The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration
A Mission of Prayer and Adoration
The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration are a community of nuns who reside in a convent in Clyde, Missouri. They established their religious community in this state in 1874 and still exist to this day. Through their long history, they have served their community in many ways such as providing an education to children, running an orphanage, raising an award-winning cattle herd, making alter bread, and much more. This impressive history began from humble roots in a European convent.
A picture of the convent in 1927.
The Maria Reichenbach convent.
Swiss Roots
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, missionary fervor in Europe led to many new convents worldwide. This caused five sisters from the Maria Reichenbach convent in Switzerland to establish a new convent in Missouri. They wanted to spread their mission of perpetual adoration, so when the opportunity to send sisters to the United States arose in 1874, they took it.
The Sisters' Journey
Five sisters left their home in Switzerland to the United States in 1874 to fulfill the request of the Benedictine Fathers at a monastery in Conception, Missouri located only two miles from Clyde. These fathers wanted their help in educating European immigrants in the area. This was a good enough reason for the sisters to make the journey since it was an excellent way to spread their faith and begin perpetual adoration in the United States. After traveling across Europe, they eventually boarded the S.S. Oder which took them over the Atlantic Ocean to New York. From there, they traveled hundreds of miles to get to Conception, Missouri. Follow their journey through pictures below.
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