Difference between a nun and a sister?

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CradleJourney

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Posting this here because of something I spotted in another thread on this board…sorry if it’s in the wrong place.

But are nuns and sisters the same - and if not what is the difference? Thanks!
 
All nuns are sisters but not all sisters are nuns.

Here is an explanation taken from “A Nun’s Life”:

A Catholic nun is a woman who lives as a contemplative life in a monastery which is usually cloistered (or enclosed) or semi-cloistered. Her ministry and prayer life is centered within and around the monastery for the good of the world. She professes the perpetual solemn vows living a life according to the evangelical counsels of poverty, celibacy, and obedience. Check out the Carmelite Nuns of Baltimore for example.

A Catholic sister is a woman who does lives, ministers, and prays within the world. A sister’s life is often called “active” or “apostolic” because she is engaged in the works of mercy and other ministries that take the Gospel to others where they are. She professes perpetual simple vows living a life according to the evangelical counsels of poverty, celibacy, and obedience. Check out my community, the IHM Sisters of Monroe, Michigan.

In short, you probably won’t see a nun unless you go to a monastery. A religious who is teaching, nursing, working in a parish, and so on is a sister rather than a nun.
 
SuscipeMeDomine said:
In short, you probably won’t see a nun unless you go to a monastery. A religious who is teaching, nursing, working in a parish, and so on is a sister rather than a nun.
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Okay, thanks! I was confused since while I was aware of the difference in that some female religious were active in public roles while others were called more to prayer and contemplation, I did not know the terminology differentiated between them.

In my area, the average person uses the terms interchangeably. Of course, to my mother and others of her generation, what most would call a green pepper is instead called a mango. 😃

Thanks again for my lesson of the day 🙂
 
wait what are nuns that live in a parish? our parish used to have to nuns that live in the parish seperately from our two priests of course
 
Benedikt said:
wait what are nuns that live in a parish? our parish used to have to nuns that live in the parish seperately from our two priests of course
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They probably are not really nuns. They are probably sisters.

Most women that we colloquially call nuns are not really nuns.
 
Benedikt said:
So are sisters and nuns like priests and monks?
:shrug:confused:
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It’s more like sisters are to nuns as brothers are to monks.

(Some brothers are ordained as deacons, priests, or bishops but not all clergy are brothers.)

All female religious are sisters. The nuns are the subgroup of sisters who live cloistered and contemplative lives away from the public eye.

With the men the monks are the subgroup who live “away” from the world. The more active ones are typically known as friars (which basically means “brother”).

I’m kind of oversimplifying this but that’s the basic difference.
 
You can be monk but not priest, right? Not all monks are priests:confused:
 
SMHW said:
It’s more like sisters are to nuns as brothers are to monks.

(Some brothers are ordained as deacons, priests, or bishops but not all clergy are brothers.)

All female religious are sisters. The nuns are the subgroup of sisters who live cloistered and contemplative lives away from the public eye.

With the men the monks are the subgroup who live “away” from the world. The more active ones are typically known as friars (which basically means “brother”).

I’m kind of oversimplifying this but that’s the basic difference.
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Thanks so much ahah i get it now!
 
SMHW said:
It’s more like sisters are to nuns as brothers are to monks.

(Some brothers are ordained as deacons, priests, or bishops but not all clergy are brothers.)

All female religious are sisters. The nuns are the subgroup of sisters who live cloistered and contemplative lives away from the public eye.

With the men the monks are the subgroup who live “away” from the world. The more active ones are typically known as friars (which basically means “brother”).

I’m kind of oversimplifying this but that’s the basic difference.
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Not exactly. Some nuns-many Benedictines for example-do not use the title Sister. Dame is a common Benedictine title.
 
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