The Community of the Sisters of the Church is a religious order of women in various Anglican provinces who live the vowed life of poverty, chastity and obedience. In 2012 the order had 105 sisters living in community, together with an extensive network of associates.

History

The order was founded by Mother Emily Ayckbowm who in 1864 had founded the Church Extension Association. The Church Extension Association evolved into the present Community of the Sisters of the Church. Ayckbowm was the first novice of the order in 1870. Mother Emily and other women who felt called to the religious life established

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...

s and

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or ab ...

s throughout

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in the late 19th century. The sisters have houses worldwide (see below). The order is under the patronage of St Michael and All Angels. Sister Dorina CSC was a prominent religious artist of the 1920s and 1930s who is particularly remembered for a set of Stations of the Cross which has been replicated many times over; examples of this work may be found in many Anglican churches, especially in London. Sister Eudora CSC (Bessie te Wenerau Grace) was the first Māori woman to gain a university degree.

Current life and work

Any woman who feels called to join the sisters must first apply to the order and then make several visits. Then she becomes an aspirant, then a

novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...

, then makes promises to live as a junior

sister A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to r ...

for a few years before taking life vows. The Sisters of the Church are supported by an international network of associates, who pray for the sisters and give financial and other support for their ministries, which include

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

and retreat work,

counselling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of co ...

and the only centre in the Solomon Islands for abused women and children at Tenaru. Their most visible presence in recent years was when two sisters, one in Reeboks, sat in the sanctuary of

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

during the

wedding A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vo ...

of the

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

and

Duchess Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

of Cambridge on 29 April 2012.

Structure

The order is led by an elected Reverend Mother Superior, who has international responsibility for all houses and all sisters. The order is then divided into provinces, each of which has an elected provincial superior and assistant superior. Whilst individual provinces and even individual houses may set local regulations, there is a common rule of life throughout the order.

Australia

Founded in 1892 and constituted in 1965, the province has convents at: * Glebe, New South Wales * Kempsey, New South Wales * Camperdown (Sydney), New South Wales * Two sisters live in Melbourne, Victoria: ** One sister is in retirement housing at Toorak ** One sister works in Melton parish

Canada

Founded in 1890 and constituted in 1965, the province has a single convent: * Oakville, Ontario (St Michael's House)

Solomon Islands

Founded in 1970 and constituted in 2001, the province has convents at: * Tetete ni Kolivuti (the training centre for postulants and novices) * Honiara (Patteson House) * Ysabel (St Scholastica's House) * Temotu, Santa Cruz (St Mary's House) * Kira Kira, Ulawa (St Gabriel's House) * Auki, Malaita (St Raphael's House) * Christian Care Centre (home for women victims of domestic abuse)

United Kingdom

Founded in 1870, in Kilburn, NW London, the 'original' province has convents at these locations: * Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire (St Michael's Convent) * Bristol (parish work, and street ministry amongst sex workers) * Clevedon, Somerset (St Gabriel's Convent) (retreat house, and training centre for postulants and novices) * West Harrow, Middlesex * St Anne's-on-Sea, Lancashire * Kingsdown, Kent The UK mother house, St Michael's Convent, was relocated from Ham Common (Richmond, Surrey) to

Gerrards Cross Gerrards Cross is a town and civil parish in south Buckinghamshire, England, separated from the London Borough of Hillingdon at Harefield by Denham, south of Chalfont St Peter and north bordering villages of Fulmer, Hedgerley, Iver Heath and ...

between 2016 and 2018, with the new St Michael's Convent and retreat centre officially opening on the weekend of 2 and 3 June 2018.

Extra-provincial

There are currently no convents of the order outside the four provinces shown above. In the past, convents have been located outside these provinces, in India, Burma, South Africa, and extensively in New Zealand.See references to all these houses o
this
webpage.

External links

Community of the Sisters of the Church

References

{{Anglican orders Anglican orders and communities Religious organizations established in 1870 Christian religious orders established in the 19th century