LibGuides: Virtual Displays: St. Angela Merici

Feast day: January 27th

St. Angela Merici was an Italian Catholic educator who founded the Ursuline Order in 1535 in Brescia, Italy. Her vision for the Company of St. Angela was that they would read the "signs of the times" and honor education in all things, for women of all circumstances. She also encouraged care for the poor and a focus on serving the needs of others.

At the request of Fr. Paul Joseph Volk, five Ursuline Sisters came from Louisville in 1874 to establish a school in western Daviess County at the site that is now Maple Mount, Kentucky. In 1912, the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph became an autonomous congregation. In 1925 the Sisters founded Mount Saint Joseph Junior College for Women which later moved to Owensboro and became the co-educational institution, Brescia College, in 1950. Brescia College was renamed to Brescia University with the addition of Master's programs to its course offerings in 1998.

Brescia University is celebrating its centennial anniversary in 2025! To learn more about the Ursuline Sisters of Mount St. Joseph, please visit their website: https://ursulinesmsj.org/

Angela Merici and Her Teaching Idea (1474 - 1540) by Sister M. Monica
Call Number: OSU 271.974 M744
Publication Date: 1945 | Second edition
"Angela Merici is one of the great character of religious and educational history. In sixteenth century Italy, when the education of women as we know it today was still undreamed of, she conceived a plan for the training of girls, from which came the amazing birth of a Teaching Order for girls' education, the first of its kind-- an immense sorority numbering today thousands of teachers who care for pupils in every class of society and in every phase of modern, up-to-date pedagogy..." - From back cover
Angela Merici and the Company of St. Ursula According to the Historical Documents by Teresa Ledochowska
Call Number: OSU 271.974 L474 1969 vol. 1
Publication Date: 1969
How did the first Ursulines insert themselves into the post-tridentine renewal movement and into the reaching of the Christian Doctrine? Did education in the boarding schools and schools of the Ursulines in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries meet the needs of the time? So many questions to which this study tries to give an answer based on archival documentation. -- sample from front flap
The First Ursuline: The Story of St. Angela Merici by Mary Reidy and James Brodrick
Call Number: OSU 271.974 R359
Publication Date: 1961
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Forward in Joy: 366 Days with Angela Merici by Brigitte Werr
Call Number: OSU 271.974 F746
ISBN: 9782746824553
Publication Date: 2010
Daily reflections inspired by St. Angela Merici that are themed around various topics and virtues.
Leadership from the Heart: Guidance from Angela Merici by Mary Cabrini Durkin
Call Number: OSU 271.974 D963l
Publication Date: 2019
Angela Merici created a new way of life for women in founding the Company of St. Ursula, still flourishing since 1535. The Ursuline Order and its mission of education developed from this foundation. Angela's enduring leadership principles, philosophy, and spirituality unfold for today in Leadership from the Heart. This work explores the leadership manuals that Angela left for her successors: Counsels for the Company's "teachers and guides," Testament for its administrators. Mary-Cabrini leads the reader through Angela's teachings with an invitational style that fosters personal engagement with Angela herself. Grounded in her relationship with God, Angela Merici launched a creative, person-centered enterprise. Ursuline leaders and educators draw upon these rich resources for authentic, vital service.
Praying with Angela Merici: With a Great and Longing Heart by Angela Merici, Cornelia Muller-Freund, Brigitte Werrm Suzanne Lenne, Mary Cabrini Durkin
Call Number: OSU 271.974 A582p
ISBN: 9782877189637
Publication Date: 1999
Sample for introduction: Together with her sisters, Angela authored a brief Rule. She also left them -- and us -- two further writings: the Ricordi (Words to Remember, or Counsels) and the Legati (Legacies, or Testament). We have chosen quotes from these three writings to convey Angela's spiritual concepts, because we believe that it may serve as a guide not only for Ursulines, but for all Christians.
Spirituality, Gender, and the Self in Renaissance Italy by Querciolo Mazzonis
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9780813216256
Publication Date: 2011-02-01
Spirituality, Gender, and the Self in Renaissance Italy places St. Angela Merici and her Company of St. Ursula in historical and religious context and examines them from a variety of perspectives: institutional, social, spiritual, and cultural.