Three sisters came from Saint Walburg Convent in Eichstät, Bavaria to the
United States in 1852 at the invitation of Rev. Boniface Wimmer, OSB, later Archabbot
of Saint Vincent Archabbey, Latrobe, Pennsylvania. Led by Sister Benedicta Riepp,
the little band settled in Saint
Mary´s, Pennsylvania, the place from which missions and convents developed
rapidly over
the next 50 years.
In 1878, the first attempts were made to join the independent houses into
a congregation. On February 25, 1922, the Apostolic See approved the Constitution
and granted official approbation to the Congregation of Saint Scholastica.
This congregation consisted of ten monasteries in seven
states.
In 1974, the "Congregation" was designated "Federation" of Saint Scholastica
to more accurately
reflect the actual nature of this monastic structure.
Today there are twenty-two monasteries in fifteen states and Mexico. The
Constitutions, called Call
to Life, were first published in 1974. After several revisions, they were
given formal approval by the Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes
on February 10, 1988.
Histories of the Federation of St. Scholastica
The Benedictine Congregation of St. Scholastica: Its Foundation
and Development (1952-1930)
Sister Mary Regina Baska, OSB
J. H. Furst Company
Baltimore, Maryland
©1935
Spring and Harvest, St. Walburg's Shrine: Symbol and Center
of Nine-Hundred Fruitful Years
Nuns of St. Walburg, translated by Sister Gonzaga Englehart, OSB
The Grail
St. Meinrad, Indiana
© 1952
Climb Along the Cutting Edge: An Analysis of Changes in Religious
Life
Sister Joan Chittister, OSB
Sister Stephanie Campbell, OSB
Sister Mary Collins, OSB
Sister
Ernestine Johann, OSB
Sister Johnette Putnam, OSB
Paulist Press
New York City, New York
© 1977
Behind the Beginnings: Benedictine Women in America
Sister M.
Incarnata Girgen, OSB
North Central Publishing Company
St. Paul, Minnesota
© 1981
True Daughters: Monastic Identity and American Benedictine Women's
History
Sister Judith Sutera, OSB
Benedictine College Press
Atchison, Kansas
© 1987
We Were Blessed: A History of the Federation of St. Scholastica
1922-1997
Sister Regina Hansen, OSB
De
LaSalle Student Press
Second Printing
©1987
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