After reading, Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin, companion of Saint Teresa of Jesus, I was unsure if it is bad to share a crucifix? I got this idea since the crucifix that the nun loaned had “disappeared from the head of her bed where she had placed it.”
After reading the Immodest Acts, I have several questions.
First, I noticed the author used the word "he" to refer to Benedetta's guidance angel. Is there any further implications in this??? Does this still imply the superiority of men to women even if this is related to God who treats everybody equally?
Second, in the reading, it says "she would make the sign of cross on her heart and it seemed to her that after doing this, they came nearer." I am confused because I think God should protect Benedetta instead of making her suffer even if this is the way to prove her "cleanness" and the way to please God.
Third, do Benedetta's visions stem from the fact she is a lesbian in a convent? Since the convent is a relatively special place, the being of a lesbian will be even more special.
In "Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin," the author describes God's displeasure at the two lesbian nuns who were offending His convent. As a result, the Venerable Mother "cures" the affected women.
Do you think religion can actually "fix" sexual orientation? Do you think the lesbian nun mentioned in the story really changed her ways?
In "Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin," the Christ figure returns to the nun who owns the crucifix because He is displeased the borrower "shares" the crucifix. Does it symbolize that Christ forbids the lesbian relationship, or simply are displeased that a nun breaks her vow. Also, the nuns are stated to make amends? How exactly can they make amends in terms of purify their sexual orientation?
In Peccatum Mutum, it didn't make sense to me that sodomy was so frowned upon but incest was seen as not as offensive? Since all sexual acts were only for procreation during that time, does that mean that people often procreated within their own families? Did that practice not result in a high frequency of genetic disorders?
In relation to the article "Her Life" from Mother Francisca de la Concepcion de Castille, the "enemy" is highly ambiguous, what gender do you think it is and why? She implies that the enemy works through "some people", do you think this is the identity of the enemy or is it a seperate identity?
I thought it was interesting to read about female relationships in nunneries. I was curious, however, did society in that time considered male/male sexual relationships or female/female sexual relationships to be more sinful?
What I found interesting about these female relationships is that they were not described as lesbian relationships, rather they were just special friendships. How is the way in which people view special friendships then versus lesbian friendships now different? Is there a difference? Are lesbian friendships less tolerable than special friendships because special friendships was not defined, so there was no way of actually understanding what they were feeling?
In "Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin," the author demonstrates the decisive role of the prioress in providing a remedy for nuns involved in a romantic relationship. The Venerable mother took the personal responsibility to take care of the nuns and did not blame the guilty women. How should we interpret the relationship between the Venerable mother and the nuns in terms of giving mental comfort and allowing time to recover from the disorder?
After reading, Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin, companion of Saint Teresa of Jesus, I was unsure if it is bad to share a crucifix? I got this idea since the crucifix that the nun loaned had “disappeared from the head of her bed where she had placed it.”
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the Immodest Acts, I have several questions.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I noticed the author used the word "he" to refer to Benedetta's guidance angel. Is there any further implications in this??? Does this still imply the superiority of men to women even if this is related to God who treats everybody equally?
Second, in the reading, it says "she would make the sign of cross on her heart and it seemed to her that after doing this, they came nearer." I am confused because I think God should protect Benedetta instead of making her suffer even if this is the way to prove her "cleanness" and the way to please God.
Third, do Benedetta's visions stem from the fact she is a lesbian in a convent? Since the convent is a relatively special place, the being of a lesbian will be even more special.
In "Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin," the author describes God's displeasure at the two lesbian nuns who were offending His convent. As a result, the Venerable Mother "cures" the affected women.
ReplyDeleteDo you think religion can actually "fix" sexual orientation? Do you think the lesbian nun mentioned in the story really changed her ways?
In "Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin," the Christ figure returns to the nun who owns the crucifix because He is displeased the borrower "shares" the crucifix. Does it symbolize that Christ forbids the lesbian relationship, or simply are displeased that a nun breaks her vow. Also, the nuns are stated to make amends? How exactly can they make amends in terms of purify their sexual orientation?
ReplyDeleteIn Peccatum Mutum, it didn't make sense to me that sodomy was so frowned upon but incest was seen as not as offensive? Since all sexual acts were only for procreation during that time, does that mean that people often procreated within their own families? Did that practice not result in a high frequency of genetic disorders?
ReplyDeleteIn relation to the article "Her Life" from Mother Francisca de la Concepcion de Castille, the "enemy" is highly ambiguous, what gender do you think it is and why? She implies that the enemy works through "some people", do you think this is the identity of the enemy or is it a seperate identity?
ReplyDeleteI thought it was interesting to read about female relationships in nunneries. I was curious, however, did society in that time considered male/male sexual relationships or female/female sexual relationships to be more sinful?
ReplyDeleteWhat I found interesting about these female relationships is that they were not described as lesbian relationships, rather they were just special friendships. How is the way in which people view special friendships then versus lesbian friendships now different? Is there a difference? Are lesbian friendships less tolerable than special friendships because special friendships was not defined, so there was no way of actually understanding what they were feeling?
ReplyDelete- Merry Chin
In "Relation of the Mother Ana de San Agustin," the author demonstrates the decisive role of the prioress in providing a remedy for nuns involved in a romantic relationship. The Venerable mother took the personal responsibility to take care of the nuns and did not blame the guilty women. How should we interpret the relationship between the Venerable mother and the nuns in terms of giving mental comfort and allowing time to recover from the disorder?
ReplyDelete