The Ghana Region of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (MSHR) Congregation has been praised for its selfless service to the poor and marginalised in deprived communities in Ghana.
Delivering a sermon at a Eucharistic celebration marking a century of dedicated service of the congregation worldwide, Most Rev. John Alphonse Asiedu, Vicar of the Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom, praised the Sisters of the Holy Rosary for their commitment to the marginalised and vulnerable communities in the Afram Plains area.
The centenary celebration, held on October 5 at the St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, drew attention not only to the Sisters’ achievements but also to their vital role in transforming lives through compassion and service.
“The centenary celebration of the foundation of a Congregation is an important occasion not only for its members but also for all those who are connected with and have been impacted by the missionary life and work of the congregation,” Bishop Asiedu said.
Reflecting on the theme of the celebration, “celebrate the past with gratitude, live the present with passion, embrace the future with hope,” Bishop Asiedu encouraged attendees to honor the Sisters’ legacy while looking forward with optimism.
“This occasion fills us with deep sense of gratitude to God,” he noted, urging the congregation to engage in a time of reflection and prayer to evaluate the relevance of their mission.
The Pelate drew parallels between the MSHR’s work and the Biblical concept of Jubilee, which embodies themes of freedom and restoration. He cited the book of Leviticus, explaining that the Jubilee year was a time for economic, cultural, and communal renewal.
“The Jubilee laws were essentially concerned about social relationship, economic security and stability, and the wellbeing of the entire community,” he remarked, underscoring the Sisters’ alignment with these principles through their various initiatives.
The Vicar also highlighted the prophetic mission of both Isaiah and Jesus, noting how the Sisters embody the call to “proclaim good news to the poor” and “set at liberty those who are oppressed.”
He affirmed their dedication to health care, education, and advocacy for human rights, stating, “Your life and missionary activities have led to true recovery and restoration of the proper identity especially of the poor, the destitute and the marginalized,” he averred.
Bishop Asiedu entrusted the Sisters to the care of Mary, urging them to persist in their mission with renewed passion. “May the Holy Spirit bless your congregation with many quality vocations, especially from Ghana,” he encouraged.
The congregation of the Missionary Sisters of our lady of the Most Holy Rosary (MSHR) was founded at Drumully House Killeshandra, Co. Cavan, Ireland on 7h of March 1924 by Bishop Joseph Shanahan CSSp, then Apostolic Vicar of Southern Nigeria.
Seven postulants entered that day, three of whom (among others) had been lay missionaries with Bishop Shanahan between the years 1921 and 1924 at St Joseph’s Girls’ School Calabar, Nigeria (the only girl’s primary school in that vast area of the Vicariate).
Prior to Foundation Day, Bishop Shanahan had encountered a number of challenges in bringing the Congregation to birth.
In 1921, he wrote an article in which he spelt out the need for women missionaries for without them, the young girl and the wife are inevitably neglected.
He failed, however, despite many years of effort to secure any Irish Congregation of Sisters to go to Nigeria to assist in the evangelization and education of women. Secondly, his request to secure a base for the proposed missionary Congregation in a diocese in Ireland was declined by a number of Bishops.
However, a chance but unexpected encounter with Bishop P Finnegan of Kilmore on 2 October 1923 resulted in an invitation to establish the proposed Congregation in the Diocese of Kilmore.
Upon receiving this good news, Bishop Shanahan lost no time and he immediately set about to look for a property for the proposed convent. Having surveyed and sought advice about three properties in and around Cavan he purchased Drumully (Drum Mullach) House and land just outside the town of Killeshandra on 20 November 1923.
Bishop Shanahan recalled to Ireland Fr. P J Whitney, Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, (later Founder of St Patrick’s Missionary Society) who was One of the first Irish Diocesan priests to volunteer in 1920 for ministry in Nigeria, to begin fundraising in Ireland for the new Congregation.
This was an essential move on Bishop Shanahan’s part as he was bereft of any funds and had to obtain a bank loan in order to buy Drumully House. Prior to the purchase of Drummully House, eight women who were interested in becoming members of the proposed Congregation had earlier gathered from the beginning of October 1923 at the Dominican Convent Cabra, Dublin. The Dominican Sisters at Cabra had acceded to Bishop
Shanahan’s request to undertake the formation and training of the proposed members. The Dominican Sisters remained with the fledging congregation for ten years until the Congregation became self-governing in 1934.
From the first seven postulants in 1924, the Congregation grew rapidly in membership during the following years and by the end of the foundation Decade in 1934 there were fifty-nine professed Sisters, fifteen of whom were on mission in Nigeria.
In the ensuing ninety years, the Congregation continued to grow in membership while geographically expanding into fifteen mission territories in Africa and the Americas; Nigeria (1928), England (1939) South Africa (1940), Sierra Leone (1948), USA (1952), Cameroon (1956). Kenya (1956), Benue, Nigeria (1957), Zambia (1963), Brazil 1966). Scotland (1973), Ghana (1975), Ethiopia (1975), Mexico (1992), and Liberia (2006).
As the twentieth century was drawing to a close, the demographic profile of the Congregation was changing. From 1970 onwards membership declined but became more diversified. Vocations decreased in the western world while vocations in Africa increased.
At present new members come predominantly from those African countries perceived as mission countries’ one hundred years ago. The novitiate of the Congregation is in Southern Nigeria while Candidacy is established in both Cameroon and Kenya.
Young women from West Africa (Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Benin Republic, Togo and Sierra Leone) and East Africa (Kenya, Zambia, Ethiopia. Uganda) are trained as Holy Rosary Sisters and missioned to various administrative regions of the Congregation.
Up to 1970 the focus of the Congregation’s service was primarily directed to institutional needs in the emerging African nations – formal education at all levels, healthcare in all its dimensions, social development and pastoral care.
Today Sisters continue to be involved in those services but are also engaged with people of diverse faiths in responding to challenges and needs of the twenty-first century; defense of human rights, justice and peace issues, inter-religious dialogue, ecology and care of the earth, support of refugees, migrants and minorities.