>From: fhn@everton.com >To: history@everton.com >Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 04:42:36 -0400 >Subject: [FHN 19jul00] Research Tip: Locating Ancestors in Catholic >Religious Orders >X-mailer: Pegasus Mail for Win32 (v3.12a) >Sender: owner-history@everton.com > >EVERTON'S FAMILY HISTORY NEWSLINE >Wednesday, 19 July 2000 > >Research Tip: Locating Ancestors in Catholic Religious Orders > >Given the vow of celibacy required for those in Roman Catholic >religious orders, many family historians tend to disregard the >records of these orders when searching for their ancestors. After >all, if these religious brothers and sisters took such a vow, they >wouldn't have any children, would they? > >Leaving aside the delicate issue of those who violated their vows, it >was indeed common for some in Catholic religious orders to have >children. Children conceived and raised before those men and >women devoted their lives to the church. > >Although less common today, in centuries past it was considered >normal for both men and women who were widowed to leave the secular >life and devote the remainder of their days to religious service. >These people had already spent decades raising families and >performing the normal range of parental duties. But with their >children grown and their spouses gone, they chose to combine their >charitable efforts with others, often in a monastery or convent. > >If you cannot find records of your ancestor's later life in the >"normal" parish registers, consider the records of religious orders >operating in the area. These are generally kept by the order itself, >not by the parish or diocese, and may include the date the person >entered the order, details of some assignments given as part of their >religious life, and the date and place of death. Living descendants >may also be mentioned. > >Resources: > >Vocations - Men's Religious Orders, Catholic Information Center on >the Internet >http://www.catholic.net/RCC/Vocations/mensorders.html > >Vocations - Women's Religious Orders, Catholic Information Center on >the Internet >http://www.catholic.net/RCC/Vocations/womensorders.html > >The Official Catholic Directory: Anno Domini 1999 >P J Kenedy & Sons >http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0872179877/evertonpublisher > > * * * * * > MARYLAND & DELAWARE CHURCH RECORDS, 1600s to 1800s > Indexed and ready to use in your search > for your East Coast ancestral roots. > Just $29.95 > http://everton.com/specials/cd178 > * * * * * > > July only! One year of On-Line Search for $19.95 (SAVE $30) >https://www.everton.com/evertonpublishersinc-67/mck-htdocs/subscribe-ols.html > >Copyright 2000, Everton Publishers >All rights reserved >-------------------------------------------------------------------- >FAMILY HISTORY NEWSLINE is a free daily genealogy news service from >Everton Publishers >P.O. Box 368 >Logan, UT 84323 >Toll-free: 1-800-443-6325 >http://www.everton.com >To subscribe, send a message to lists@everton.com with the >message: subscribe history >To unsubscribe, send a message to lists@everton.com with the >message: unsubscribe history >Recent articles are available online at http://www.everton.com/FHN/