Ursulines of the Roman Unionhttp://portalrankings.com/info/ursulines-ur.org
With the foundation of the COMPANY of SAINT URSULA, in Brescia, northern Italy, in 1535, Saint Angela Merici offered to young women of her day an alternative to religious life in the cloister. It was a most daring initiative for the time. The members of the Company were consecrated as spouses of the Son of God, but without vows and living in their own homes and continuing their work. The form of government of the Company was lay and feminine, making known to society Angela’s confidence in a woman’s ability to discern, to judge for herself, to govern herself.