MERCY, SISTERS OF: The name of several
religious congregations of women in the Roman
Catholic Church.
1. Institute of Our Blessed Lady, of Mercy: A
congregation founded by Catherine Elizabeth
McAuley (q.v.). The beginnings of this order go
back to 1827 when the founder, then forty years
of
age, and having recently inherited a large fortune,
established in Dublin (on the feast of Our Lady of
Mercy, Sept. 24) an institution for the harboring
of destitute women and orphans and for the tied of
poor schools. The house was placed in charge of
Miss Anna M. Doyle who was assisted in the school
work by Miss Katherine Byrne. At that period
there was no intention of founding a religious order,
but
rather of organizing a society of secular ladies
who, between the period of leaving school and
settling
in
life, might devote a portion of their time
to the instruction of the poor and to other works of
charity. But as several of her associates evinced a
desire to make this a life-work and become sisters,
Miss McAuley was led to establish, with the
permission of the archbishop, a religious community
under the title: "Institute of Our Blessed Lady of
Mercy." In 1828 the members adopted a distinctive costume, but it was not until Dec. 12, 1831,
after a year's novitiate in the Presentation Monastery of George's Hill, that they made their religious
profession, taking the three vows according to the
presentation form. Returning to their convent,
Sister Mary Katherine was appointed superior by
Dr. Murray, archbishop of Dublin, but for several
years the institute had no written rule. The
costume adopted by the foundresa consists of a
habit of coarse black serge, or cashmere, falling in
folds from the throat to the feet in front, and
lengthened into a train behind. It is confined to
the waist by a leathern girdle, or cincture, on which
the beads and cross of the order are suspended.
The sleeves are long and wide, falling in plaits
from the shoulders, with tight undersleeves. The
habit and veil are very ample: the guimp is a deep
linen collar, worn in front, and the coif, an envelop
of the same material, covers the head, partly concealing the face. The rule of the institute, based
on that of St. Augustine, was approved by Pope
Gregory XVI. June 8, 1841. The specific objects of
the order are the education of the poor, the visitation of the sick, and the protection of distressed
women of good character. Besides the three
ordinary vows of religion the sisters bind themselves
to the service of the sick, the poor, and the ignorant,
and they also take a vow of stability or perseverance
in the institute. The order comprises two classes
of sisters, choir and lay religious, and each separate
community is subject canonically to the bishop of
the diocese in which it is situated. Forty-three
convents of the order were established before the
death of the founder in 1841. There are houses of
the order also in England, Scotland, Australia, and
the United States. The Sisters of Mercy were
first introduced into the United States in 1843 by
Bishop O'Connor of Pittsburg, where the beginnings
of the American foundation were materially furthered by the generosity of Miss Eliza Jane Tiernan
who, on joining the community, bestowed upon it
a large fortune inherited from her father. The
development of the order in the United States was
quite rapid, and it had in 1909 about forty mother
houses in various cities from Maine to California.
The sisters conduct schools, academies, hospitals,
asylums, etc. The number of pupils under their
charge is about 80,000, and the total number of
professed sisters is about 4,500.
2. Sisters of Mercy of Seez, France: A congregation founded in 1823 in the diocese of Seez,
France, by five
pious
women under the direction
of a zealous priest, M. Bazin. They first took the
name "Sisters of Charity," but in 1825 it was
changed to "Sisters of Mercy" in order that the
new community might be distinguished from that
of the
Sisters of Charity founded by St. Vincent de
Paul. The object of the order is to minister to the
spiritual and temporal needs of the sick, and
especially of the poor in their homes. There are
foundations of the order in England as well as in
France.
8. Sisters of Mercy of Montreal (Sceura
de la mis
&icorde): A congregation established in Montreal,
Quebec (where the mother house is located), by
Bishop Ignatius Bourget in 1848. The foundress
was Madame Rosalie Jettk (in religion, Mother
Mary of
the Nativity), but from the beginning she
declined to accept the office of superior, and Sister
St. Jane de Chantal was placed in charge. The
specific object of the institute is to assist women in
labor, both rich and poor, especially the latter,
whom the sisters receive in their institutions or
visit in their homes. In receiving patients no
discrimination is made in respect to religion, color,
nationality, or place of residence. No questions are
asked, and all precautions are taken to protect the
honor of patients and avert the crime of infanticide.
The children are cared for both in the main institu
tions and in homes established especially for the
purpose. Patients who desire to remain in the
institution for a time after their convalescence are
placed in charge of a sister. They follow a certain
rule of life, without, however, contracting any
religious obligation, and are known as " conse
crated " (conaacreees). If they choose to remain in
the convent permanently and show the proper
dispositions, they are allowed, after a period of
probation, to become "Magdalena," and after a
further probationary period they are admitted to
take the vows of the subsidiary Magdalen order.
The congregation is governed by a mother general
who is elected every six years. The institute was
approved by Pope Pius IX., June 7, 1867. These
sisters have establishments not only in Canada,
but also in New York, Chicago, Milwaukee, and
Green Bay.
James F. Driscoll.
Bibliography:
Heimbucher Orden und Kongreg
iii. 388-387, 554; Currier, Religious Ordara, pp.
578
595: OflcW Catholic Directory, New York, 1909.
