Sister Mary Stanislaus MacCarthy (1849–1897) was an Irish poet, educator and nun. MacCarthy was a daughter of poet Denis Florence MacCarthy, who wrote as "Desmond of The Nation" and Elizabeth MacCarthy (née Donnelly).
thumb|Sion Hill School Original
Biography
Mary MacCarthy was born on 26 December 1849 in Blackrock, County Dublin and was the eldest of nine children. which appeared in the Dublin University Magazine in March 1851. as well as her sister, Ethna, who died on 16 December 1885.
Life's work
Poetry
MacCarthy began writing religious poetry as a young woman and is believed to have had her first work published in the first edition of the Irish Monthly, December 1873. She contributed to other Catholic journals, most notably the Rosary. she returned to Sion Hill.
In September 1886, she began teaching in the convent's new university department which prepared female students for RUI examinations, Due to personal belief or cultural climate, it was not deemed appropriate by the Dominican nuns to campaign publicly for women's educational rights, but MacCarthy and her peers felt comfortable pushing for curriculum reform and acceptance of competitive examinations for girls.
Published works
- A Rebukes for mourning the death of a dear child "Ah, cruel Reaper of the Flowers!", 1873.
- The homeless one: "The long bright eastern day is done", 1876.
- A Birthday Book of the Dead, Dublin, 1886.
- Pilgrimages: "I often think when pious pilgrims tell", 1893.
- Three roundels: "We little know when friends are gay", 1895.