Our consecrated life

Encountering Christ in prayer, serving him in the poor with love – this is the life of a Little Sister of the Poor!

Vowed life – one heart with Jesus
By our profession of the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience we offer God our heart, our talents, our possessions and our will – all that we are and have – for his glory and the salvation of souls. In this way we live out St. Paul’s challenge to the early Christians to offer their whole being as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.

A vow of hospitality brings our religious consecration into the concrete realities of everyday life. It gives a spiritual value to the many humble tasks performed throughout the day, and enables us to communicate to our elderly Residents God’s compassion and merciful love.

Jeanne Jugan learned from St. John Eudes that “religious consecration means to make profession of having but one life, one heart, one soul and one will with Jesus.” She summed it all up so simply – “All for you, my Jesus!” This is our life’s goal as we strive to be conformed to the mind and heart of Christ, so that we may do what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect (Rom 12:1-2).

Our consecrated life is lived as a public, corporate witness of God’s awesome love and mercy in the heart of the Church. “What happiness for us, to be a Little Sister of the Poor!”

Life of prayer
Prayer is the hidden source from which our vocation of love and service springs. It is the force which unifies the various elements of our life, leading us to have one heart and one will with Jesus.

Moments of communal and personal prayer each day include:
• Mass;
• communal celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours;
• a period of meditation at the beginning of each day and another half-hour of personal prayer before the Blessed Sacrament;
• Rosary;
• lectio divina and spiritual reading.

As we cultivate a life of intimacy with God, we appreciate the value of silence. With this in mind, we strive to maintain an oasis of quiet and peace in our community areas. Our meals are usually taken in silence. We look forward to several moments of retreat throughout the year, for these help us to refresh ourselves at the fountain of God’s love and to remain in him.

Community life
Community life is built around the permanent presence of the Eucharist – for Christ is the center and source of our unity.

Jeanne Jugan chose the Holy Family of Nazareth as our model for community life: “See how Jesus, Mary and Joseph loved one another, all three, how happy they looked, with what kindness and gentleness they spoke to each other. In our little family, it must be the same.”

Each of our communities really is like a little family, where we share our joys and sorrows, as well as the work confided to us by the Church. We appreciate the grace of accomplishing our mission as a community and enjoy our daily meals and times of prayer and recreation, spent together as a family.

A single apostolate … shared history and traditions … a common vision – these are the elements that unite us in the midst of diversity as we strive to be signs of God’s love in the midst of the world.