Heilige Geestklooster, Steyl, kapel interieur 06

The Holy Spirit Adoration Sisters ( la, Servarum Spiritus Sancti de Adoratione Perpetua, SSpSAP) are a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

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 ...

. The nuns live a contemplative life, focused on perpetual adoration of the

Blessed Sacrament The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of the ...

, offering intercessory prayers for the world 24 hours a day. Inside the enclosure the nuns wear

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

-colored tunics with their

habits A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

symbolizing their joy for the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

. As a consequence of these habits these nuns are named in the vernacular the "pink sisters". The congregation was founded in 1896 in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

by Arnold Janssen, a

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diocesan priest In Christianity, the term secular clergy refers to deacons and priests who are not monastics or otherwise members of religious life. A secular priest (sometimes known as a diocesan priest) is a priest who commits themselves to a certain geogr ...

who had first founded in 1875 the

Society of the Divine Word The Society of the Divine Word ( la, Societas Verbi Divini), abbreviated SVD and popularly called the Verbites or the Divine Word Missionaries, and sometimes the Steyler Missionaries, is a Catholic Church, Catholic clerical religious congregation ...

in the Dutch border village of

Steyl Steyl (; li, Sjteil ) is a village in the Tegelen district of the municipality of Venlo, the Netherlands. The village on the river Meuse is mainly known for its monasteries. In 2004, a section of the village including four monasteries was made a c ...

, and in 1889 the

Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit The Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit, also known as Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, or simply Holy Spirit Sisters (Latin: ''Congregatio Missionalis Servarum Spiritus Sancti'', SSpS) is a religious congregation within the Catholic C ...

. Later, Janssen formed the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration congregation so that the missionaries that he had already formed could be supported by prayer. Janssen was canonized on October 5, 2003, by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. Mary Michael was Janssen's first Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration Superior of the convent in Steyl. The first convent abroad was established in Philadelphia,

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in 1915 by Mary Michael (Adolfine Tönnies) (1862–1934), upon the invitation of

Edmond Francis Prendergast Edmond Francis Prendergast (May 3, 1843 – February 26, 1918) was an Irish-born prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the third Archbishop of Philadelphia from 1911 until his death in 1918. Biography Edmond Prendergast was born in Clonm ...

. Mary Michael grew the convents in many locations, where they continued to grow after her death on Feb. 25, 1934 in Steyl. On Feb. 25, 2015 the Holy See gave approval for the beatification process for Mary Michael. The motherhouse was later moved from Steyl to Bad Driburg, Germany. Currently, there are 22 convents located in

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Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

, and the United States. They are supported solely by donations from visitors and other private parties.

Literature

* Anton Freitag, ''Tabernakelwacht und Weltmission''. Steyl 1918 (1921 2nd ed.) * Anton Freitag, ''Tabernakelwacht en wereldmissie''. Uden 1923. * ''Burning lamps : Mother Mary Michaele : co-foundress Sister-Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration, 1862-1934''. St. Louis, 1968. 183 pp. * Karl Müller SVD, ''Kontemplation und Mission. Steyler Anbetungsschwestern 1896-1996'',Steyler Verlag: Nettetal 1996, XII + 532 pp. + Bilddokumentation, * Karl Müller SVD, ''Contemplation and Mission. Sister Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration 1896-1996'', translated by Frank Mansfield SVD, 448 pp., Steyler Verlag: Nettetal (Germany) 1998, * Josef Alt SVD, ''Journey in Faith. The Missionary Life of Arnold Janssen'', Studia Instituti Missiologici SVD 78, Steyler Verlag: Nettetal 2002, XVIII + 1078 S.,

References

External links

Holy Spirit Adoration Sisters in Lincoln, NEHoly Spirit Adoration Sisters in Philadelphia, PAHoly Spirit Adoration Sisters in St. Louis, MOHoly Spirit Adoration Sisters in Utrecht, NetherlandsHoly Spirit Adoration Sisters in PolandPicture of the Sisters
Catholic female orders and societies Religious organizations established in 1896 Catholic religious institutes established in the 19th century {{RC-org-stub