Catherine Cecily O'Brien OP (1893–1945) was an Australian Dominican sister and educationist who was known for her innovative teaching methods and for being an advocate of quality education for girls.

Biography

Catherine was born near

Merriwa, New South Wales Merriwa is a town located in the Upper Hunter Shire, in the far west of the Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is located on the Golden Highway, northwest of Sydney and about halfway between Newcastle and Dubbo. At the 2011 ...

, to James Thomas O'Brien and his wife Catherine Cecily, nee Gleeson. While initially educated at home, Catherine received her senior education at the Dominican Convent in Maitland, where she won a teacher-training scholarship. Catherine entered the same Dominican Convent in July 1914, received the habit in April 1915 and took the religious name of Sister Mary Anselm. She took her perpetual vows in 1917 and taught at the local secondary school in Maitland until 1920. Because of her desire to attend university, Sister Mary Anselm moved to Santa Sabina Dominican Convent School in Strathfield in 1921. She attended the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

, graduating in 1924 with a Bachelor of Arts with first-class honours in English and Latin and the university medal for English. She continued her education, completing a diploma in education in 1925. In 1928 she obtained a Master of Arts in English literature, with first-class honours, completing a thesis titled "Tragedy in English Literature". From 1925 until 1945, Sister Mary Anselm taught English, Christian doctrine, French and Latin at Santa Sabina.

Legacy

Sister Mary Anselm became known for her innovative methods as well as her many lectures and publications on English literature and Christian doctrine. In 1925 she co-founded with

Frank Sheed Francis Joseph Sheed (20 March 1897 in Sydney – 20 November 1981 in Jersey City) was an Australian-born lawyer, Catholic writer, publisher, speaker, and lay theologian. He and his wife Maisie Ward were famous in their day as the names be ...

the school branch of the

Catholic Evidence Guild The Catholic Evidence Guild is a loose international association of Roman Catholic lay volunteers which seeks to research and present clear and compelling explanations of the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church. Their objective is to address inco ...

, thus breaking new ground in the teaching of religion. She published a monograph entitled ''The Catholic Evidence Guild in Secondary Schools'' in 1939. Always an advocate for tertiary education, she built up the school's library at Santa Sabina, and organised regular weekly feature lectures on English and Latin literature for the senior pupils and the Sisters. Many of the lecturers were from published authors – her friends from university days – and she also frequently invited writers to the school. Sister Mary Anselm O'Brien died in 1945 and the library in the Aquinas Centre at

Santa Sabina College , motto_translation = Truth , established = , slogan = Shake the world , principal = Paulina Skerman , chairperson = Tony Woods , location = Strathfield, In ...

is dedicated to her memory.

Selected works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:O'Brien, Catherine Cecily 1893 births 1945 deaths Dominican Sisters 20th-century Australian Roman Catholic nuns University of Sydney alumni