Catholic Women Religious in the San Francisco Bay Area, 1850
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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Santa Barbara Sisterhood on the Frontier: Catholic Women Religious in the San Francisco Bay Area, 1850- 1925 A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology by Jamila Jamison Sinlao Committee in charge: Professor Denise Bielby, Chair Professor Jon Cruz Professor Simonetta Falasca-Zamponi Professor John Mohr December 2018 The dissertation of Jamila Jamison Sinlao is approved. Jon Cruz Simonetta Falsca-Zamponi John Mohr Denise Bielby, Committee Chair December 2018 Sisterhood on the Frontier: Catholic Women Religious in the San Francisco Bay Area, 1850- 1925 Copyright © 2018 by Jamila Jamison Sinlao iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In so many ways, this dissertation is a labor of love, shaped by the formative years that I spent as a student at Mercy High School, Burlingame. There, the “Mercy spirit”—one of hospitality and generosity, resilience and faith—was illustrated by the many stories we heard about Catherine McAuley and Mary Baptist Russell. The questions that guide this project grew out of my Mercy experience, and so I would like to thank the many teachers, both lay and religious, who nurtured my interest in this fascinating slice of history. This project would not have been possible without the archivists who not only granted me the privilege to access their collections, but who inspired me with their passion, dedication, and deep historical knowledge. I am indebted to Chris Doan, former archivist for the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Sister Marilyn Gouailhardou, RSM, regional community archivist for the Sisters of Mercy Burlingame; Sister Margaret Ann Gainey, DC, archivist for the Daughters of Charity, Seton Provincialate; Kathy O’Connor, archivist for the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, California Province; and Sister Michaela O’Connor, SHF, archivist for the Sisters of the Holy Family. I am also grateful to Denise Bielby, my dissertation chair, for her vital insight and guidance, as well as her mentorship, friendship, and support during my graduate school career. Likewise, I am thankful for my committee members, Jon Cruz, Simonetta Falasca- Zamponi, and John Mohr, who provided incisive feedback, motivation, and support. It has been an honor to learn from all of you. Finally, to my parents, Roel and Christie; my sister Rowena; and my incredibly supportive husband, Joe—your encouragement and love are invaluable. Thank you for believing in me. iv VITA OF JAMILA JAMISON SINLAO December 2018 EDUCATION Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara, December 2018 (expected) Master of Arts in Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara, March 2012 Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, University of San Francisco, May 2008 (magna cum laude) PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT 2008-2012: Teaching Assistant, Department of Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara PUBLICATIONS Sinlao, Jamila. 2013. “To the Ends of the Earth: Catholic Sisters in Nineteenth Century San Francisco,” U.S. Catholic Historian, Vol. 31, No. 2, pp. 25-50. Sinlao, Jamila. 2012. “Money Can’t Buy You Class’: Cultural Capital, Etiquette, and the White Wedding,” Unpublished thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts degree in Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara. 95 pp. AWARDS Doctoral Scholar Fellowship, Graduate Division, University of California, Santa Barbara, 2008 National Science Foundation Summer Research Grant, UC Diversity Initiative for Graduate Study in the Social Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, 2009 FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Sociology of Culture v ABSTRACT Sisterhood on the Frontier: Catholic Women Religious in the San Francisco Bay Area, 1850- 1925 by Jamila Jamison Sinlao Catholic women religious have had an indelible impact on American society, particularly during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. During this key formative period, sisters built a network of charitable institutions that formed the foundation of social services throughout the country, including schools, orphanages, and hospitals. Through their work, they functioned as important cultural intermediaries for immigrant Catholics, provided much-needed labor for the Church, and generated creative solutions to social problems that impacted Catholics and non-Catholics alike. These accomplishments were achieved in spite of rampant poverty, sexism, ethnic and religious bigotry, notwithstanding strict Church rules limiting their actions. Although historians have established women religious as active agents, illustrating in rich detail the ways in which sisters negotiated this contested terrain through a blend of practical vision, spiritual belief, and political savvy (Coburn and Smith 1999; Mangion 2007; Butler 2012), few scholars have systematically studied the institutional tools that were at sisters’ disposal. The foundation of female religious life was the Rules and constitutions, the official guidelines that governed religious congregations and provided them with vi institutional leverage that could prove instrumental. These tools were utilized by women religious in Europe, but the American milieu—specifically the West—combined with the high demand for their labor, a lack of standardization for how sisters should operate, and a need for flexibility, created a space in which such institutional leverage could be exercised. Integration of sociological perspectives, particularly the institutional logics perspective, makes it possible to more deeply understand the institutional processes underlying these actions. Through a comparative study of five congregations of Catholic apostolic sisterhoods operating in the Archdiocese of San Francisco during the period of 1850-1925, this dissertation explores how organizational structure and culture functioned as a source of institutional tools, resources, and capacities. When paired with the strategic deployment of normative femininity and political knowledge, these institutional tools formed a repertoire of organizational strategies and resources that provided sisters with institutional leverage instrumental in securing their interests in the face of patriarchal opposition. Through the system of gendered adaptations designed to help them navigate the fraught terrain of a strict patriarchal institution, Catholic women religious maximized the autonomy they could exercise within their narrow sphere of influence without risking the consequences of blatant disobedience and insubordination. In doing so, they also created an important foundation for discernment and decision making, one that leveraged institutional tools to expand their limited agency. These choices not only shaped sisters’ immediate concerns but allowed them to be organizationally resilient, guiding the adaptation, evolution, and, ultimately, the survival of their congregations. vii Table of Contents I. Introduction ................................................................................................................. viii A. Organizational Theory and the Institutional Logics Perspective ................................ 5 B. Historical Overview: Women’s Religious Communities ............................................ 10 1. The Emergence of Apostolic Orders ................................................................................................ 11 2. Women Religious in the United States ............................................................................................. 14 C. Research Focus ............................................................................................................ 18 II. Institutional Contexts and Conditions ........................................................................ 22 A. Central Factors for Organizational Heterogeneity .......................................................... 23 1. Sociopolitical and Economic Conditions ......................................................................................... 24 2. Ethnic and Racial Origins ................................................................................................................. 29 3. Founders, Allies, and Partnerships ................................................................................................... 32 B. Impact of Heterogeneity on Political, Material & Symbolic Culture ............................. 37 1. Governance Models .......................................................................................................................... 37 2. Membership Structures ..................................................................................................................... 39 3. Material Culture ................................................................................................................................ 40 4. Devotional Culture ........................................................................................................................... 41 C. Religious Formation and Social Reproduction ................................................................. 43 D. Conclusion ............................................................................................................................ 46 III. Origin Stories ............................................................................................................. 49 A. Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Est. 1775) ................................ 52 1. Foundress Biography .......................................................................................................................