Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of Jerusalem
Marie-Alphonsine's remains in the Rosary Sisters' convent in Jerusalem
Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas (4 October 1843 – 25 March 1927) was a
Palestinian Christian nun who founded the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of Jerusalem (the Rosary Sisters), the first Palestinian congregation. She was
beatified by Archbishop
Angelo Amato on behalf of
Pope Benedict XVI in 2009.
On 6 December 2014,
Pope Francis recognized a miracle that had been attributed to her intercession, a requirement for her
canonization. The date of her canonization was announced, alongside others, on 14 February 2015 and she was canonized on 17 May 2015.[1]
Life
Born Soultaneh Maria Ghattas on 4 October 1843 to a Palestinian family in
Jerusalem, she spent her whole life working among the poor of Palestine. When she was 14, Ghattas joined the
Congregation of St. Joseph of the Apparition as a
postulant. In 1862 after her vows, she was sent to teach catechism in
Bethlehem. There she also established religious associations promoting devotion to Mary through the
Rosary.[2]
In Bethlehem, she received several apparitions of Mary directing her to found a Palestine congregation known as the "Sisters of the Rosary." In 1880 seven young girls prepared by Joseph Tannous, priest of the
Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, received the religious habit of the new foundation from the hands of Patriarch Bracco. That same year, Ghattas received a dispensation from Rome to leave the community of the Sisters of St. Joseph and entered the new congregation. She received the habit from the hands of Bishop Pascal Appodia, auxiliary and patriarchal vicar, on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, 7 October 1883.[3] On 7 March 1885, together with eight other sisters, she professed her final vows in the new order in the presence of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem,
Vincent Bracco.[2]
Ghattas dedicated her life to parish ministry and the care and education of Palestinian girls, and the community quickly grew. In 1886 she founded a school for girls in
Beit Sahour. Then she was sent to
Salt in
Transjordan with three sisters, then in
Nablus, before returning in Jerusalem because of her health. After having recovered, she went to the house of
Zababdeh.[3]
In 1917, she went to
Ein Karem to found an orphanage in Ein Karem. She died there on the Feast of the Annunciation 25 March 1927.[3]
Pope Francis approved a second miracle to her on 6 December 2014 and canonized her on 17 May 2015. The ceremony was attended by more than 2,000 Christian pilgrims from the Middle East and by Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas.[5] Four days before the canonization of Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas, the Vatican announced a
treaty that reaffirms recognition of Palestinian statehood, establishing formal
diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Palestinian Authority.[6]
The members of the order she founded run schools, catechetical programs, clinics and orphanages throughout the Middle East.[7]
^Chabin, Michele (Winter 2013).
"Caught in the Middle". ONE magazine. Catholic Near East Welfare Association. Archived from
the original on 29 March 2014. Retrieved 23 March 2018.