Elite and Beneficence: The Tertiary Franciscan Missionary Sisters in Salta in the middle of the 19th century

Las Hermanas Terciarias Misioneras Franciscanas en Salta a mediados del Siglo XIX

Abstract

The idea of ​​the role of women in society during the nineteenth century was relegated to the private sphere of the family sphere. The role of mothers and wives was what partly established that the education that the women received was oriented to the fulfillment of those objectives. However, the women knew how to reverse this situation through their participation in charitable acts and works of a social aid nature. This paper analyzes the role of women as promoters of girls' education in Cafayate during the second half of the 19th century, taking into account: the role of women as creators and active participants of charitable institutions (in this case a school for girls); the participation of the Congregation of the Tertiary Franciscan Missionary Sisters as organizers, administrators and educators of the College of Mary and the role of the Catholic Church, represented through the action of the secular Clergy, as promoter of these new enterprises of evangelizing action