Who are the Daughters of Saint Paul? There are as many descriptions as there are sisters! Here are three different “takes” of how we would describe our Pauline vocation:
- Our Founder, Blessed James Alberione, said that “The mission of the Daughters of St. Paul is to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Way, Truth and Life, in the spirit of St. Paul, under the gaze of Mary, Queen of the Apostles.” Our Co-Foundress, Venerable Mother Thecla Merlo, described her vocation this way, “I become love so that God can speak through my life.” Another sister described our congregation this way: The Daughters of Saint Paul seek to become Jesus so that we can communicate Jesus to a world that is dying to know him.
- The Daughters of St. Paul are a community of vowed women religious who dedicate their lives to sharing Christ’s love with the people of today through their lives and through the media. Founded in Italy in 1915 by Blessed James Alberione and Venerable Thecla Merlo, today 2400 Daughters of Saint Paul seek to communicate the Gospel in over 50 nations. Immersed in the culture of communication, the Daughters of St. Paul use the various media—images, print, radio, design, social media, music, video—so that every person may encounter Christ, be transformed by his love, and in turn bring Christ’s love, peace, and justice in the world.
- The Daughters of Saint Paul are called to be Saint Paul “living today.” Like St. Paul, every Daughter of Saint Paul is overwhelmed by the love of Christ, “who died for me.” In our daily prayer, we seek to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ,” and be gradually transformed in him. Our passionate love for Jesus in his Word and in the Eucharist leads us as consecrated religious onto the streets of our world—both physical and virtual—wherever we can meet people of every culture to offer them the opportunity to encounter Christ, our Way, Truth, and Life.
The video we recently put together about us might help to “round out” our descriptions:
Now that you have gotten to know our community, how would YOU describe the heart of what it means to be a Daughter of Saint Paul?