Sister of Mercy (1810–1884)
Frances Warde, who was born in Ireland and became the first professed member of the Sisters of Mercy, would go on to play an enormous role in establishing and shaping the Catholic Church in America. The key event in her life occurred when she was sixteen and met Catherine McAuley, who was in the process of founding her new religious congregation. After her profession as a Sister of Mercy, Frances joined in the work of caring for Dublin’s poor before helping to establish several other foundations in Ireland. Then, in 1843, with six companions, she set sail for a new mission in the United States.
Their first stop was Pittsburgh, where Bishop Michael O’Connor sought the sisters’ help in ministering to the Irish population. But with incredible speed the number of her sisters had vastly multiplied, and before long Mother Warde had established parish schools throughout southeastern New England. Among other challenges, they confronted threats from anti-Catholic “Know-Nothings.” In Providence, Rhode Island, a mob of several thousand threatened to burn down the convent of these “female Jesuits.” Though the mayor advised her to flee, she refused. Armed Catholic men gathered to protect the convent, but it was ultimately the brave composure of the bishop and Mother Warde herself that shamed the mob into dispersing.
During her term as superior general of the Sisters of Mercy in the United States, Mother Warde established a total of twenty-seven convents in ten states. She died on September 17, 1884.
“The blessed Cross of Christ be about us.” —Mother Frances Warde
