Gender, Catholicism and Spirituality

This timely collection of essays on British and European Catholic spiritualities explores how ideas of the sacred have influenced female relationships with piety and religious vocations over time. Each of the studies focuses on specific persons or groups within the varied contexts of England, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, together spanning the medieval period through to the nineteenth century. Examining the interplay between women's religious roles and patriarchal norms, the volume highlights the relevance of gender and spirituality through a wide geographical and chronological spectrum. It is an essential resource for students of Gender History, Women's Studies and Religious Studies, introducing a wealth of new research and providing an approachable guide to current debates and methodologies. Contributions by: Nancy Jiwon Cho, Frances E. Dolan, Rina Lahav, Jenna Lay, Laurence Lux-Sterritt, Carmen M. Mangion, Querciolo Mazzonis, Marit Monteiro, Elizabeth Rhodes, Kate Stogdon, Anna Welch

Laurence Lux-Sterritt, Carmen Mangion

List of Tables Acknowledgements List of Contributors Preface Introduction: Gender, Catholicism, Women's Spirituality over the Longue Duree;L.Lux-Sterritt & C.M.Mangion Presence and Absence in Thirteenth Century Italy: Reading Clare of Assisi in Franciscan Liturgy and Community; A.Welch Marguerite Porete and the Predicament of her Preaching in Fourteenth Century France; R.Lahav The Impact of Renaissance Gender-Related Notions on the Female Experience of the Sacred: The Case of Angela Merici's Ursulines; Q.Mazzonis Teresa de Jesus's Book and the Reform of the Religious Man in Sixteenth Century Spain; E.Rhodes Mary Ward's English Institute and Prescribed Female Roles in the Early Modern Church; L.Lux-Sterritt An English Nun's Authority: Early Modern Spiritual Controversy and the Manuscripts of Barbara Constable; J.Lay Power in Piety: Inspiration, Ambitions and Strategies of Spiritual Virgins in the Northern Netherlands during the Seventeenth Century; M.Monteiro 'Martyrs of England! Standing on High!': Roman Catholic Women's Hymn-writing for the Re-invigoration of the Faith in England, 1850-1900; N.J.Cho Expressions of Self-surrender in Nineteenth-Century France: The Case of Therese Couderc (1805-1885); K.Stogdon The 'Mixed Life': Challenging Understandings of Religious Life in Victorian England; C.M.Mangion Afterword; F.E.Dolan Glossary Further Reading Index.