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Vocations

Begin Your Journey

Choose a Different Path

God has a dream for each person. Many people find their vocation in marriage, some choose to live as single people and others find their vocation in religious life. To discover God’s dream for us, there is a need to take time to reflect on the calling that best fits our desires, gifts, talents and personalities.

Our Vows

Living as religious sisters means living a vowed life. When we are professed as Religious Sisters of Charity, we make four vows: the three vows that most religious take and a fourth that is specific to our congregation. The vows are: Chastity, Poverty, Obedience and service of the Poor.

Chastity

Chastity is God's gift to us which allows us to devote ourselves to God and to God's people. This means that we do not engage in any exclusive relationships. By our vow of chastity we are set free to be women for others, free to go where we are called and to minister where we are needed.

Poverty

Our vow of poverty means that we live simply, and in a manner that is not beyond what can be afforded by people of modest means who have to work hard to support themselves and their families.

Obedience

By our vow of obedience we are available to go wherever we are asked and to do whatever best serves God's people.

Service of the Poor

Our 4th and particular vow of service of the poor enables us to continue in the footsteps of Mary Aikenhead who sent her sisters to work with people who were poor, sick, vulnerable and marginalised.

Vocation Stories

Sr. Philomena Neary Collapse

Like many children growing up in Dublin during the 1960’s and 70’s, I was one of the lucky ones to be born into a family of faith and religious practice. I am one of five; my twin brother and I being the eldest. We were not a ‘rosary’ family, but my mother, to this day, lights a candle on her ‘sacred space’ which is the mantle piece! Each day when I was growing up, as the candle was lit, we called to mind a special intention. We were fortunate that we lived beside the church and we seldom passed it without paying a visit to Jesus in the tabernacle and having a chat with him.

I attended a Religious Sisters of Charity school, both Primary and Secondary, so I got to know many of the Sisters. I was always impressed by them and their generosity in helping us, always going the extra mile!! Having finished school, and like many girls of my age, I enjoyed being in the company of my peers. We went to the cinema, discos and even the pub where the real chats happened. Some of us were in the Legion of Mary. I was also involved with the organisation, which still exists, Young Christian Workers (YCW) – see, judge and act was the core value of this group. While we saw, judged and acted on many issues we also had a very healthy social life, and we travelled abroad to meet other YCW groups. Putting faith into action was important to me then.

I began to feel that there was more to life – that I needed more than work, my friends and social activities.

When I turned 20 years, I began to feel that there was more to life – that I needed more than work, my friends and social activities. While I enjoyed all these, there was the yearning for the more. Religious life came to mind and once it came, there was no getting rid of it! My friend, Veronica, who could read my mind, encouraged me to follow it up. Eventually, with her by my side, she picked up the phone and rang the Noviciate house in Milltown, asked to speak to the Novice Mistress and then handed me the phone! The following year in October, 1977 I joined the Religious Sisters of Charity.

35 years on, I still feel great gratitude to Veronica for her encouragement in helping me to take up my mat and follow Jesus by answering his call ‘Come and See’. I came and saw and I soon felt very much at home with having time and space for daily prayer, which is now a vital part of my life. I have never looked back. Like any human life I have had my ups and downs, but maybe as a Religious Sister of Charity I have learned to find God in all the bits and pieces of life. This has helped me grow into a deeper personal relationship with Him who is the food for my journey of life.

Sr. Anne Curry Expand

Following my Leaving Certificate, I went as an auxiliary nurse to St Mary’s Hospital, Baldoyle, while I was waiting to secure a place in a teaching nursing hospital. It was here that I met my first Sister of Charity, Sr. Margaret Bernadette, who was my mentor during my time there. The nursing auxiliary experience opened me to a variety of physical disabilities in children. This was a great shock to me and influenced me in my decision to continue my nursing career and to become a religious sister.

I then commenced my paediatric nurse training in Temple St. Children’s Hospital. It was here that I came into contact with a group of the Sisters of Charity, from whom I learned to respect all who came to the hospital for care and healing. I later joined the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity where I continued my career as a nurse alongside the living of my religious life.

My first mission experience was four years in Zambia. It was one of the most liberating experiences of my life. Mission work was appreciated and I was able to use my expertise to bring health care to the most needy. It also gave me a great social life experience, where the sisters lived and worked in close contact with the people. The bond that exists among those of us who were there at that time, still links us together.

My life as a sister has been both fulfilling and challenging, and I thank God for all that I have experienced.

My second mission experience was in Nigeria. Again, this was a four year stint and I completed my contract. Returning to Ireland this time was a blessing, as my mother was very ill and I was able to be with her, and share great love and caring together with family until her death seven months later.

During this time, I was appointed as principal tutor in St Vincent’s University Hospital in Dublin. This proved a wonderful challenging experience and I thank God for the great team of colleagues who supported me up until the profession was incorporated into University. This move challenged me to make further choices, and I decided to study Theology and Clinical Pastoral Education, which led me into the field of Pastoral Care.

My life as a sister has been both fulfilling and challenging, and I thank God for all that I have experienced. It has not been without its spiritual pain which is part of all life experiences. I feel I have been able to give life to many people through my ministry and presence, always relying on a greater power working within me and within the communities in which I shared and lived.

Becoming a sister

If you feel that you would like to live the life of a Religious Sister of Charity, here is how you can start the process:

  1. Contact the RSC closest to you
    1. Ireland
    2. England & Scotland
    3. California
    4. Nigeria
    5. Zambia & Malawi
  2. Meet with a Sister of Charity
  3. Spend some time discerning whether you are called to serve God in this way
Postulant Expand

The postulancy is a period of reflection and formation that precedes admission to the novitiate.  It would normally last for 12 months.

Novice Expand

The novitiate normally lasts for two years.  It is a time when education and formation for the Congregation begins.  The first year is usually spent in the novitiate house. During the second year, the novice experiences ministry and community life outside the novitiate, in preparation for life as a professed Religious Sister of Charity.

Temporary Professed Expand

At the end of the novitiate the novice makes her first vows, which is also known as being admitted to temporary profession. These vows are initially for a period of three years, and may be renewed for one, two or three years.

Final Profession Expand

After the period of temporary profession, it is usual to proceed to full incorporation into the Congregation. The sister commits herself for life by taking perpetual vows of chastity, poverty, obedience and service of the poor.

Continuing Formation Expand

Religious Sisters of Charity are engaged in lifelong learning with regular renewal and updating of skills for their work, prayer life and community.

May our Lord send all who come to join us the right spirit.

Mary Aikenhead, 30th September 1840

We Remember

Sr Malachy Tully

Sister Malachy Tully 1932 - 2022 Born: 19th August 1932 Entered Religious Life: 30th June 1952 Died: 5th November 2022 ...
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Sr Joseph Aloysius Devaney

Sister Joseph Aloysius Devaney 1924 - 2022 Born: 10th April 1924 Entered Religious Life: 7th October 1953 Died: 18th October 2022 Winifred ...
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Sr Margaret Kavanagh

Sister Margaret Kavanagh 1932 - 2022 Born: 1st September 1932 Entered Religious Life: 8th June 1956 Died: 7th December 2022 ...
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Sr. Joseph Austin Gahan

Sr Joseph Austin Gahan 1931 - 2022 Born: 7th August 1931 Entered Religious Life: 9th November 1953 Died: 7th October ...
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Sister Juliana Mwanza

Sister Juliana Mwanza 1964 - 2022  Born:  12th December 1964  Entered Religious Life: 20th February 1987  Died: 9th July 2022   Sr. ...
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Sister Una Casey

Sister Una Casey 1937 - 2022 Born: 17th December 1937 Entered Religious Life: 2nd February 1959 Died: 1st November 2022   Una ...
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CRA 20000295 | Charity No. CHY112

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