Our Mission & History
The Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville seek to share their mission of bringing the reign of God to fulfillment.
Our Mission
Rooted in the belief that all persons participate in Christ’s continued mission in the world, the Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville, as a Congregation, seek to share that mission of bringing the reign of God to fulfillment.
St. Dominic recognized the needs of his age and commissioned his followers to proclaim the truth, the Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville continue to respond to each age as it unfolds, committing themselves to an active contemplative life that proclaims God’s reign.
In striving to build up God’s reign in the community of the world, the Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville reach out to share their faith experience with others. Sustained by the strength gained from the unity experienced in community, she labors to promote human dignity, to alleviate social ills, and ultimately to achieve oneness in the Spirit of God.
Our Goal
We Dominican women religious, called to be signs of joy and hope, commit ourselves to incarnating the Gospel, deepening our life of prayer, searching for truth, discerning the needs of the Church, and ministering to the people of God.
Our Vision
As members of the Dominican Congregation of the Holy Cross, we are active contemplatives, vowed and bonded members, sharing a variety of gifts and cultures.
As prophetic witnesses in collaboration with others, we will call the Church, the society, and ourselves to credibility.
- We will be responsible members of the universe.
- We will promote the dignity of marginalized persons.
- We will reject violence in ourselves and in society in order that all generations will grow and cherish life.
- With the world as our frontier, we are open to the Spirit working through all creation.
- We will engage in our corporate ministry of preaching/teaching in creative ways within Church structures and in other frameworks.
Like Dominic, we are itinerants striving to bring the reign of God to fulfillment.
The Four Pillars of Dominican Life
As members of the Worldwide Order of Preachers, the Sisters live according to the Four Pillars of Dominican Tradition:
- Prayer
- Mission
- Community
- Study
The four pillars are daily witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
As daughters of St. Dominic, the Sisters live among God’s people sharing hope and joy as St. Dominic did in the thirteenth century, striving to live in a way that calls others to know, love, and follow our brother Jesus.
Our History
In 1853, four Sisters from Holy Cross Monastery in Regensburg, Germany set sail for the United States to teach the children of German immigrants. Father Stephen Raffeiner of the Redemptorist Fathers in Manhattan offered shelter to Sisters Josepha, Augustine, Francesca, and Jacobina in the rectory basement of Most Holy Trinity Parish in Brooklyn, N.Y.
By the 1870s, the growing congregation moved to a farm on Long Island, and the Sisters became known as the Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville. Their ministries met the changing needs of a growing population. In time, their work expanded throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. Each unique ministry is committed to serving the poor and marginalized.