Society of the Divine Word

The Society of the Divine Word is a Roman Catholic order of priests and brothers who focus on missionary work.

St. Arnold Janssen, whom Pope John Paul II canonized in 2003, founded our religious order in 1875. A German diocesan priest, Father Janssen recognized the need for a German missionary order. Because of friction between the Catholic church and the Bismarck government, he had to establish his base in the Netherlands in a little town named Steyl. At the time of his death in 1909, The Society of the Divine Word had missionaries in 15 countries on six continents. today, we serve the people of 71 countries on six continents.  (The Divine Word Missionaries arrived in North America in October 1895.)

Our work can be described as contemporary missionary work.  We follow the second vatican council’s “decree on the church’s missionary activity” in our efforts to bring the gospel message of salvation to all people while simultaneously respecting their human dignity and cultural heritage.  Within the Catholic Church, we are known for working with indigenous people, immigrants, refugees and the disenfranchised. Our specific ministries vary because we respond to the needs of the individual communities in which we serve.

In some corners of the globe, we have helped to develop education systems. In other parts, we provide humanitarian and social development programs. We also give pastoral care, which includes working as retreat directors, counselors and chaplains. The common thread that binds us is that we recognize the sacred in each human being and attend to those most in need.

The Society of the Sacred Heart was founded in France in 1800 by Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat. Four years later, Rose Philippine Duchesne entered the new community. In 1817, American Bishop William Du Bourg came to call at the motherhouse in Paris to recruit religious to open schools for Native Americans.  Rose Philippine Duchesne and her four companions arrived at the Market Street landing in St. Louis on August 22, 1818, the first women religious in St. Louis. On September 14, 1818, Philippine and her companions opened the first free school west of the Mississippi, with twenty-two girls too poor to pay any tuition. This was the beginning of the Academy of the Sacred Heart and international Sacred Heart education, which now spans the globe.

History of the Society of the Sacred Heart

The Ursuline Sisters of the Roman Union, Central Province, are members of a worldwide community whose lives and mission are rooted in the Gospel of Jesus and the spirit of its foundress, St. Angela Merici. Grounded and empowered by their relationship with God and with one another, the Ursulines seek to be a compassionate, reconciling presence of God in the world.

Angela Merici, a visionary and practical woman, founded this company of women in 1535 in Brescia, Italy, to renew the church from within during the religious conflicts of the 16th century.

At the request of Archbishop Peter Richard Kenrick, the Ursuline Sisters came to Missouri from convents in Austria and Germany in 1848 to establish a convent and school in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. update

The Society of Christ for Poles living abroad is a family made up of priests, brothers religious, and seminarians. They are popularly referred to in North America as the Society of Christ Fathers.

The main aim of the Society of Christ for Poles living abroad is to worship God and achieve holiness through the imitation of Jesus Christ. In a special way, members of the society take an active part in the apostolate of caring for the souls of Poles living outside the borders of Republic of Poland.

St. Agatha Parish exists primarily to serve the spiritual needs of those of the Polish language and ethnicity living in the St. Louis area.  We live our faith in union with the supreme pontiff and the Archbishop of St. Louis.  While living in american society, we celebrate our heritage of rich cultural traditions.  Through the intercession of Our Lady of Częstochowa, the queen of Poland, and St. Agatha, the patron of our parish, we seek to fulfill our calling in Jesus Christ by living out our Catholic faith in love, justice and peace.

The Rural Parish Workers of Christ the King are located in Fertile, MO (just south of Potosi), which has been in existence since 1942. This agency is supported by the Annual Catholic Appeal and helps provide food, clothing, utilities and spiritual needs to the people in the surrounding area.

Vincentian priests and brothers of the Western Province bring the light of the gospel to the world through personal encounters with our sisters and brothers, particularly those on the margins. Following the example of St. Vincent, we see the face of christ in the poor, lonely and forgotten. Nurtured by prayer and communal life, we fulfill our mission by caring for the least of God’s people.

The Congregation of the Carmelite Religions has its hallowed origins in Bayonne, France. It is a part of the historic foundation of the Third Order apostolic of Mount Carmel established by Mother Veronica to prepare and train sisters for the Indian mission.

The Congregation believes in the proclamation of the Gospel through selfless service to the people of God. Education is our chief apostolate. The spirit of Carmel is our inspiration. We believe in a way of life that advocates uninterrupted contemplation of God even in the midst of a busy apostolate. The Lady of Mount Carmel is our Mother and Patroness and the saints of Carmel are our inspiration.

Our Motto: In His Presence We Stand and Serve.

In 1863, during the Civil War, the Carmelites came to St. Louis from Baltimore, MD. Since that time, they have lived lives of prayer and penance following the tradition of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. The Nuns of the Carmel of St. Joseph pray the Liturgy of the Hours as a community and live a life of continual prayer in imitation of Christ’s hidden life at Nazareth and in solitary places. Some of the prayer is before the Blessed Sacrament, which is exposed daily both in the Nuns’ Chapel and in the public Chapel.

Rising before the sun can break through the darkness of night, the Discalced Carmelite nuns wake to the sound of a loud wooden clapper and a voice calling them to communal prayer with the words, “Praise be Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary His Mother. Come to prayer sisters, come to praise the Lord!”

The cloistered nuns, wearing full-length habits and veils, make their way to a large, woodpaneled choir room to chant the Liturgy of the Hours, the universal prayer of the Church. It is a duty they will ritually perform seven times each day as they intercede to God with their prayers for mankind, giving special attention to praying for priests.

All are welcome – Daily 7:30am Mass, followed by Eucharistic Adoration all day, through 7:50pm Rosary and Benediction.

All are also invited to the annual Solemn Novena to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, held in July.

Carmel of St. Joseph
Chapel of the Precious Blood
9150 Clayton Road
St. Louis, MO 63124

The Society of Jesus is an order of Roman Catholic priests and brothers founded nearly 500 years ago by St. Ignatius Loyola. With more than 15,000 priests, scholastics and brothers worldwide, it is the largest male religious order in the Catholic Church.

The Jesuits USA Central and Southern (UCS) Province is one administrative body within the international Society of Jesus. The UCS Province is comprised of approximately 325 men serving in 13 states, Puerto Rico and Belize. It is based in St. Louis where more than 130 Jesuits reside.