The terms “nun” and “sister” are often used interchangeably. However within Roman Catholicism, there is a difference between the two in terms of the vows they profess. A nun is a woman who professes the perpetual solemn vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. A religious sister is a woman who professes perpetual simple vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. The New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law explains the distinction this way:
“The older religious orders (monastic, canon regulars, mendicants, Jesuits) have perpetual solemn vows, and the more recent apostolic congregations have perpetual simple vows. The chief juridical difference between the two is that religious who profess a solemn vow of poverty renounce ownership of all their temporal goods, whereas religious who profess a simple vow of poverty have a right to retain ownership of their patrimony but must give up its use and any revenue.” (New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law. New York/Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2000)
- monastic: a nun (or monk) who lives in a monastery; the lifestyle is characterized by ascetic simplicity and seclusion
- canon regular: a member of one of several Roman Catholic religious institutes of regular priests living in community under a rule (most commonly the Augustinian rule)
- mendicant: derived from the Latin word “beggar”; a member of a religious order such as the Franciscans or Dominicans combining monastic life and outside religious activity and owning neither personal nor community property
- patrimony: an estate, endowment or anything inherited from one’s parents or ancestors
So, the main juridical difference between a nun and sister is patrimony. So, as I understand this, if a sister receives an inheritance of say $10,000, she is not allowed to use the money for herself. Any interest accrued on the money would belong to the congregation. The sister does have a right to determine how the primary sum of money (not the interest) will be spent. The sister may, for example, decide that they money should go toward her nephews and nieces college funds. A sister also has the right to renounce her patrimony, that is to give up any claim or say in the matter of how the patrimony is used.
Now, most people are not really going to know which is which by mere observation. One of my colleagues at work is an Ursuline nun. For the longest time I didn’t know Ursulines were nuns because my colleague has a similar lifestyle to the sisters of my IHM congregation. I presumed she was a sister. But, after chatting about it, I discovered she was a nun.
In ordinary conversation (that is, when one is not determining the juridical status of one’s patrimony), the terms “nun” and “sister” are used interchangeably. Both nuns and sisters are addressed as “Sister.” Unless I am in a situation where my juridical status as a sister is relevant, I will usually refer to myself as a Catholic nun because “nun” is a more recognizable term referring to women who have professed the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. The term “sister” can have many different meanings (e.g., female sibling) so I usually go with “nun” which is pretty widely accessible.
(My thanks to Sister Judith Miryam, OP, … a nun … for her help on this.)
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
hiya. i am a student at headlands school. and i have o do a fact file about nuns. 1 thing that i have to do is the 3 vows of a monk and a a nun (the 3 knots). so far i have thought of is: not to have sex or get married. not to earn your own money and i am really struggling on the 3rd 1 plz can u give me some help or tell me. i have tried to look over the inter net but that is no use and wont tell me. plz i would really epreciate it thanx
Interesting. I always thought it also had to do with enclosure, that ones who lived in some sort of enclosure were nuns, while those who didn’t were sisters.
Hi Jade. The three vows are chastity (or celibacy) which basically means, as you noted, no sex or marriage; poverty, which means you don’t own anything; and obedience, which means you are responsible/accountable to your religious community and ultimately to God. Good luck on your nun fact file. I’d love to see what you come up with!
I always thought it had to do with enclosure too. I would hazard a guess that all enclosed women religious are nuns which is why we naturally associate “nun” with enclosure. But my Ursuline friend is living testimony that not all nuns are enclosed. Would love to hear from nuns on this to see if I’m getting this right. Now I wonder if there are religious sisters who are enclosed. Hmmmm …
Huh, yeah. Some of the Benedictines I know are semi-cloistered (like those at Our Lady of the Rock), while others are more apostolic (the chaplain at my old school, for instance.) So even within orders there does seem to be some variation.
Hi. My name is Jana and I was cast in Toni ‘n Tina’s wedding. I doubt you know what that is, but all you need to know is that I will be playing a novice about to take her final vows and attending this wedding! The scary thing is that the play is not really scripted, it is all improvisation and intermingling with the audience members as if attending a real Italian-American family wedding. The other thing to know is that I am Jewish, and therefore don’t know a whole lot about catholicism. I have been studying a condensed version of the catechism and trying to research further online. Mainly I have been looking for videos trying to get a glimpse at sisters in action but it has been difficult. I guess what I am hoping for is some insight as to how a woman about to take her final vows and still a little unsure of them, would behave at such an occasion. I know you are all individuals and I am not trying to generalize, but any help or other resources you could think of would be much appreciated. This IS suppose to be a comedy, but I would also like to be as authentic as possible.
Hi Jana, Yes, I do know about Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding. While it’s great that you are reading the Catechism, it’s probably not the easiest to read as a first introduction to Catholicism. My best recommendation is to attend a Catholic Mass or other Catholic liturgy — as long as attending would not go against your own faith. Experiencing the Catholic community at prayer is the best way to come to know who we are. In terms of books, I’d recommend Awake My Soul: Contemporary Catholics on Traditional Devotions by Jim Martin, a Jesuit priest, for a look into Catholic culture.
Okay, videos — I’ve got a collection of clips on my nunpod videos which you can access on the sidebar of my blog. You can see interviews with nuns, vow ceremonies, and other nun-related stuff.
One last thing, Jana. I know this is a comedy, but I do ask you to be respectful of how you portray nuns. It is absolutely possible to be humorous and to be a nun — I do it all the time! But please do not slip into the stereotypes of nuns. Find your way to be authentic and funny. Blessings on you, Jana. Sister Julie
Thank you so much for your speedy response Sister Julie!! I will do my best to make you proud!!! Jana
You are a sweetie, Jana. Please let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. Sister J
Hello
I’m a student too (not at the same school) and I’d just like to say thankyou for giving the 3 vows of nuns in response to Jade’s question. I was really struggling with my homework and was searching for ages! So thankyou for that.
I love your Blog Sister Julie! I am pursuing a religious vocation but I am coming up against many obstacles – I’m 47 years old and most convents won’t accept a woman after 35 years old. Why is this??? Do you know of any Orders that accept “mature” women? I would like if you had both cloistered and/or active. I would appreciate any trouble you would go to! Keep on writing and I’ll keep reading! Thanks Sister Julie! Bonnie
Dear Bonnie, thanks for the encouragement! I recommend you check out the Vocation Forum which I created for people who are discerning God’s call in their life. Also, there’s a pretty lengthy discussion about entering religious life after 40-ish here on the blog. You’ll find a bunch of links there that people have offered. My own IHM community (active) accepts women over 40. Contact Sister Mary Bea, IHM. Hope this helps, Bonnie. Blessings.
Hello sister. I have been thinking about becoming a sister myself, and have recently started looking into the process of it. I am 24 years old and have 4 years of college education but not quite a degree yet. My older brother has been attneding the seminary in Missouri for the past 2 years and while be heading off for Rome this summer to continue his journey to priesthood. Well are all very excited for him. I havent really talked to, to many people about me thinking about becoming a sister. I plan on talking to my priest this Sunday about it but would also like a females guidance as well. I would greatly appreciate your prayers during this new and exciting time for me and would love some more info on preparing myself for this next step in mt life. thank you so much for all your hard work. God bless you. lacey
Dear Lacey, My prayers are with your brother and with you as you continue to follow God’s call in your life. I’ve got some suggestions on next steps on the page How to Become a Catholic Nun. Also if you’d like to hang out with other discerners online, check out the Vocation Forum. Keep faithful to prayer, Lacey, and listen to how God is calling you into a deeper relationship with him. Blessings to you.
What if you want to become a “nun” but dont want to have a closed life in the convent…?? meaning you want to serve missions, teach in a Catholic school etc…what type of Nun do you call that ???
Hi Marissa, nuns/sisters who live in a monastery and are dedicated to contemplative prayer are called cloistered nuns. Nuns/sisters who live and minister in the world via the ministries you mentioned are called apostolic/ministerial religious sisters. And there are nuns/sisters that are kind of in the middle too.