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Catherine McAuley was born in 1778 in Dublin and devoted her life to serving others through faith and compassion. She believed in acting immediately to help those in need. At the time of her birth, Ireland was deeply divided between the privileged rich and the suffering poor. Harsh laws kept most Catholics in poverty, barring them from education, professions, and political rights. Poverty, hunger, and vice were widespread, especially in Dublin. Many people lived in desperate conditions while a small upper class prospered. Catherine’s early life began within these injustices, shaping her later mission to serve others. Her birth also coincided with early movements for Catholic relief in Ireland.

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At that time, many schools in Ireland were overcrowded, and they didn't have proper equipment for their students. This was especially happening in Dublin, where there weren't a lot of Catholic schools for the poor. The catholic church saw this, so in 1823, Daniel O'Collen made the Catholic Association. Even though they were making progress, there was still a lot of poverty, and Catherine saw this, and she believed that the best way to help them was to give them an education. Catherine respected Mary Aikenhead for making the sisters of Charity, but she didn't want to join them because of how their system worked and how sometimes they would turn away girls. Catherine never thought of becoming a nun, but she felt that god wanted her to become one so she could live out that dream of teaching and sheltering poor girls.

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During 1823-1827, Catherine McAuley was really influenced by several priests, and especially by Archbishop Daniel Murray. He was encouraging her to go through with the idea that she had of showing mercy and kindness to the poor. Catherine didn't want to be like the other rich people who just did “slumming”, which was giving out a little charity here and there to feel better about themselves. She really wanted to make an actual difference. She had bought a land on Baggot Street so that she could build something permanent for the poor. She, and with help from Dr. Blake, planned to build a big house that would have dorms for working girls, living spaces for helpers, and even a chapel. This was the beginning of the House of Mercy. Catherine’s faith pushed her to do it, because she felt that serving the poor was the same as serving Jesus.

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Around this time, Catherine also had to take care of her sister Mary and Mary’s five kids, which was really hard for her. Mary got married to a Protestant, Dr. William Macaulay, so her kids weren’t raised Catholic. When Mary got sick with tuberculosis and died in the 1820s, Catherine put a lot of effort into helping her nieces and nephews become Catholic. She also helped her niece, Mary Teresa, convert, which really meant a lot to her. Catherine’s nephew William, called “Wild Willie,” made trouble when he denied a story that was meant to make his dad look good. Also, some of her other family members never became Catholic, even though Catherine really wanted them to. People described Catherine as cheerful, kind, and determined. She didn’t let sadness or family problems stop her from continuing her mission of helping the poor and teaching. In the end, her biggest achievement was opening the large house at Baggot Street, which became the house of mercy.

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Catherine McAuley showed a deep faith from a young age, even when religion was suppressed. She recognized that her beliefs were under pressure and worked hard to strengthen her knowledge of them. Prayer was a big part of her life—she copied prayers, repeated them daily, and even wrote her own, most of which focused on Jesus’ suffering. This strong devotion shaped her spiritually and later inspired the religious community she founded. Her life, however, was full of ups and downs, moving between wealth, poverty, and dependence on charity. In 1799, she was taken in by Catherine and William Callaghan, an older childless couple, who treated her like family. These experiences gave her a deep empathy for the poor and suffering. Because she knew hardship herself, her kindness and generosity toward others were genuine and full of compassion.

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In 1824 Catherine McAuley got William Callaghan’s money and decided to use it for the poor instead of herself. With it she built the House of Mercy on Baggot Street, Dublin, as a place to help people in need. She cared for abandoned children who lived in dirty cellars, a young girl dying of cancer with no family, and babies left behind in the cholera outbreak of 1832. She also looked after old servants like Mrs. Harper, a Protestant woman she cared for during her last three years. Catherine showed that mercy meant giving food, shelter, and comfort even when it was not easy. She believed real mercy forgives again and again without judgment. Her life showed that love in action mattered more than just words.

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Catherine was supported by important leaders like Daniel O’Connell who respected her mission to serve the poor. At the time, the 1709 Act of Parliament made it hard for Catholics to run schools, but Catherine still taught and helped. She believed education and work were better than only giving handouts, so she trained girls in needlework, knitting, and home skills. She also sold the work they made so they could learn to earn money for themselves. In January 1838 Father Joseph Nugent asked her to start teaching at St. Mary’s Parochial Poor School on Middle Abbey Street. Catherine worked to expand her Sisters of Mercy so more people could be reached. She proved that prayer and hard work together could break through laws and prejudice.

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Catherine often repeated her saying, “Labour and poverty harmonise,” because she thought dignity came from working, not just from receiving charity. She wanted to give people skills so they could survive and not depend on others. She opened a small repository shop where girls could sell their needlework and knitting to the public. At the same time, the Kildare Place Society spent £25,000 of public money to run schools that pushed Catholic kids to become Protestant. Catherine kept going despite this opposition, focusing on faith and action instead of wealth or power. She told her Sisters that “Prayer will do more … than all the money in the Bank of Ireland,” showing her deep trust in God. Her courage helped the Sisters of Mercy grow into a strong group that cared for the poor, sick, and uneducated.

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Catherine McAuley lived a life centered on both prayer and practical service to others. She combined faith with action, responding wisely to the needs of her time. She created programs to assist the poor, including the “Walking Nuns,” who visited and helped those in need. Her home on Baggot Street served as a center for education, care, and shelter. Catherine emphasized living out faith through real acts of mercy rather than theory alone. Her dedication to helping others came from Scripture and her deep spirituality. Before her death, she built one of the strongest women’s religious communities focused on social service. Her leadership and compassion left a lasting impact on the Church and Irish society.

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Catherine McAuley’s father, James, was a skilled craftsman and builder who rose from poverty despite laws restricting Catholics. He supported Catholic worship and helped establish local chapels, showing strong faith. The McAuley family faced challenges due to discrimination but maintained hope and resilience. Catherine’s mother, though less religious, influenced her with gentleness and strength. Together, her parents gave her a balance of compassion, faith, and practicality. Growing up, Catherine saw both the struggles and perseverance of Irish Catholics. These early experiences shaped her empathy and commitment to serving others. Her upbringing laid the foundation for her future mission of mercy and social service.

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Catherine McAuley grew up surrounded by examples of faith, compassion, and responsibility, which she learned from her father before his death. His passing left the family in financial trouble, forcing them to move and depend on others, including a Protestant benefactor with anti-Catholic views. Catherine’s stepmother left the family to live with a Protestant man, which deeply affected Catherine and pushed her closer to her own beliefs. Catherine was taken in by the Conway family, who struggled with money and sometimes pressured her, but she continued to hold firm to her values. Despite the challenges around her, including expectations to change her religion, she stayed strong in her identity. Over time, she gained the support of important Catholic leaders who encouraged her spiritual development. These early experiences shaped her dedication, leadership, and compassion later in life.

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Catherine McAuley experienced a deep loss when her spiritual companion, Father Edward Armstrong, died in 1828. Before his death, he advised her to rely only on God, which strengthened her trust in divine providence. Catherine encouraged others with the same confidence, assuring them that God would provide for their needs. Bishop John Murphy, who did not share her faith in providence, mockingly called her the “Sister of Divine Providence.” Her project in Baggot Street faced ridicule, especially from non Catholic relatives who expected to inherit her wealth and labeled the house “Kitty’s Folly.” Despite this opposition, Catherine attracted young women like Fanny Tighe, Anna Maria Doyle, and Georgiana Moore, who were inspired by her mission. More members joined in 1829 and 1830, including Margaret Dunne, Elizabeth Harley, and Caroline Murphy. This early group marked the beginning of a growing congregation that would later spread widely.

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Catherine McAuley received support from several notable figures, including the Misses O’Connell and Costello. Daniel O’Connell, known as “The Liberator,” helped serve poor children at Christmas and later achieved Catholic Emancipation for Ireland. Around 1827–28 she also became acquainted with Charles Cavanagh, who would later serve as solicitor for the Baggot Street community. While waiting for the Baggot Street House to be completed, Catherine and Fanny Tighe traveled to France in 1825 to study Catholic education. Although French Catholic schools were imperfect, she gathered useful ideas and compared them to Irish methods. She studied the Lancastrian and Kildare Place systems and even gained access to classrooms where proselytism was happening. Catherine and a companion wrote down the names of Catholic pupils, visited their parents, and recruited the first students for Baggot Street School. In September 1827, Anna Maria Doyle and Catherine Byrn moved into the Baggot Street house, and Catherine frequently visited with her niece until she moved in permanently the next year.

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On the day the Baggot Street school opened, between two and three hundred poor children were enrolled. An orphanage was also established to care for children affected by the 1827 fever epidemic, and the night refuge soon functioned like a shelter and employment center. Catherine McAuley believed she was being guided by providence to serve God and the poor with love. Because of this, she became involved in many areas: early childhood education, primary and technical schooling, catechism, adult education, child care, rehabilitation, elderly care, and social work. Within ten years, she expanded into secondary education through pension schools, which became a major part of her mission. All her work was done for the Church and emphasized evangelization and a strong Catholic identity. Even before Catholic Emancipation in 1829, her educational efforts were already active, and she believed that training young girls would help regenerate Irish society. Georgiana Moore, later Sister M. Clare, described meeting Catherine in 1828 and noted her youthful appearance, fair complexion, and expressive features despite being over forty.

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Georgiana Moore described Catherine McAuley as having a very expressive and agreeable mouth that stood out as her best facial feature. Her eyes were round, light blue, with pale lashes and brows, and though they looked melancholy at rest, they could show humor, disapproval, or an uncanny sense of reading someone’s thoughts. Catherine’s nose was straight but somewhat thick, and she wore hairbands made from her own pale golden hair, which was fine, silky, and neatly arranged. She dressed in black British merino that fit closely to her figure, as was fashionable at the time. Her build was well-proportioned rounded but not heavy and she carried herself with good posture. Her hands were very white but large and clumsy, with broad fingertips and short square nails. A preserved lock of her hair and a miniature painted after her death confirm the accuracy of the description. However, they also reveal a quality the writer overlooked Catherine’s expression of calm strength, reflecting her deep trust in unfailing divine help, a trait noted in accounts of her final days.

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Catherine McAuley believed charity wasn’t just about money, but about kindness, compassion, and listening to others. She trusted that people had goodness in them and thought it was better to risk helping someone dishonest than to turn away someone truly in need. Around 1803, she moved into the Callaghan household at Coolock, where she taught children, trained young women, and visited the poor. The Callaghans were against Catholicism, but Catherine still quietly practiced her faith and found ways to see God in ordinary things. Eventually, she gained more freedom to attend Mass and grow in her devotions. While at Coolock, she also practiced fasting and self-denial, and she led prayers with the Catholic staff. She sometimes snuck out to visit Liffey Street Chapel and there she met Dr. Murray, who gave her her First Communion. With guidance from Dr. Murray and Father Betagh, she stayed strong against anti-Catholic pressure and kept building her mission.

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Catherine McAuley became like the daughter the Callaghans had always hoped for. When Mrs. Callaghan grew seriously ill, Catherine cared for her for two years, even reading to her by a small shaded lamp while sitting uncomfortably on the floor. Her constant witness of faith eventually led to Mrs. Callaghan’s conversion in 1819 and Mr. Callaghan’s in 1822. After his death, William Callaghan left Catherine a large inheritance, making her the main heir of his estate. By this time, Catherine was forty-four and had become known as a peacemaker who lived out her faith with charity and kindness instead of arguments. This way of life won her respect even from people who opposed Catholicism. Her inheritance gave her the means to start her mission of mercy and care for the poor. Although society opened its doors to her as a wealthy heiress, Catherine chose instead to dedicate herself to helping the poor in Dublin’s inner city.

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The Story of Tabitha | Women in the Bible Series for Kids