Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ is a religious order of Catholic women. The Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ American Province has its motherhouse in Donaldson, Indiana.

[edit] Ministries

The Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ is an international congregation of apostolic women religious within the Roman Catholic Church. They minister with the poor, the sick and children in the United States, Mexico, Germany, England, the Netherlands, India, Brazil, Kenya and Nigeria. With prayer and community living as their foundation, they minister in rural, urban and inner city settings in the Midwest. Focused on partnering in the work of the Spirit, they invite others to join them in various facets of education, pastoral and social work, neighborhood-based health ministries, spiritual guidance and care for the environment. They are recognized more by the love and simplicity with which they serve than by any particular ministry.

[edit] History

The foundress of the Poor Handmaids is Blessed Catherine Kasper of Dernbach, Germany, who was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1978. The Poor Handmaids established their order in Indiana in 1869 upon the invitation of Bishop John Henry Luers of the Fort Wayne Diocese, which at the time extended to the Illinois border including Donaldson, Indiana.^[1] The Poor Handmaids established a college to train candidates and novices in Donaldson, Indiana in 1937. In 1966 this motherhouse opened its doors to the public as a two-year private community college under the name Ancilla College.

[edit] References