In ancient Europe, many women left their homes to become nuns, both daughters of poor families and daughters of rich families. Why did these women abandon their families and not marry and have children to live alone in the monastery?
In fact, being a nun has many unexpected benefits. So a lot of women are willing to be nuns.
Let's not talk about religious beliefs, let's talk about women's lives. In ancient Europe, two out of 10 women died of dystocia. In monogamous situations, there are many people who have married several wives in their lifetime because their wives have died of difficult childbirth. If a woman becomes a nun, she will not have to marry and have children, nor will she die because of difficult childbirth, just like the phrase that women often say now, "Unmarried and infertile to ensure peace."
Second, being a nun can avoid many family problems. The daughters of poor families have to do a lot of heavy physical work in their lives, cooking and washing clothes, taking care of children, and even pregnant and lactation have to do these heavy physical tasks, which is very hard. If a woman had become a nun, there would not have been so much heavy physical work to do.
And the rich woman also has a lot of trouble, for example, a woman wants a large dowry to marry, and the father refuses to pay the dowry for her, no one wants to marry her. In ancient times, there was no celibacy, and women could not fail to marry, so the daughters of these rich families became nuns.
Becoming a nun can also avoid family conflicts and find a way out for yourself. Some women become nuns at home when they are angry with their stepmothers. Some women cannot bear the bullying of their husbands and can also become nuns.
And monasteries can be sanctuaries. In ancient European wars, many female nobles fled into the monastery, and the enemy did not dare to run to the monastery to catch her.
Many monastic environments and material living conditions are not bad, and it is also a good place for women, with no worries about food and clothing, which solves the problem of eating and housing.
When a nun cannot have a love marriage and a husband and children, but there are gains and losses, the nun also gets a pure and happy life, if the woman does not have a very strong physical need, then being a nun is still a good life.