Book Description

The title, Anything of Which a Woman is Capable, comes from Father Jean Pierre Médaille, the Jesuit who brought together the first Sisters of St. Joseph in the mid-seventeenth century. Since 1650, congregations of St. Joseph have grown in Europe, the Americas, India and the Orient, all attracting women who are called to do anything of which they are capable to serve their dear neighbor. This volume tells stories of the foundations of congregations in France and then, beginning in 1836, in the United States. It introduces the reader to intrepid women whose willingness to serve knew no boundaries and whose strong personalities provided an ample match for Church leaders who either encouraged or tried to control their zeal. The copious footnotes make this a valuable addition to the history of Catholic women religious in the United States as well as to the history of Catholicism.