Carolyn Gessner, Kelsey Collins, Polina Roehrig Mrs. Biler Lifestyles – 6 th hour December 18, 2011 Active Religious Women’s Order

 Clelia Merloni  Baptized into the Roman Catholic Church in the Cathedral of Forlí  Highly educated  Father focused on work and in the process he withdrew from the church and became an anticlerical freemason.  From her stepmother and her grandmother, absorbed a true Christian spirit and enthusiasm for the love of God  Retreat to her room where she would pray and do penance for her father’s misdeeds  Known to wear a pebble in her shoe in order to offer the pain for her father's good.

 Clelia entered the Congregation of the Daughters of St. Mary of Divine Providence  Immersed in a life of self giving and prayer  Sensed a strong calling to establish a new congregation ◦ dedicated to works of charity ◦ visibly express the love of Christ.  Founded the Congregation in Viareggio, Italy, May 30,  Within a few years the Apostles set out for the Americas to assist the Italian emigrants

 To attain a perfect love for God by ◦ making the Heart of Jesus known and loved ◦ by living the law of charity among all people ◦ by embracing the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty and obedience.  Primarily Education  Healthcare  Social Services  Evangelization  Pastoral and youth ministry

 Celebrate the Eucharist  Communal praying of the Liturgy of the Hours  Prayers is proper to the congregation  Meditation  The Rosary  Spiritual Reading  Quiet moments of prayer  Annual retreats

 Teachers ◦ Especially special needs kids ◦ Religious education ◦ Health and nutrition educations  Work in the hospitals ◦ Nurse training ◦ Take care of the sick  Help the poor and the needy

 Clelia Merloni is in the process of being canonized  World wide, on five continents  The council is in Italy  Their order is in Detroit, Michigan

If you invoke the Holy Name of Jesus with faith and confidence, your prayers will be heard." — M. Clelia Merloni