“The sower went out to sow …” Mt 13:3
As she followed Christ, Angélique le Sourd also reached out to others … She gathered the children, visited the poor and those who were suffering.
200 hundred years ago, Angélique planted seed that germinated so that today in France you can find:
174 Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus … always filled with hope and moved by the spirit of the Foundress who was haunted by the misery and suffering of our world. You can meet them in fraternal communities or living alone, depending on their situation, in 37 places that radiate our vocation and mission.
In BRITANNY, in 2 departments: Morbihan and Ille et Vilaine;
2 Dioceses: Vannes and Rennes
In PAYS-DE-LA-LOIRE, in 2 departments: Mayenne, Maine et Loire
2 Dioceses: Laval, Angers
In NOUVELLE-AQUITAINE, in 2 departments: Charente and Charentes Maritime,
2 dioceses: Angoulême, La Rochelle / Saintes.
In ILE-DE-FRANCE, in 3 departments: Paris, Val de Marne, Les Yvelines
3 dioceses: Paris, Créteil, Versailles
In Saint- Jacut-les-Pins, there are 85-90 sisters at the Mother House who continue their mission of prayer, hospitality, and providing services to meet “the challenge of living together”, sustained by the words of Jesus, “Love one another”.
Associates and Friends of the Congregation are the new seeds growing in France since the year 2000, bringing forth more and more fruit in the dioceses where the Sisters are present or were previously located. Thanks to them, and with their own special touch, the Tenderness and Mercy of the Heart of Jesus is spreading. The group is now made up of 70 to 80 persons.
Wherever we are sent, «We live our vocation as a Pilgrim People collaborating with the local Church and with all who work for a more just and humane world.» (Constitutions n° 8). In fidelity with our missionary identity, we choose a simple life style, filled with tenderness and compassion and openness to all:
* we incarnate the Gospel and make the presence of Christ visible on the roads of humanity
* we weave links of reconciliation and fraternity and create spaces for dialogue
* we dare take the side of the little ones and the forgotten, promoting the dignity of all persons
* we are committed to respecting creation
Within this spirit, in society: the Sisters participate in the activities of different associations in the areas of education, public health, social work and health care institutions, continuing the work of Angélique Le Sourd as well as that of the foundresses of two other Congregations that joined them: one in 1970 and the other in 1990. According to their age, their sensitivities, their professional and missionary backgrounds – of the 175 sisters in the Province, 40 have worked outside of France – they are also involved in associations working with people who lack stable employment, and in literacy programs for immigrants. They visit the sick, the handicapped and/or elderly, and prisoners, and also participate in different clubs and other activities.
In the Church, they are part of chaplaincy programs in hospitals, choirs, liturgical groups, bereavement groups, floral decoration teams, and Bible groups. They accompany teams such as: CVX (Christian Life Community), MCR (Movement of Retired Christians), the SEM (Gospel Service for the Sick), the Fraternity for the sick, Catholic Aid, “Faith and Light”, and teams responsible for preparation for the sacraments. They participate in peak moments in the life of the diocesan Church and in its pastoral dimension.
In Congregation, in a special way, following the orientations of the General Chapter of the Congregation, «with Jesus Christ, as Church, we are invited to become tables of encounter and enter into our world so loved by God.»
The Sisters live their missionary identity at the very heart of the life of our Province and our communities by serving in the areas of facilitation, management, secretariat, archives, hospitality, communication, including the care of our cemetery where those who have gone to their eternal home now lie.