Cover; Half Title; Dedication; Title Page; Copyright Page; Table of Contents; Series Editor's Preface; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Introduction; 1: The Birth of the New Phenomenon of the Teaching Nun; 2: The Improper Institutions of Troublesome Women; 3: Religious Change and the Politics of Gender; 4: Serving the Church in the Classroom; 5: Pushing the Boundaries of Female Ministry; 6: Serving Martha and Mary: Modus Vivendi; 7: Modernity and Tradition: Imitating the Cloister; 8: To Leave God for God's Sake: The Apostolate as Self-Abnegation; Conclusion; Appendices; Bibliography
Summary
"This short study offers a contribution to the flourishing debate on post-Reformation female piety. In an effort to avoid excessive polarization condemning conventual life as restrictive or hailing it as a privileged path towards spiritual perfection, it analyses the reasons which led early-modern women to found new congregations with active vocations."--BOOK JACKET
