THE SOCIAL PHENOMEN OF (FEMALE) MONASTICISM AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PUBLIC SPHERE

V diplomskem delu predstavljam (žensko) redovništvo kot družbeni pojav ter podrobno opisujem vse njegove konstitutivne elemente. Za razumevanje (ženskega) redovništva kot družbenega pojava moramo v najširšem smislu razumeti tudi njegovo hierarhično strukturo1, kjer so na dnu piramide same članice redov, torej redovnice, na vrhu piramide pa RKC kot krovna organizacija, redovi ter redovnice pa delujejo pod njenim okriljem. Redove uvrščamo med religijske organizacije in so sestavni del strukture RKC. Ženske v RKC ne morejo pridobiti statusa klerika – ženski redovi so tako izključno laiški. Posameznik oz. posameznica si z vstopom v red (lahko) zagotovi ugleden družbeni status, saj v družbi redovništvo ne velja za običajno, temveč za nekaj posebnega in (včasih) večvrednega. Poznamo dve vrsti redov: aktivne in kontemplativne – redovniki in redovnice v aktivnih redovih so lahko v svojem okolju dejavno udeleženi, tisti, ki so v kontemplativnih redovih, pa so od okolja ločeni. Skozi izvedene intervjuje, ki predstavljajo »glas« redovnic, opisujem, kakšen je odnos redovništva v povezavi z javno sfero v Sloveniji – od diskriminacije, vpliva redovništva, uspešnosti izpolnjevanja poslanstva do sprememb v redovništvu itd.In the following diploma thesis I introduce (female) monasticism as a social phenomenon and provide detailed descriptions of all its constituent elements. In order to understand (female) monasticism as a social phenomenon we have to understand its hierarchical structure2 in the broad sense. At the bottom of the pyramid we find the female members of the religious orders – nuns –, and at the very top of the pyramid we find the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) as the umbrella organisation under whose authority religious orders and nuns work. Orders are classified as religious organisations and present an integral part of the RKC structure. Women in the RKC cannot acquire the status of priest, making female orders exclusively lay. By joining a religious order you can guarantee yourself a respectful social status. Monasticism is, in fact, not regarded as something ordinary in society but instead as something special and (sometimes) superior. There are two types of religious orders, active and contemplative. Monks and nuns in active religious orders can be actively involved in their local communities, whereas those in contemplative religious orders are isolated from their environment. In this diploma thesis I present the role of women within the RKC. Through interviews, which represent the “voice” of nuns, I describe the relationship between monasticism and the Slovenian public sphere – from discrimination, the influence of monasticism, the successfulness of nuns fulfilling their purposes, to the changes in monasticism, etc