Two bronze statues of Scholastica and Benedict are located behind the altar in the crypt of Monte Cassino and show a beautiful representation of gender parity in Church leadership.
Considered the foundress of the Benedictine nuns, she was the twin sister of Benedict, the founder of Western monasticism. Her mother died at birth and Pope Gregory the Great noted she was dedicated to the Lord from infancy.
Brigid of Kildare founded a thriving double monastery of monks and nuns, a church with jurisdiction over most of southwest Ireland, and a school of art.
See more of her story online at the Visual Museum of Women in Christianity.
Brigid of Kildare was a 5th-century Irish abbess who is celebrated alongside St. Patrick as integral to the spread of Christianity in Ireland. She is honored as an evangelist, church planter, leader, and helper of the poor.
Explore church history with this best-selling dictionary, teaching about the lives and works of a host of individuals, from Biblical saints to those most recently canonised. It is a worthy companion to any study of Biblical or Church history, and includes details of feast days.
Ita of Ireland was of royal descent and originally named Dierdr. Her name was changed to Ita when she took her religious vows and it means, “thirst for holiness.”
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Ita devoted herself to the Lord's service and founded a school for boys who were taught, “faith in God with purity of heart, simplicity of life with religion, generosity, and love.” See the Visual Museum for more of her story.
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When plague gripped 17th-century Italy, painter Tiepolo crafted this altarpiece showing Thecla praying for the sick—her halo glowing beside a dead mother with her lifeless arm still cradling her child.
The team at the Visual Museum of Women in Christianity has been hard at work curating digital copies of artwork telling the story of women in the early church to medieval period. Click on over and sit down with us for a moment to see their stories.
