Sisters in Crisis: Tragic Unraveling of Women's Rel. Commun.

They were the educators of countless Catholic youth, the ideals and models for generations of devout young women.

In 1965 they numbered 181,000. Today, there are fewer than 95,000. What happened to the "good sisters"?

In this ground-breaking work, author Ann Carey uses the archival records of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious and other prominent groups of sisters to reveal the tragic events occurring in women's religious communities during the political and cultural changes of the 1960s and '70s.

An eye-opening expose, Sisters in Crisis shows not only how the renewal effort of religious communities was effectively co-opted by activist sisters who had been influenced by the feminist movement, but also includes the testimony from the silent majority of sisters who have remained faithful to their vows in spite of this upheaval.

This book offers hope for the future by highlighting new communities that are thriving, as well as established communities that have stabilized themselves.