WELCOME

SISTERS OF ST. JOSEPH

of Northwestern Pennsylvania

Come to the Waters, is a history of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Northwestern Pennsylvania written by Leonie Shanley, SSJ, and Mary Francis Becker, SSJ, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the Diocese of Erie in 2010. Click here to explore the book.

News

Gun violence – when will it stop?

| August 19, 2019

2019 is on track to become a year in which there will be more mass shootings in our country than there are days in the year. A mass shooting is defined as an incident in which four people are shot excluding the shooter. According to the Gun Violence Archive which tracks all data for mass…

SSJ of Erie leaders among LCWR members calling on President Trump to to stop divisive and polarizing rhetoric

| August 19, 2019

Sisters Phyllis McCracken, SSJ, and Carol Morehouse, SSJ both In Leadership for the Sisters of St. Joseph of Northwestern Pennsylvania, were among more than 660 members of the Leadership Conference for Women Religious (LCWR) assembly who affirmed a letter that was sent to President Trump asking him to end all divisive rhetoric. More Than 660…

journeys – summer 2019

| August 5, 2019

Read about the experience of three women who volunteering along the U.S. and Mexico border.

Maxims — A Modern Take

More than 360 years ago, Father Jean Pierre Médaille, SJ, composed the Maxims of the Little Institute, 100 short sayings to help the first Sisters of St. Joseph grow in virtue. We share them here, along with contemporary translations developed by Susan Wilcox, CSJ, Brentwood, and a group of her students.

MAXIM 12

ORIGINAL

Choose to bear all the evils of time rather than the least of eternity, all the evils of nature rather than the least deprivation of grace, since all kinds of reasons illumined by faith teach you to live according to this truth.

Original Maxim 12
as written by Fr. Médaille

MAXIM 26

ORIGINAL

Seek in everything God's contentment and not anything else, and the better to practice this, remember in the entire living out of your life, in desolation, in sick¬ness, etc., to desire God's greater contentment without giving a thought to your own interests.

Original Maxim 26
as written by Fr. Médaille

MAXIM 54

ORIGINAL

Empty yourself of all human respect and of the least blameworthy concession, and declare, with a generous heart, never to yield in anything that would be against God's will.

Original Maxim 6
as written by Fr. Médaille

MAXIM 81

ORIGINAL

Whatever the virtue you recognize in yourself, never turn away from a true fear of God, conscious that his judgments are unfathomable and that his appraisals are quite different from ours.

Original Maxim 81
as written by Fr. Médaille

Read all Maxims

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