Catherine was a gifted dancer and popular on the scene. However something else strongly touched Catherine’s young life – the world of dances and parties which were part of the ‘in’ set. Sadly he passed away when Catherine was only five but his example influenced her throughout her life.
One of Catherine’s memories would be the Sundays when James would welcome many of the local poor to receive food parcels and then tell the children stories including many from the Bible. Her father, a kind and devoted man, cared deeply for his family and also loved his faith. Who was this woman, whom Pope John Paul declared Venerable in 1990, whom the state depicted on its currency, who was also a contemporary of Dickens and the Brontes, and a Founder of a religious congregation still thriving today?Ĭatherine McAuley was born in 1778 into a wealthy Catholic family in Dublin, Ireland. ‘It was an honour but it really should have been the twenty pound note!’ ‘Do you not think that Catherine would have been happy with her face on the smaller note – sure, the fiver reached more poor people’s pockets than the larger one’.
John Murray continues his series on women of faith with an article on Catherine McAuley, Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy and formerly honoured on the Irish five pound note. Writings, Images And Sayings Of Catherine McAuley.Meet Our Congregational Leadership Team 2018 – 2024.Eco-justice & Cosmology – “Networking for a Better Future”.Catherine McAuley Centre – Conference Rooms.