THE ORIGIN OF THE SISTERS OF ST. PAUL OF CHARTRES

The Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres (SPC) Congregation was founded in 1696 by Fr. Louis Chauvet, the parish priest of Levesville-La Chenard which is a small village southeast of Chartres, France.The 17 th century was a time of great change and unrest for France and the rest of the world that went through the Hundred Years War. Levesville experiences the effects of the previous wars. The country was ruined; the people, burdened with both material and spiritual needs. While the education of the elite had reached an excellent level, the ignorance, apathy and illiteracy of the poor grew increasingly alarming

Aware of the conditions of their time, Fr. Chauvet felt the need to offer instruction to the poor children of Levesville. He “wanted them to study, to learn more about Christian doctrine, to participate more fully and intimately in religious ceremonies, and to practice religion truly and perfectly.” Father Chauvet’s vision of charity was shared by his first followers: Marie Micheau, Barbe Foucault, and Marie Therese du Tronchay. Fr. Chauvet entrusted their training to Marie Anne de Tilly, a lady of nobility and an active member of the parish who left a life of comfort “to serve God and neighbor”.

Marie Anne de Tilly’s life was a life lived in charity. She suffered much even until her death, but it was precisely her edifying life of humility and simplicity which guided the community spirit. There was never any class distinctions among the sisters. The “Daughters of the School” worked selflessly at the “Cradle”; their first school opened by Fr. Chauvet in 1700. Mother Marie Micheau was designated as the first superior.

By 1704, many girls wanted to join the community of the Daughters of the School. The community of Levesville was called to Chartres in 1708. The Bishop of Chartres, Monsignor Paul des Marais, designated St. Paul as the patron of the congregation. He added the care for the sick to the original apostolic activity of instruction. He gave the sisters a house in Chartres and an ecclesiastical superior, Fr. Claude Marechaux.

On June 10, 1710, Fr. Chauvet died. The vision lived on. His mission was carried out by the Congregation he founded. By 1712, the first foreign mission opened in Cayenne, French Guiana.

The difficult circumstances of the French Revolution, occasioned the spread of the Congregation to other places. When they began to spread abroad, it is with the purpose of going to those places where they are wanted to form little communities of two or three, putting up the village school or the hospice, at the service of the people; their primary activity was to educate young girls, to visit and care for the poor and the sick.

On October 28, 1904, the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres arrived in the Philippines and landed in Dumaguete, Negros Oriental upon the invitation of Bishop Frederick Rooker, a new bishop needing help to meet the growing problems of his diocese. The first SPC Novitiate in the Philippines was opened in Malate, Manila on June 21, 1911 and was trasferred to Quezon City in 1931. In December 26, 1963, the Novitiate in Quezon City was transferred to Antipolo City. The Apostolate spread throughout the country in schools, hospitals, pastoral centers that were either owned or administered by the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres.

It has been 300 years of life and mission for the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres who have grown beyond Levesville and Chartres in France, actualizing the vision of Fr. Louis Chauvet. They now serve the people of all nations caring for the youth in schools, the sick in the hospitals – throughout the five continents of the globe. The love of Christ impels them “to leave the world, to give oneself to God for the good of the Church and the service of neighbor.