Our Foundress, Mother Franzicka Lechner, was…
a PRAYING woman who fulfilled her mission through daily
communion with God;
a COURAGEOUS woman who was ready to face the social problems of her time;
a WISE woman who found ways to solve those problems;
an ACTIVE woman who overcame difficult and risky situations;
a TRUSTING woman who relied on the Providence of our Heavenly Father and
a JOYFUL woman who sought to bring the love of God to others.
Divine Providence guided Mother Franziska, our Foundress, to become familiar with the writings of the Rule of Saint Augustine. In the conviction of this Doctor of the Church, a community of persons called by God is an essential pre-requisite for uniting the contemplative and apostolic ways of life in the service of the Lord, and it is here that Mother Franziska saw a way to fulfill her mission.
According to the renewal efforts of the Second Vatican Council, the Congregation adapted Mother Franziska’s spirituality and constitutions to the changed situation in the Church and world.
The Rule of Saint Augustine remains the foundation of the Sisters’ religious life. The Sisters today obviously cannot follow the letter of a rule that is over a thousand years old; however, the letter is also the carrier of the spirit. Shaping her life in this spirit may help the Daughter of Divine Charity to fulfill her vocation to the Evangelical Counsels.
