Sisters: Lives of Devotion and Defiance

By Julia Lieblich

Book Overview

A look at today's nuns focuses on four of the Catholic Church's most progressive sisters, discussing Sister Donna Quinn's commitment to reproductive rights for women, Sister Darlene Nicgorski's... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345372999
• ISBN13: 9780345372994
• Release Date: February 1992
• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Length: 318 Pages
• Weight: 1.12 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Feminism from a seemingly unlikely source

I love nun books, partly because I thought semi-seriously about becoming a nun myself (before I chose my religion), and partly because I really admire nuns for how in many ways, they were like the original feminists in this country. These women were able to pursue higher educations, work, travel, attend conferences, and have their own lives in a time when the majority of women simply did not have those kinds of options available to them. By not having husbands and children, women like Sisters Mary Aileen, Donna, Darlene, and Catherine were able to do some really amazing things with their lives without being tied down by families. Each nun's story is so inspiring and fascinating that I don't think I could pick a favorite! Their stories also give the lie to the idea that nuns are totally obedient to the Church line and never question the hierarchy or conservative doctrine. I think most people, before reading this book, would have a hard time imagining these four women as being faithful devout Catholics in spite of their very liberal politics and activism. Sisters Mary Aileen Dame and Darlene Nicgorski have similar stories, both having ministered to the poor and downtrodden people of Latin America, though there are a number of differences too. Sister Mary Aileen gave up teaching and went for her dream of becoming a doctor so she could help the poor and less fortunate, and ended up receiving a crash course in what it truly means to be destitute and to do without when she was sent to Nicaragua. Sister Darlene Nicgorski also was sent to minister to the poor of Latin America, in her case Guatemala, and became extremely involved in the political developments there which left hundreds of thousands of people (many of them Native Central Americans) refugees who were typically denied political asylum to the United States. After her own escape, she continued helping the refugees and became involved in the sanctuary movement of the Eighties, and was so involved that she and ten others were eventually put on trial in a kangaroo court. Sister Catherine O'Reilly chose to join a contemplative order, which only has several thousand nuns today and isn't well-represented in nun literature. Her activism and quest to reform the Church are based in her contemplative spiritual life. And Sister Donna Quinn is heavily involved in the struggle for women's reproductive rights; helping poor girls and women who haven't had access to things like birth control, abortion, or even the basic messages of self-respect, and thus haven't had the tools to make healthy relationship choices or to plan the size and spacing of their families; and innovative women-led feminist prayer services, the type of services I hardly expected to hear about Catholics engaging in! All four of these women are amazing sheroes, and I'd recommend the book to anyone who's interested in nuns in particular or radical reformers in the Catholic Church in general.

A response to conscience

When I began reading this book, I knew I'd encounter strong women, the biblical kind who manage to work within a strongly patriarchal Church to live lives of spirit and justice. Women who live in accord with the tenets of the gospel and in fidelity to the voice of the spirit. Who because of this fidelity must sometimes respectfully defy both religious and governmental authority. What I didn't realize was how much I'd enjoy the voice of the woman who told their stories. Lieblich's approach is warm and personal. She weaves a perfect combination of humor and respect into the telling of the power of individual women to live in obedience to their conscience.

The earlier "Unveiled"....

When I started reading this book, it immeaditely reminded me of the recent book "Unveiled: The Hidden Lives of Nuns" by Cheryl L. Reed. This book is a bit different - instead of focusing on orders, it focuses on four individual nuns from different orders. You'll be surprised how these four certainly don't fit the "nun" stereotype - from going against the Church's stance on abortion and birth control or the heirarchy of the Church. One even goes against the US government by sneaking in refugees. The chapters about the Sisters are honest and compelling. I recommend this for anyone who wants to find out about nuns today.