holiness, with due discretion (sōphrosynēs)” (1 Tim. 2:15).
Women have their place in the first Christian communities, where virgins and widows live in a kind of consecration. However, consecration in the full sense is of a monastic character, which dates back to the beginning of Benedictine monasticism around the 5th and 6th centuries. The Rule of St. Benedict can be dated around 530, and Scholastica, the sister of Benedict of Nursia, is the initial figure of female monasticism. The ideal is contemplation based on the reading of Scripture and manual labor, ora et labora.
In the Middle Ages, Benedictine monasticism of both sexes was renewed in the Cistercian Order, which in the 17th century became the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (OCSO). After the Council of Trent, the foundations of female religious congregations multiplied, and several of the founders were canonized.
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In all forms of female religious life we see, though in different ways, the presence of ora et labora, i.e., prayer and contemplation, or action and work. In Benedictine abbeys and Carmelite convents, this is expressed, for example, in the diffusion of liturgical chant and the due care of the whole worship, and also in the confection of priestly vestments and the preparation of other products (like sweets) that are sold as income to help support these institutions.
Numerous religious sisters in various congregations are engaged in the service of education, the poor, the elderly, and the sick. They mark the presence of the Church in the world; they are the novelty of the Gospel among mankind. This is an ecclesial reality, independent of the religious policy professed by the pontificate. Secular governments know how to respect this contribution of the Church, with the exception of totalitarian regimes that often persecute her.
In addition to the contribution of religious congregations, the Christian conception of society includes the consecration of women in marriage and their role as mothers: “technogony,” begetting and educating children (1 Tim. 2:9 ff). It is the basic service that sustains humanity on earth.
Behind the profile of every woman, including consecrated religious, is the biblical figure of Eve (Jawwâh), mother of all living. "Technogony" comes from the first pages of the book of Genesis.
Héctor Aguer
Archbishop Emeritus of La Plata
Buenos Aires, Friday, February 28, 2025
