Sisters of St. Joseph of Lyon celebrate the 375th anniversary of their congregation's founding

Saying that their witness is as essential today as it was in the year 1650, Bishop James Ruggieri celebrated a Mass at Notre Dame du Perpetual Secours Church in Waterville on October 15 honoring the Sisters of St. Joseph of Lyon on the 375th anniversary of the congregation’s founding.

“This celebration is not merely about endurance through time but about divine fidelity, the God who keeps writing his story of love through you,” the bishop said. “You are women of relationship, builders of unity in a divided world. Wherever you have served – France, India, Africa, or here in Maine – you have made visible the unity that Christ desired. You remind the Church that evangelization begins in relationship, that holiness grows through communion.”

It was on October 15, 1650, that Bishop Henri de Maupas gave his approval to the congregation, giving it the name of St. Joseph. At the time of its founding, the congregation was made up of six women, assisted by Father Jean-Pierre Medaille, a Jesuit missionary. The women lived as a community in the community, something unheard of at a time when congregations of religious women were cloistered.

“These women were from the countryside and were mostly illiterate except for their leader who was the administrator of a local hospital. They were touched by the misery around them. They shared the dream to dedicate themselves to God, to live among the people, and to address the needs of the poor. They cared for the sick, the aged, orphans, and imprisoned. They also instructed young girls and guided the poor women and worked tirelessly to alleviate suffering,” said Sister Janet Gagnon, CSJ.

During the French Revolution, religious communities were disbanded, but through the determination of Mother St. John Fontbonne, who was imprisoned and faced a death sentence during the revolution, the congregation was reestablished in Lyon, France, in 1808.

Less than 30 years later, the first Sisters of St. Joseph came to the United States, journeying to St. Louis, Missouri. Then, in 1906, at the request of Father Joseph Forest, a Canadian priest serving at St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Jackman, six sisters came to Maine to educate the children of French-Canadian families serving along the border.

“Through every chapter of your history, two graces stand out: relationship and resiliency. Relationship has always been at the heart of your spirituality. You live the Gospel through connections, listening, reconciling, and accompanying others,” the bishop said. “Resiliency has marked your journey as well. From persecution in revolutionary France to poverty and snowbound isolation in Jackman, from shifting ministries to new forms of consecrated life, you have continually begun again. Your strength has never rested on numbers or influence but on trust in the Spirit.”

“We became the family of St. Joseph spread all over the globe. Today, we are 26 different congregations of St. Joseph with 7,850 sisters serving in 45 countries. There are 5,700 lay associates who share our mission of unity and reconciling love, and 60 agrégés – women who are single or widowed who make a private vow and live the charism at home,” said Sister Janet. “All these people are loving the world and all creation as the creator loves what he created, through the whole story of our humanity, continuing its path of evolving and learning. This is what we celebrate today.”

Sisters of St. Joseph also went on to serve in South Berwick, Lewiston, Auburn, and Waterville/Winslow, where the sisters are now based and where the celebration was held.

The Mass at Notre Dame brought together sisters, lay associates, and an agrégé, as well as those whose lives have been touched by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Lyon through the years.

Stella Dubé Paquette and Elaine Dubé Smith both attended school in Jackman with the Sisters of St. Joseph the last two years that it was open, and one of their sisters joined the congregation.

“What I really feel I got from my education with them was striving for excellence and just paying attention, you know being focused and being a good person,” said Paquette, who lives in Wilton.

“They didn't expect perfection from you, but they wanted you to try your best to succeed,” said Elaine Dubé Smith, who lives in Detroit, Maine. “I enjoyed the prayer life. And the studies were awesome because each teacher had their specialty.”

During the Mass in Waterville, a chalice that dates from the origins of the congregation was used. Sister Janet said that the chalice is the same one that was used to minister to prisoners in France in the early 1800s.