Maryknoll Sisters
Maryknoll Sisters give witness to God’s love and devote our lives in service overseas to help those in need.
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Our Work
Making God’s Love Visible
The Maryknoll Sisters believe that we are all part of “One Earth Community”… that all of us—regardless of race, nationality, gender, background or personal identity—are all connected as a human family, with each other and with all creation.
We give witness to God’s love and devote our lives in service overseas. As nurses, doctors, teachers, theologians, social workers, environmentalists and more, we serve the needs of the poor, the ailing and the marginalized throughout the world.
250 Sisters
200 250
113 Years in Mission
80 113
7 Hospitals Founded
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17 Schools Founded
0 17Make a difference, donate today!
Prayer: The Mission That Sustains All Missions
For us, Maryknoll Sisters, prayer is at the very center of our lives. Our Foundress, Mother Mary Joseph, rooted us in “faithfulness to times of prayer and being constantly mindful of God’s presence in our hearts as the foundation of the missionary life we follow.” (MMJ, 1948) Learn more.
Our Causes
Our mission began in 1912, when we became the first group of Catholic Sisters in the United States founded for overseas mission. Today we have approximately 289 Sisters serving in 18 places around the world.
Fighting Poverty Over one-third of the world lives in poverty. Every tenth person in the world lives in extreme poverty or on the equivalent of less than $1.90 a day.
Women's Advocacy Victims can find shelter, medical care, counseling and legal assistance at the Crisis Center, where Sister Helene also encourages and empowers victims to begin new lives.
Ending Human Trafficking The Maryknoll Sisters have long been working to eliminate human trafficking and all other forms of discrimination and violence.
Educating the Poor For over 100 years, the Maryknoll Sisters have been providing education to those in need throughout the world.
Sister Delia Marie (Dee) Smith
Current Ministry Location: Guatemala
Sister Dee has been on mission in Guatemala since 1999! She founded and runs Santa Maria, a hospice for terminally ill people suffering with HIV/AIDS.
Learn more about Her missionSister Elsie Monge
Current Ministry Location: Ecuador
Sister Elsie Monge is a native of Ecuador and has served there for more than 35 years as a missioner. The clear and unadulterated voice of justice is found in her calm and eloquent voice heard on television, radio and newspapers all over Ecuador as she denounced the injustices suffered by the defenseless poor in Ecuador in her role as Director of the Ecumenical Commission for Human Rights.
Learn more about Her missionPray With Us
Prayer is one of the most necessary things in life, not only for us, but for the world at large. The world looks to us for prayer. Know that your intentions are prayerfully remembered by all of the Maryknoll Sisters in our daily prayers.
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