Our presence
in the world

The Paris community runs the pastoral ministry of the “Institut de l’Alma”, our school. They collaborate with the Jesuits in youth and university ministry, at Maison Magis, and with the Ignatian family in the Magis Network. They are also involved with the parish of Saint-Pierre du Gros Caillot, working with the most vulnerable (prisoners, homeless, migrants).

They also collaborate with the Handmaids community of Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône in running activities for the Raphaëlle-Marie Association, especially during school holidays.

"Our heart must open to the whole world!” This phrase of Saint Rafaela Maria sums up well what the sisters strive to live in this community, which was re-established in September 2024. Living in a socially deprived neighborhood mostly made up of immigrant and Muslim neighbors, the sisters coordinate and lead the Raphaëlle Marie Association. This serves children aged between 6 and 11 from three poor neighborhoods in the city.

Additionally, they coordinate the Diocesan Youth Ministry and collaborate in various pastoral activities in the parish and in Paris, as well as being involved in social ministry offering homeless support and immigrant assistance.

The St. Raphaela campus in Dublin is a lively place, with our community and chapel at its center. The chapel is an oasis of welcome for the wider local community and a meeting point for daily Mass. The primary and secondary schools together welcome more than a thousand children every day.

We also host some guests needing a quiet, peaceful place for short stays. Clonmore House is currently used as a training center for future congregational leaders from around the world.

The sisters of this community are deeply involved in the life of the neighborhood. They work mainly on three projects of the Santa Rafaela Maria Foundation: Tasse (an educational project), SIM (immigrant integration), and PAF (support for families in need).

The sisters also lead the neighborhood’s pastoral programme, especially catechesis and volunteer groups.

In the heart of Lisbon, the house is a meeting place for people who want to know Jesus Christ better, grow in their relationship with Him, and live in the world in His way.

The sisters accompany ACI Communities, provide personal and group spiritual accompaniment and collaborate with the Protection and Care Service of the Society of Jesus. They participate in spiritual guidance for residents in the Santa Casa da Misericórdia nursing homes in Lisbon, provide pastoral care for prisoners, and lead the Sunday Eucharist at the Church of Our Lady of Conception (Largo do Rato).

At the Santa Rafaela Maria House of Prayer, the sisters dedicate themselves to welcoming all who come to pray and rest: from simple tasks, to leading activities and retreats, and managing the house.

Besides the mission of the House of Prayer, the sisters also: collaborate with the Palmela Parish, Casa Nossa Senhora da Saúde in Setúbal, offer spiritual accompaniment to individuals and groups, visit elderly people in the neighborhood and at the Misericórdia Nursing Home, and provide study support in the Belavista neighborhood of Setúbal.

The Porto community is responsible for the Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Day School, where the sisters seek to live two fundamental traits of the Handmaids’ charism: ‘evangelizing education’, whether through school leadership, pastoral ministry, teaching, welcoming students in the mornings, and ‘placing Christ before the peoples in adoration’(Saint Rafaela Maria).

Every morning, the Blessed Sacrament is exposed in the school chapel, where students, parents, and staff come daily to pray. In addition, some sisters collaborate with the Jesuit University Center (CREU) and Health Ministry, visiting people who are alone or hospitalized.

The London community’s main mission is to support St. Christina’s School. The sisters are involved in the school by supporting its activities, attending concerts, assemblies, and moments of communal prayer, as well as being part of the chaplaincy team. They also provide strategic guidance and support to the school’s leadership.

Besides the school, the sisters actively participate in the life of the parish, support a local public school, and collaborate with a palliative care unit where they visit patients and are part of the chaplaincy team.