To the outside observer, the young Mary Frances Xavier Warde might have seemed the last candidate for humanitarian work. Born into affluence, she grew to be a frivolous young lady more familiar with the whims of high society than the needs of the underprivileged. But when a nun named Catherine McAuley befriended Frances, her life took a very different turn.
In today’s post, we invite you to learn how Mother Mary Frances Xavier Warde went from being a wealthy society girl to one of the most compassionate humanitarians of her era, founding the Sisters of Mercy in America, along with dozens of convents, schools, hospitals, and orphanages.
Early Life
The youngest of six children, Mary Frances Xavier Warde was born in 1810 to an affluent Irish couple. After being orphaned at the age of 16, Frances and four of her siblings went to live with their maternal great aunt. A vivacious young lady, Frances became actively involved in Dublin’s “fashionable circles.” However, at the bequest of her guardian, Frances received a religious education and became acquainted with a nun named Catherine McAuley. The two became fast friends, and in 1828, Frances chose to leave her stylish life behind and donned a habit to serve alongside McAuley as a teacher at the House for Homeless Children.
Three years later, when McAuley established a new order called the Sisters of Mercy, Frances became one of its first members and began working as her assistant. A capable administrator, Frances was chosen to oversee the construction of a new convent in Carlow, and upon its completion in 1837, assumed the role of superior. Over the next few years, she went on to found additional convents across the country, including one in Naas in 1839 and one in Wexford in 1840, little knowing that her ministry was soon to become global.
Work in New England
In 1843, at the request of Bishop O’Connor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Frances journeyed across the Atlantic with six other women from the Sisters of Mercy to establish the Order in the United States. Ministering in Pittsburgh, she assisted with the Sunday school and teaching adults, where she became known for her passionate rhetoric and spiritual fervor. She also oversaw many other ministerial projects in America, including the establishment of the Chicago Sisters of Mercy convent and the first Mercy Hospital, as well as various schools and convents. Frances even sent members of the Order as far as the West Coast to help organize new ministries.
Perhaps Frances’ most notable work was the foundation of a house and school in Providence, Rhode Island. Known as St. Xavier’s Academy, the school served as a boarding and finishing school, and was the first Catholic secondary school in the state. However, Frances’ ministry projects were not always easy to undertake. In March 1855, the Providence convent was attacked by a throng of “Knownothings,” an anti-Catholic political group who claimed they would kill the nuns if they did not flee the property immediately. Yet Frances’ strength of mind coupled with the protection of a group of “Irish Catholic defenders” ensured that no one was injured and the sisters maintained control of the convent. One of the rioters reportedly said of Frances:
“We made our plans without reckoning the odds we shall have to contend with in the strong controlling force the presence of that nun commands. The only honorable course for us is to retreat from this ill-conceived fray. I, for one, shall not lift a hand to harm these ladies.”
Later Life
For the rest of her life, Frances continued to spread Christ’s love across the United States, serving as the Superior General of the Mercy Sisters in America and founding additional houses and schools in Hartford, New Haven, and Newport. She and her Sisters also ministered to Native Americans in Maine and started night schools for factory children in New Hampshire to ensure they received an education after working during the day to support their families. After a long and fulfilling life of service, Frances passed away in September of 1884 at the age of 74. You can find her portrayed in the “Our Lady of Mercy” stained glass window in the Great Upper Church, which was designed by artist Max Ingrand and gifted to the Basilica by the Sisters of Mercy.
Sources:
“Mary Francis Xavier Warde,” New Advent.
“Mother M. Frances Warde,” Mercy International Association.
“Mother Mary Frances Xavier Warde,” Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame.
Rohling, Geraldine M., PhD, MAEd. The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception: Guide and Tour Book. Washington, D.C.: Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, 2018.