The Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women based in Frankfort, Illinois, and located in the Catholic Diocese of

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the cit ...

. The Sisters serve in healthcare, education, religious education, parish and diocesan ministries and ministry to the poor. Following the Rule of Saint Francis of Assisi and as members of the Third Order Regular, they are women dedicated to sharing their lives in prayer, community and ministry. Their founder, Father Wilhelm Berger, defined their ministries as works of neighborly love.

History

Founding

In 1866, Sister Coletta Himmelsbach and three other women in Seelbach, what was then the Grand Duchy of Baden, (now part of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

), accepted the challenge to serve the poor, the sick, and the aging of their village. From this small group developed the

Congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

now known as the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart. In 1868 they opened a chapel at their first Motherhouse at Trettenhoff, near Seelbach, which they had purchased to accommodate their growing program and number of members. The Sisters cared for the sick in their homes, and nursed victims of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

and

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

, which increased in the social disruption during and after the Franco-Prussian War. They also taught the young, and opened their convent doors to care for the orphans and elderly. They worked on the battlefield during the war to nurse and treat the wounded. During the period of the

Kulturkampf (, 'culture struggle') was the conflict that took place from 1872 to 1878 between the Catholic Church led by Pope Pius IX and the government of Prussia led by Otto von Bismarck. The main issues were clerical control of education and ecclesiastic ...

in the 1870s, anti-Catholic feeling rose in Germany, as Bismarck worked to establish a more secular government. The Sisters were under pressure to disband or migrate. While they were discerning their course of action, the Rev. Dominic Duehmig, who had established himself in the United States, invited the Sisters to that country, and they began to migrate in 1876.

United States of America

On May 17, 1876, four Sisters set sail for the United States, settling in

Avilla, Indiana Avilla is a town in Allen Township, Noble County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 2,401 at the 2010 census. History A post office has been in operation at Avilla since 1846. According to Ronald L. Baker, the town may be named ...

, in the Diocese of Fort Wayne. Within a short time, 23 other Sisters from Baden joined them. They elected Mother Anastasia Bischler was elected as their first

General Superior A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of a religious institute in the Catholic Church and some other Christian denominations. The superior general usually holds supreme executive authority in the religious community, while th ...

. Archbishop

Patrick Feehan Patrick Augustine Feehan (August 28, 1829 – July 12, 1902), was an Irish-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first archbishop of the newly elevated Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois between 1880 and his death ...

of Chicago approved their Constitutions on March 10, 1888. The

Religious Institute A religious institute is a type of institute of consecrated life in the Catholic Church whose members take religious vows and lead a life in community with fellow members. Religious institutes are one of the two types of institutes of consecrate ...

was granted Pontifical status on July 16, 1898. Because of expanding ministries, the

Motherhouse A motherhouse is the principal house or community for a religious institute. It would normally be where the residence and offices of the religious superior In a hierarchy or tree structure of any kind, a superior is an individual or position at ...

was transferred to

, in 1883. In 1893, they established Mercy Hospital in Burlington, Iowa. They worked in education, ministries to the poor, and in healthcare. In the late 1920s, for instance, some Franciscan Sisters moved to

Chamberlain, South Dakota Chamberlain is a city in Brule County, South Dakota, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Missouri River, at the dammed section of the Lake Francis Case, close to where it is crossed by Interstate 90. The population of Chambe ...

, where they assisted

Priests of the Sacred Heart The Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart ( la, Congregatio Sacerdotum a Sacro Corde Iesu) abbreviated SCI, also called the Dehonians, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of Pontifical Right for men in the Catholic Church f ...

in running

St. Joseph's Indian School St. Joseph's Indian School is an American Indian boarding school, run by the Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart just outside the city of Chamberlain, South Dakota, on the east side of the Missouri River. The school is located in th ...

, founded in 1927 primarily to serve Lakota students and families from nearby reservations. As of 2021, the school continues to serve Native Americans in the region, with about 220 students annually in grades K-8. The Sisters also established missions in South America. In 1964 the Motherhouse moved to Frankfort, Illinois, where it is still located. The sisters have run many healthcare facilities, such as the Queen of Angels Hospital (1926-1989) in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, which partnered with another institution in a new facility.

Today

As Franciscan women religious, the Sisters are faithful to God’s continuous creative action in their lives. They joyfully embrace their vowed life and the Franciscan values of poverty, humility, contemplation, and continual conversion. Their deep trust in

Divine Providence In theology, Divine Providence, or simply Providence, is God's intervention in the Universe. The term ''Divine Providence'' (usually capitalized) is also used as a title of God. A distinction is usually made between "general providence", which ...

continually supports their readiness to respond in a prophetic way to the needs of others through their varied ministries of education, healing and service. They live communally in convents located in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and California, as well as in the Amazon basin area of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, South America.

References

{{Coord, 41, 31, 11.65, N, 87, 50, 25.37, W, display=title Catholic female orders and societies Catholic Church in Illinois Congregations of Franciscan sisters Institutes of consecrated life Religious organizations established in 1866 1866 establishments in Germany