The Sisters of Charity Federation website reports “Fifty-four French-speaking Acadian sisters travelled here Oct. 23, 2011 to celebrate with the Sisters of Charity of the Immaculate Conception (SCIC) at the motherhouse they once shared as a single community. During a ritual in St. Vincent’s Chapel, Sister McCurdy presented the NDSC with an inscribed, marble-topped wooden table which remained in the motherhouse from early years. The ritual included proclamations from their common spiritual ancestors, Saints Vincent de Paul, Louise de Marillac and Elizabeth Ann Seton. Monsignor Brian Henneberry, rector of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception and chancellor of the Diocese of Saint John, participated in the ritual together with Associates of the Sisters of Charity.
The visit of the Religieuses de Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Coeur (NDSC) came as SCIC prepare to leave St. Vincent’s motherhouse permanently this fall after opening a new residence nearby. The SCIC were founded in Saint John in 1854 and have lived at St. Vincent’s on Cliff Street since 1865.
In 1924, 53 Acadian sisters withdrew from the SCIC to form a new religious congregation founded by Mère Marie-Anne Cyr. With their first motherhouse in Memramcook, N.B., they focused on education of Acadian youth and later established their motherhouse in Moncton.
Members of the Sisters of Charity Federation
Tags: SCIC, SIsters Charity, Sisters of Charity Federation
