Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

www.missionhurstcicm.org

Name of Congregation: Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (CICM)

Active or contemplative: Active

What is the timeframe your congregation has served the Diocese of Arlington?
We arrived in Arlington in 1946. At that time, it belonged to the Diocese of Richmond.

What type of ministry does your congregation carry out in the Diocese of Arlington? 
(1) missionary animation and evangelization, (2) parish ministry, (3) Hispanic ministry

Describe the charism of your congregation:

Like our founder, Theophile Verbist, each of us has heard the call of Christ: "Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Gospel to all creation" (Mk 6:15).

We are sent to the nations to announce the Good News wherever our missionary presence is most needed, especially where the Gospel is not known or lived. We leave our country to proclaim salvation as the great gift of God which liberates from everything that oppresses and divides people.

Following Jesus, we address ourselves preferentially to the poor as the privileged recipients of the Kingdom of God. Religious missionaries of different races and cultures, we live and work together as brothers. "One heart one soul" we witness to the Father's will that all men and women be brothers and sisters in Christ. We are a sign of solidarity among the particular Churches in their universal mission.

Institutions in the Diocese of Arlington in which your congregation has served, primarily:

• Missionhurst (1946), which serves the CICM Headquarters in the United States; Precious Blood (Culpepper); St. John Church (McLean) founded by CICM; Holy Spirit (Annandale), founded by CICM; Our Lady of the Blue Ridge (Madison); St. John Church (Orange); Nativity Church (Burke); Chaplain for several years at Virginia Hospital; Marymount University. 

 For more information about the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, visit: www.missionhurstcicm.org