Sisters of the Education of Christ

History & origins

The Sisters of the Christian Doctrine originated in the Toul region of Lorraine, France, at the end of the seventeenth century, amid war, disease, and poverty. The founder, Father Jean Vatelot, began an apostolate with women teachers to help girls who had little access to education and people living in poverty. In 1722 he opened a school for girls in Bruley, and he later established in Toul a house to prepare women to become teachers, giving concrete form to the congregation's educational mission.

The congregation grew rapidly during the founder's lifetime. According to its official history, by the time Father Vatelot died in 1748 there were 32 schools, 40 houses, and about 100 sisters. The French Revolution then brought a major rupture: schools were closed and the sisters were dispersed. In 1802 the sisters gathered again, reorganized the community, and began using the name by which the congregation is known today.

The reorganized congregation gradually received formal recognition within the Church. It was approved by the Diocese of Toul in 1844, and on March 12, 1929, Pope Pius XI gave final approval to its constitutions, establishing it as a congregation of pontifical right. Its educational apostolate subsequently expanded beyond France and into several continents.

The Sisters of the Christian Doctrine entered Korea in 1966 and extended their ministry into education, parish work, retreats and faith formation, and social welfare. The site in Padong, Daegu, is now registered as the congregation's postulancy, connecting the long history of this educational congregation with the discernment and preparation of new religious vocations in Korea. The official sources reviewed do not specify the opening year of the Padong postulancy itself.