A RELIGIOUS HABIT AS A SYMBOL OF CONSECRATED LIFE: FEATURES OF THE RELIGIOUS LIFE IN THE FEMALE FRANCISCAN CONGREGATION IN GALYCNYNA IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE XIX – EARLY XX CENTURY

Abstract

On the basis of archival sources the article reveals the features of the monk’s frock in the female franciscan congregation in Galicia in the second half of the XIX – early XX century. A religious habit is a distinctive set of garments worn by members of a religious order. The habit consists of a tunic covered by a scapular and cowl, a veil for nuns. In all congregations there was a different color of habit. The rosary, attached to the cord, is the «Franciscan crown», a particular devotion from the Franciscan tradition which contemplates the mysteries of the seven joys of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Franciscans nuns, in the tradition of our founder Saint Francis of Assisi, embrace a life of simple and unattached poverty. The brown robes reflected the poverty. Additionally, a simple corded rope, known as cinture, with three knots is worn around the waist. The three knots represent Poverty, Chastity and Obedience, the three cornerstones of the Franciscan Order. Differences in the appearance of religious habit made it possible to clearly identify to which congregation belonged nun.