Mission Statement of the
Franciscan Sisters, T.O.R. of Penance
Of the Sorrowful Mother

We the Franciscan Sisters, Third Order Regular of Penance of the Sorrowful Mother are a contemplative-active community called to live the Third Order charism of continuous conversion.  We follow the inspiration of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Francis of Assisi who embraced a simple, humble, and poor life completely given to love of God and neighbor.

As Franciscan contemplative penitents committed to works of mercy, we live out our particular charisms of crucified love, mercy, poverty, and contemplation through a daily rhythm of prayer, work and ministry.  As we join our Sorrowful Mother at the foot of the cross, contemplating Christ’s merciful love poured out for all, we are compelled to love Him and in return to make known His merciful love to others.

We seek to serve the Lord and others primarily by prayer, the Eucharist which is the source and summit of our life, and the witness of our consecrated lives of poverty, chastity and obedience.  From our life of prayer and intercession flows our ministry to the poor, sick, the un-evangelized, and those in need of ongoing renewal of their faith. 

Support for our life and mission comes primarily through the generosity of others. Due to our contemplative nature and our ongoing needs for growth and expansion, including formation training for our new sisters, and expansion of our Mission Houses and works of mercy, we are dependent upon the generosity of others in order to make our life and mission possible.  We do receive minimum income through our work which includes making religious articles and distributing Altar Breads, and from our ministries of evangelization such as campus ministry and part-time teaching. We receive no compensation for the majority of our work and ministry.

We humbly and prayerfully seek help from the Lord and others to provide for our needs, and so to share in our life, charisms and mission of helping others grow closer to God.  We are so grateful to all who may contribute towards this vital ministry of spreading the Good News of the Gospel in our times.