Charism

As Little Sisters of Jesus and Mary, we are called to be active-contemplatives. We witness to God’s goodness and His provident care, living a vowed life of chastity, poverty, and obedience.

Our spirit of joy and simplicity, the living expression of our charism, grows out of a deep faith and confidence in God our Father to Whom, in union with His Son Jesus Christ, we are able to abandon ourselves completely.

Even when we encounter the cross, we are able to trust in God’s goodness and follow His direction with courage and serenity.

We embrace the spirituality of Charles de Foucauld: loving Jesus in the Eucharist and in the poor, living the simplicity of Nazareth, and “littleness.”

We recognize this charism as a deep experience of God’s goodness and His provident care, leading us, as it did Brother Charles, to turn to God our Father in joy and simplicity and impelling us to proclaim His goodness to one another in Community and to others in apostolic service. Brother Charles’ abandonment to God’s Providence will also be our response in life, proclaiming always: “Father, I abandon myself into Your hands, do with me what You will.”

In the same spirit which animated Brother Charles, we seek out the poor and oppressed, help them recognize their human dignity, and give them hope and courage in their struggles.

We honor Mary as Mother of the Church and as patroness of our congregation. Through her life, Mary made visible in a perfect way the glad tidings of the Gospel and participated in the redemptive mission of her Son.

We rely on St. Joseph, head of the Holy Family, to be our provider and protector. As the carpenter of Nazareth, he shows us that holiness is found in our ordinary work.

As a Community caring for the unwanted, the needy, and the persecuted, we recognize and embrace the woundedness of the members of the Community itself, applying the same healing love and support to one another that we share with the needy.

“Each sister has the capacity to do something special for God. We help them develop those capacities, but we never hide our faults. We know we are all broken people healing other broken people through God’s love. There’s no make-believe in our life. That in itself brings us peace.”

Sr. Mary Elizabeth Gintling, founder