Catherine Mcauley Essay

514 Words2 Pages

Catherine McAuley (29 September 1778 – 11 November 1841) was an Irish nun who founded the Sisters of Mercy in 1831. The Sisters of Mercy follow a tradition of educating Catholics in schools. This essay will give a brief overview of the life of Catherine McAuley, her achievements and how she responded to the needs of the faithful. During her life Catherine McAuley achieved many great things, while also overcoming challenge. McAuley’s father died in 1783 and her mother passed away in 1798. When this happened she was sent to live with Protestant relatives - the Armstrong family. A challenge at this time was to keep her Catholic faith, as this period of time in Ireland was marked by the Protestant Ascendancy. All the powerful and high-class people were Protestant and started excluding Catholics. At age 25, Catherine became household manager of the Callaghan family in 1803. In 1822, the last of the Callaghan’s died and she inherited a fortune which she used to build a house. This house was called Mercy House. McAuley started recruiting Catholics throughout Ireland to help her with her work. Later on, she set up …show more content…

The House was a place used to help homeless women and children, as well as educate children. It was located at the meeting of lower Baggot and Herbert Street in Dublin. In the process of educating children, she converted them to being Catholic, keeping the religion alive. By employing other people to help her mission was able to grow rapidly. McAuley has started a tradition of educating girls in schools. An example of one of these schools today is All Hallows School, Brisbane. McAuley also founded the sisters of mercy in 1828 and the archbishop allowed the staff of the institute to wear a distinctive attire in public in order to be recognized by the poor people. The sisters of mercy played a key role in her

More about Catherine Mcauley Essay

Open Document