Blood of Christ Missionary Sisters

History & origins

The roots of the Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood lie in the missionary world of nineteenth-century southern Africa. Trappist Abbot Francis Pfanner went to Africa, established the Mariannhill monastery, and invited women to assist in missionary work. In September 1885, five women from Germany arrived at Mariannhill and formed the beginning of the community. Mother Paula, who joined the following year, played a decisive role in formation and community development. The congregation received ecclesiastical approval in 1906, and Mother Paula was elected its first superior general in 1907.

The congregation came to Korea in the mid-1980s at the invitation of Bishop Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk of Cheongju. Contemporary church reports describe the sisters establishing a community in Cheongju and beginning ministries in special education and family pastoral care. Sources differ as to whether the Korean mission began in 1985 or 1986, so the exact year is not stated here; they agree, however, that the Korean community began through a close relationship with the Diocese of Cheongju.

The congregation subsequently expanded its apostolates in Korea and was raised to the status of a Korean province or branch in 1998. The motherhouse in Hyeondo-myeon became the center of the Korean community, supporting retreat and spiritual ministry through the Emmaus Retreat House while also sending sisters to parishes, welfare institutions, childcare, and elder-care settings.

The history of this place is therefore connected with the way the congregation’s global missionary tradition took root in the concrete reality of the Korean Church. Its early emphasis on mission and education gradually expanded into welfare, care, and retreat ministry, and the Hyeondo motherhouse remains the community center that links these changing forms of service. In the growth of the Korean community, the congregation’s international missionary spirituality met the pastoral needs of the Diocese of Cheongju. Their convergence became an important background for understanding the establishment of the Korean province around the Hyeondo-myeon motherhouse and the expansion of its apostolates.