Skip to content

We ask you, urgently: don’t scroll past this

Dear readers, Catholic Online was de-platformed by Shopify for our pro-life beliefs. They shut down our Catholic Online, Catholic Online School, Prayer Candles, and Catholic Online Learning Resources—essential faith tools serving over 1.4 million students and millions of families worldwide. Our founders, now in their 70's, just gave their entire life savings to protect this mission. But fewer than 2% of readers donate. If everyone gave just $5, the cost of a coffee, we could rebuild stronger and keep Catholic education free for all. Stand with us in faith. Thank you.

Help Now >

Sisters of Our Lady of Charity of the Refuge

Free World Class Education
FREE Catholic Classes

The Institute of Our Lady of Charity was founded (1641) by [St. Jean] Eudes, at Caen, Normandy, under the title of Our Lady of Refuge. Moved by pity for abandoned women living a life of sin, Père Eudes at first attempted to unite the penitent among them and place them under the care of good and zealous women, but he soon became convinced that the only way of dealing with them was to found a congregation of holy women, who would bind themselves by vow to work for the reformation of these unfortunate ones. Three Visitation nuns came to his aid temporarily, and, in 1644, a house was opened at Caen under the title of Our Lady of Charity. Other ladies joined them, and, in 1651, the Bishop of Bayeux gave the institute his approbation. In 1664 a Bull of approbation was obtained from Alexander VII. That same year a house was opened at Rennes, and the institute began to spread. When the French Revolution broke out there were seven communities of the order in France. From this parent-tree of Our Lady of Charity sprang the Order of the Good Shepherd (q.v.).

The Sisters of Our Lady of Charity do no limit their work to reclaiming the fallen; they also receive girls who are in danger of being lost or who are being brought up immorally. These form what is called the class of preservation. Government reformatories are attached to some of the monasteries. All the houses of this order are independent of each other, and each has its own novitiate, but the mother-house is still at Caen. The nuns wear a white habit and a large silver cross on the breast. To the three ordinary religious vows they add a fourth, viz., to devote themselves to the reformation of the fallen. The novitiate lasts two years. These sisters came to England in 1863 and now have houses at Bartestree, Waterlooville, Monmouth, Southampton, Northfield (near Birmingham ), and Mold; in Ireland they have two houses at Dublin ; in France they have seventeen: one at Caen, St-Brieux, Rennes, La Rochelle, Paris, Versailles, Nantes, Lyons, Valence, Toulouse, Le Mans , Blois, Montauban, Besançon, Valognes, and two at Marseilles ; in the United States they have two houses at both Buffalo and Pittsburg, and one at Green Bay (Wisconsin), Wheeling (W. Virginia ), Hot Springs (Arkansas), San Antonio and Dallas (Texas); in Canada they have houses at Ottawa, Toronto, and Vancouver ; in Mexico, two; in Italy, one at Loretto; in Spain, one at Bilboa, and in Austria, one at Salzburg.

[ Note: Jean, or John Eudes, "the Venerable Pere Eudes," was beatified by St. Pius X in 1909, and canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1925. His feast day is 19 August.]

Join the Movement
When you sign up below, you don't just join an email list - you're joining an entire movement for Free world class Catholic education.

Advent / Christmas 2024

Catholic Online Logo

Copyright 2024 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2024 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.

Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.