Catherine McAuley and the Sisters of Mercy
 Born in Dublin, Ireland in 1778, Catherine McAuley dedicated her life to serving the women and children of Ireland. McAuley established the first House of Mercy on Baggot Street in 1827 with inheritance money from her caretakers. The house provided a place for homeless women and orphans to come and receive an education. Catherine McAuley was a firm believer in allowing women to be self-sufficient. In 1831, McAuley and two of her co-workers at the House of Mercy decided that a revision to the lay order was necessary. Mary Ann Doyle, Mary Elizabeth Hartley, and Catherine McAuley made their vows and thus established the Sisters of Mercy. Responding to the needs of Ireland, Catherine McAuley and the Sisters of Mercy established nine additional foundations all around Ireland. Between 1836 and 1841, houses in Tullamore, Charleville, Carlow, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Birr, Birmingham (in England), and Kingstown were founded. McAuley submitted herself to carrying “the Cross of Christ.” Pope Gregory XVI formally recognized the Sisters of Mercy as a religious institution in 1841. Catherine McAuley died on November 11, 1841 at the original House of Mercy on Baggot Street.
In 1843, Frances Warde brought the Sisters of Mercy to the United States. They quickly established schools and hospitals, continuing the mission and tradition of Catherine McAuley. Within several years, a rush of young Irish women joined the Sisters of Mercy in the United States, eager to begin their own ministries. Today, there are over 9,000 Sisters of Mercy in the United States. Their focus continues to be the empowerment of young women, prison ministry, immigration, healthcare, and affordable housing.
Worldwide, the Sisters of Mercy are in more than 46 countries, as close to Ireland as England and Scotland, and as far from Ireland as Papua New Guinea.
|
