Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon
Encyclopedia
The Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon (SSMO) are a Roman Catholic religious order
founded in 1886 in the U.S. state
of Oregon
. Their convent is located in Beaverton
. They administer Valley Catholic School
, Little Flower Development Center, Valley Catholic Grade School, the Bethany Center, and Maryville Nursing Home.
, who were members of a German
schismatic
religious colony from Minnesota
began to doubt the beliefs of the group and sent to the Benedictines of Mount Angel Abbey
for advice. Archbishop William Hickley Gross visited the colony and laid out a plan for reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church
. The group's elders rejected the plan, but the women asked to come along with the bishop, who wanted them to become a formal religious community. Nine women secretly escaped and moved to Mt. Angel. After several months of living with the Catholic order of the Benedictine Sisters of Mt. Angel at the Queen of Angels Monastery, the sisters moved to Sublimity
and began their new life as the Sisters of the Most Precious Blood. They changed their name to Sisters of St. Mary in 1905.
Roman Catholic religious order
Catholic religious orders are, historically, a category of Catholic religious institutes.Subcategories are canons regular ; monastics ; mendicants Catholic religious orders are, historically, a category of Catholic religious institutes.Subcategories are canons regular (canons and canonesses regular...
founded in 1886 in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. Their convent is located in Beaverton
Beaverton, Oregon
Beaverton is a city in Washington County, Oregon, United States, seven miles west of Portland in the Tualatin River Valley.As of the 2010 census, the population is 90,267. This makes it the second-largest city in the county and Oregon's sixth-largest city...
. They administer Valley Catholic School
Valley Catholic School
Valley Catholic School is a private Roman Catholic school in Beaverton, Oregon, United States.The school is owned and operated by the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon Campus Schools.-History:...
, Little Flower Development Center, Valley Catholic Grade School, the Bethany Center, and Maryville Nursing Home.
History
In 1885, several young women in Jordan, OregonJordan, Oregon
Jordan is an unincorporated community in Linn County, Oregon, United States, just outside of Stayton, on Oregon Route 226. The community was once the site of Monastery of Our Lady of Jordan, Oregon.-External links:* *...
, who were members of a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
schismatic
Schism (religion)
A schism , from Greek σχίσμα, skhísma , is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization or movement religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a break of communion between two sections of Christianity that were previously a single body, or to a division within...
religious colony from Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
began to doubt the beliefs of the group and sent to the Benedictines of Mount Angel Abbey
Mount Angel Abbey
Mount Angel Abbey is a community of Benedictine monks near the city of Mt. Angel, Oregon, United States. It was established in 1882 from the Abbey of Engelberg, Switzerland. The abbey, located on the top of Mount Angel, a 485-foot high butte, has its own post office separate from the city of Mt....
for advice. Archbishop William Hickley Gross visited the colony and laid out a plan for reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. The group's elders rejected the plan, but the women asked to come along with the bishop, who wanted them to become a formal religious community. Nine women secretly escaped and moved to Mt. Angel. After several months of living with the Catholic order of the Benedictine Sisters of Mt. Angel at the Queen of Angels Monastery, the sisters moved to Sublimity
Sublimity, Oregon
Sublimity is a city in Marion County, Oregon, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city population was 2,148. It is part of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
and began their new life as the Sisters of the Most Precious Blood. They changed their name to Sisters of St. Mary in 1905.
Further reading
- Schoenberg, Wilfred P., S. J. These Valiant Women: History of the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon 1886-1986. Portland, OregonPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
: Western Lithograph, 1986.