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Mothers Superior | |
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by Tonto Silerheels » Tue Nov 24, 2015 5:17 pm | |
Tonto Silerheels
Posts: 454
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While waiting for the next book to be published I'm rereading Hell's Foundations Quiver. In the first chapter Aivah informs Merlin that the Sisters of Seijin Kohdy don't have a Mother Abbess, but a Mother Superior, and she's it. I looked up 'Mother Superior' on Wikipedia, but found it to be uninformative. What's the import of having a Mother Superior? What is she telling Merlin?
~Tonto |
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Re: Mothers Superior | |
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by n7axw » Tue Nov 24, 2015 5:41 pm | |
n7axw
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My own guess is that they are pretty much one and the same thing; different titles without meaningful distinction. Anybody out there with better info?? Don - When any group seeks political power in God's name, both religion and politics are instantly corrupted.
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Re: Mothers Superior | |
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by PeterZ » Tue Nov 24, 2015 5:43 pm | |
PeterZ
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I believe the distinction is that a Mother Superior is head of a community of nuns and an Abbess is head of an Abbey. An Abbey is in a fixed location, while a community is not necessarily fixed to one location. So Nynian was emphasizing that she is head of an organization that is much broader than nuns living in one place.
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Re: Mothers Superior | |
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by JeffEngel » Tue Nov 24, 2015 6:05 pm | |
JeffEngel
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Right. A Mother Superior may be the head of a particular abbey, but the abbey isn't strictly necessary. (Being Nynian, she was being subtle.) |
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by saber964 » Tue Nov 24, 2015 6:52 pm | |
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A Mother Superior and a Mother Abbess are pretty much the same thing but in this instance a Mother Superior is the head of the entire order. |
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Re: Mothers Superior | |
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by alj_sf » Wed Nov 25, 2015 5:42 pm | |
alj_sf
Posts: 218
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In the Catholic tradition, an Abbey is also part of the church hierarchy, either at a position specified by its charter (eg Franciscans were under diocesan authority while jesuits obeyed only to the Pope for a long time) or depending of a given order. Said hierarchy will then have oversight on the Abbey. Think of the feminine orders of the XVII° which were theoretically independents but whose charters depended of a Papal bull imposing jesuit confessors. The charters were later revoked and the orders dispersed. Being a secret congregation outside the church, the head can so only be a mother superior. |
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