Schoenstatt Sisters Celebrate 100 Years!

The Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary [https://schoenstattsistersofmary.us] will celebrate the opening of their 100th Jubilee Year (October 1, 1926 - 2026) on October 4, 2025, at the

International Retreat Center in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The public is welcome to come learn more about the history of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary. Holy Mass will be celebrated by Most Rev. Jeffrey S. Grob, Archbishop of Milwaukee, with a procession to the Schoenstatt

Shrine, followed by refreshments and fellowship. A variety of events will also be offered throughout the 100th Jubilee Year. The celebrative year will culminate with a Jubilee Festival September 8-12, 2026, and 100th Jubilee Celebration on September 12, 2026.

"This special year is a time for us to look back with gratitude at 100 years of blessings. In the spirit of our Blessed Mother's Magnificat, we give thanks to God for his ever-faithful love and wise guidance, and for choosing each of us to serve the mission of our founder for these times,“ said Sr. M. Emily Kenkel, provincial superior of the North American province of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary. “We invite everyone to join us in celebrating and giving thanks: all those who are part of our Schoenstatt Family and all those who already support us in any way, but also anyone who is interested in learning more. We hope this jubilee year will be an occasion for many more people to encounter our Mother Thrice Admirable in her Schoenstatt Shrine and to experience the powerful graces she mediates at this place of

pilgrimage," said Sr. M. Emily Kenkel.

Schoenstatt’s goal is the moral and spiritual renewal of society. As part of the inspiring force behind the Schoenstatt Movement, the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary place special emphasis on the Marian education of girls, women, and families. They run centers of formation, promote apostolic initiatives, work in secular and ecclesiastical professions, and in some countries, lead social projects — all in the spirit of Schoenstatt’s message and mission.

“In the Schoenstatt Movement, lay people are inspired by lay leaders through occasional workshops and ongoing formation in small groups for couples, women, men, and youth. In addition to this, through the rotation of the image of Mary with elements of evangelization and social outreach, families are mentored in practical steps by which the domestic church is strengthened in their homes,” said Sr. M. Isabel Bracero, Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary.

The worldwide apostolate, founded by Father Joseph Kentenich in Germany in 1914, now has about 1,400 Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary on six continents in 25 countries.

The first Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary came to the US in 1949 to Wisconsin and Texas. Since then, they have established centers and shrines in other places in the US as well as in Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. The North American province is based at the International Schoenstatt Center in Waukesha, Wisconsin, where the provincial house of their community is located, and where the 100th Jubilee will inaugurate. The Schoenstatt International Shrine is designated as one of the 2025 Jubilee Pilgrimage Sites in the US.

In the Milwaukee Archdiocese, the Sisters of Mary are in Waukesha at the provincial house and International Schoenstatt Center, where they offer retreats for the Schoenstatt Movement and welcome groups and events from the Archdiocese and area parishes. Also in Milwaukee is the Movement House, near the Schoenstatt Shrine at St. Vincent Pallotti East, where the community ensures all-day Adoration. In Madison the Sisters are at Schoenstatt Heights, another Pilgrimage Site in the US during this Jubilee Holy Year dedicated to Pilgrims of Hope https://www.usccb.org/jubilee2025. There the sisters also host the

Magnificat Household, an intentional Catholic community of university students and young professional women. https://schoenstattsistersofmary.us/magnificat-household/.

Timeline of Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary History

October 1, 1926

Founding of the community of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary by Father Joseph Kentenich

1933 The first sisters are sent to South Africa

1934 Beginning of the adoration branch of the community

1935 The first sisters are sent to South America (Brazil and Argentina)

1941-1945 The founder’s imprisonment by the Nazis in the Koblenz prison and in the concentration camp of Dachau. Construction of the first daughter shrine by the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary in Uruguay

1946-1950 Constitution of the provinces in Germany and overseas First visits of the founder to South America, South Africa, and North America

1948 Diocesan erection of the community as a secular institute, then the preliminary erection as a secular institute of papal right

1949 The first sisters are sent to North America

1951 The first sisters are sent to Australia

1951-1965 Testing of the community and the Schoenstatt Work by the Church Exile of the founder in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

1967 First general chapter of the institute with the founder in Schoenstatt

1968 Dedication of the Church of the Blessed Trinity on Mount Schoenstatt. Death and burial of the founder in the Church of the Blessed Trinity

1975 Opening of the beatification process of Father Joseph Kentenich in Trier

1984 The first Indian sisters are sent to Kerala, India

1989 Restoration of direct contact with the sisters in Eastern Europe and the spread of our work in these countries

1994 Final recognition as a secular institute of papal right. Final approval of our Holy Constitutions. International pilgrimage of the community to Rome; meeting with Pope John Paul II

1999 Opening of the beatification process of Sister M. Emilie Engel in Trier, Germany

2012 Decree of the heroic degree of virtue of Sister M. Emilie Engel by Pope Benedict XVI

Source: https://www.s-ms.org/en/who-we-are/timeline-of-our-history/