About Us

 

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The Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, founded by Saint Maria Eufrásia Pelletier, was approved by Pope Gregory XVI, on January 16, 1835. The Congregation has its origins in the Order of Our Lady of Charity, founded by Saint John Eudes, in 1641.

In 1814, Rosa Virgínia Pelletier joined the Order of Our Lady of Charity, in Tours, where she received the name of Maria de Santa Eufrásia. Combining a life of apostolic zeal with a profound spirituality, she spent the first years of her religious life dedicated to an active apostolate with young people and women. Elected Superior of Tours at the age of 29, she imbued the community and the apostolate with a new dynamism. During this period, in Tours, Sister Maria de Santa Eufrásia, realizing that some women wanted to consecrate their lives to God, established a contemplative community, giving her as patron Saint Magdalene. The specific orientation of the community was prayer and conversion. Sister Maria Eufrásia, who had a spiritual affinity with Saint Teresa of Avila, based the life of the new community on the primitive rule of Carmel. Her conviction was that, through their life of prayer and silence, the Contemplative Sisters would contribute to the spiritual fruitfulness of the community's apostolate.

At the invitation of the Bishop, Charles Montault, a house was established in Angers in 1829 and was called “Good Shepherd”, in memory of another house from the previous century, whose work was similar. In 1831, Sister Maria Eufrásia founded a contemplative community in Angers, whose Constitutions were approved by Monsignor Montault in 1834.

Sister Maria Eufrásia ardently wanted the whole world to benefit from the work of salvation begun by Saint John Eudes. She saw the need for a centralized government so that the sisters could be sent to all parts of the world. After numerous difficulties, the Generalate was approved in 1835. With this approval, the Church established a Congregation distinct from the Order of Our Lady of Charity. The new Congregation took the name of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd of Angers. In the Congregation, the two styles of life, contemplative and apostolic, would have the same purpose: the glory of God and the salvation of souls. At the death of Sister Maria Eufrásia, on April 24, 1868, there were one hundred and ten houses all over the world. Sister Maria Eufrásia was canonized on May 2, 1940. In the Congregational chapter of 1985, the Congregation adopted the official name of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, in order to reflect our internationality.

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