Sisters of Mercy


The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute for women in the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. In 2019, the institute had about 6,200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. Notable achievements include the foundation of education and health care facilities around the world.

History

Founding

The Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy began when Catherine McAuley used an inheritance to build a large house on Baggot Street, Dublin, as a school for poor girls and a homeless shelter for servant girls and women. Local women assisted in the works of the house. There was no idea then of founding a religious institution; McAuley's plan was to establish a society of secular ladies who would spend a few hours daily in instructing the poor. Gradually the ladies adopted a black dress and cape of the same material reaching to the belt, a white collar and a lace cap and veil.
In 1828, Archbishop Daniel Murray advised McAuley to choose some name by which the little group might be known, and she chose that of "Sisters of Mercy", having the design of making the works of mercy the distinctive feature of the institute. She desired that the members should combine with the silence and prayer of the Carmelite, the active labors of a Sister of Charity. The position of the institute was anomalous, its members were not bound by vows nor were they under a particular rule.
Archbishop Murray asked the Sisters of Mercy to declare their intentions as to the future of their institute, whether it was to be classed as a religious congregation, or to become secularized. The associates unanimously decided to become religious. It was deemed better to have this congregation unconnected with any already existing community.
On the Octave of the Ascension, 1829, the archbishop blessed the chapel of the institution and dedicated it to Our Lady of Mercy. This combination of the contemplative and the active life necessary for the duties of the congregation called forth so much opposition, that it seemed as though the community of twelve must disband; but it was settled that several of the sisters should make their novitiates in some approved religious house and after their profession return to the institute to train the others to religious life.
The Presentation Sisters, whose rule was based on the Rule of St. Augustine, seemed best adapted for the training of the first novices of the new congregation and McAuley, Elizabeth Harley and Anna Maria Doyle began their novitiate at George's Hill, Dublin, on 8 September 1830. While they were in training, Frances Warde managed the affairs of the Baggot Street house.
On 12 December 1831, Catherine McAuley, Mary Ann Doyle, and Elizabeth Harley professed their religious vows as the first three Sisters of Mercy, thereby founding the congregation. In 1839, Mary Francis Bridgeman professed her vows and joined the congregation.

Expansion

In the 10 years between the founding and her death on 11 November 1841, McAuley established additional independent foundations in Ireland and England: Tullamore, Charleville, Carlow, Cork, Limerick, Bermondsey, London, Galway, Birr, and St Mary's Convent, Birmingham, as well as branch houses of the Dublin community in Kingstown and Booterstown.
The Sisters offered free schools for the poor, academies for the daughters of the rising middle class, and "houses of mercy", providing shelter for poor youth and women in Dublin and other cities who were in danger of being exploited. They were called upon by bishops in several major epidemics of cholera to nurse people in homes and in the public hospitals.
Their services were in much demand. McAuley opened the first Convent of Mercy in England at Bermondsey on 19 November 1839 for the education of children and the visitation of the poor, sick, and needy. Mother Mary Clare Moore was appointed Superior. The convent was designed in the 'Gothic Style' by Augustus Pugin, his first purpose-designed religious community building. It was destroyed during World War II.
In May 1842, at the request of Bishop Fleming, a small colony of Sisters of Mercy crossed the Atlantic to found the congregation at St. John's, Newfoundland. In 1846, the sisters arrived in Perth, Australia. In the United States, the first community of Sisters of Mercy was established in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1843, followed by Providence, Rhode Island, in 1851. Sisters from Limerick opened a house in Glasgow in 1849 and a band from Carlow, Irland arrived in New Zealand, in 1850. In 1860, St Catharine's Convent was founded in Edinburgh and in 1868, the English community established houses in Shrewsbury and on the island of Guernsey.

Crimean War

With the London Times reporting appalling conditions at the front, the War Office appealed for volunteer nurses. On 14 October 1854, Bishop Thomas Grant, of Southwark approached the Sisters at Bermondsey. Together with other nuns, six Bermondsey Sisters of Mercy, including Mary Bernard Dickson, travelled to Crimea to work under Florence Nightingale.

Boer War

At the request of the bishop of Mahikeng, Dr Anthony Gaughran, sisters came to South Africa to found convents there. Mother Superior Teresa Cowley led a group from the convent in Strabane, with the group acting as nurses to the military during the siege of Mahikeng.

Mercy International Association

In 1992 leaders of the various congregations formed the "Mercy International Association" to foster collaboration and cooperation. The Mercy International Centre is located in Dublin, and as of 2021 the association members are the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of Australia, the Sisters of Mercy of Great Britain, the Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy, the Nga Whaea Atawhai o Aotearoa Sisters of Mercy New Zealand, the Sisters of Mercy of Newfoundland, and the Religious Sisters of Mercy.

Vows and activities

Sisters of Mercy is an international community of Roman Catholic women religious vowed to serve people who suffer from poverty, sickness and lack of education with a special concern for women and children. Members take vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, the evangelical counsels commonly vowed in religious life, and, in addition, vows of service.
They continue to participate in the life of the surrounding community. In keeping with their mission of serving the poor and needy, many sisters engage in teaching, medical care, and community programs. The organization is active in lobbying and politics.

Constitution

The Sisters of Mercy are constituted as religious and charitable organizations in a number of countries. Mercy International Association is a registered charity in Ireland.

Controversies

In 1869, Sister of Mercy, Susan Saurin, brought suit against her superiors accusing them of bullying, assault and imprisonment. She sought £5,000 in damages. The "Great Convent Case" opened at Westminster Hall with heightened press interest given Victorian antipathy to all things Roman Catholic. The Daily Telegraph made a special publication on the "Inner Life of the Hull Nunnery Exposed" to cover the trial. Saurin won her case and was awarded fifty pounds in damages.
In May 2009, the institute was among four religious congregations for women that came under scrutiny and criticism for their part in running Magdalene laundries in past decades, where women were brought by the state, or their families, for being unmarried and pregnant, or for other reasons. The report found that girls supervised by congregations or orders, chiefly the Sisters of Mercy, suffered much less sexual abuse, but instead endured frequent assaults and humiliation.
The Mercy Sisters have noted they were not compensated for caring for the women and that the laundries were not profit-making ventures. "We acknowledge fully the limitations of the service we provided for these women when compared with today's standards and sincerely wish that it could have been different. We trust that the implications of the changed context are understood by the wider society."
In 2011, as part of their Sculpture Trail initiative, the Ennis Tidy Towns Committee erected a statue at the site of the old St. Xavier's Primary School, now the Clare Museum. Created by Barry Wrafter, it was commissioned to celebrate the work of the Sisters of Mercy since their coming to the town in 1854.

Schools founded or run by Sisters of Mercy

Australia

Canada

  • Academy of Our Lady of Mercy, St. John's, Newfoundland
  • St. Augustine's Elementary School, St. John's, Newfoundland
  • St. Bride's College, St. John's, Newfoundland

    Ireland

Guyana

  • St John Bosco Boys Orphanage, Georgetown
  • Mercy Wings Academic Foundation, Georgetown

    Jamaica

  • Convent of Mercy "Alpha" Academy, Kingston
  • St. John Bosco Boys Home, Mandeville
  • Mount Saint Joseph Preparatory School, Mandeville

    New Zealand

In 1849 Bishop Pompallier visited St Leo's Convent in Carlow, Ireland, seeking sisters to emigrate; eight left from St Leo's, led by Mother Mary Cecilia. They travelled to New Zealand, learning Māori along the way, establishing the Sisters of Mercy in Auckland as the first female religious community in New Zealand in 1850.

Philippines

  • Holy Infant College, Tacloban City
  • Assumption Academy, Tanauan, Leyte
  • Cathedral School of La Naval, Naval, Biliran
  • Holy Cross High School, Camp Philips, Bukidnon
  • Holy Child High School, Villaba, Leyte

    United Kingdom

United States