Beginning a second century of service in the Church, the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius continue to be a vibrant community of women who love God, follow Christ, and listen attentively to the Spirit.  Every day we dedicate time to prayer and the works of mercy.  Prayer is a priority and is the first activity of the day for each Sister.  Gathering together as a community, we pray the Divine Office every morning and evening, including prayers of intercession for the needs of the world.  The Sisters participate in daily Mass, often serving as lectors, cantors, sacristans, and extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist.  We also spend additional time in prayer through a choice of: perpetual adoration, meditation with spiritual reading, praying the rosary, the Stations of the Cross, faith sharing, and contemplative reflection. 

We Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius publicly profess the vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience.  The vow of chastity, lived as a celibate, impels us to love unconditionally and inclusively.  By the vow of poverty we choose to live a simple life, holding all things in common.  We center our priorities around relationships instead of material possessions.  The vow of obedience calls us to listen attentively to the heartbeat of God and to discern God’s dream for us and for the world in dialogue with the members of our community and its mission.  Our longevity and perseverance as consecrated women are a treasure for the world, which often lacks commitment, fidelity, and focus.  We remind others of the necessity to help the poor, the widow, the orphaned, and the outcast, and we speak intimately of a loving God who is present among us.  Through a life focused on Christ and the needs of God’s people we strive for holiness.

Availability, generosity, and presence have no age limits. Every sister is missioned on an annual basis and called to serve wherever the need is greatest.  We Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius serve in schools, health care facilities, parishes, college campuses, seminaries, retreat centers, hospices, and diocesan offices  as educators, pastoral associates, directors of religious education, chaplains, nurses, social workers, administrators, counselors, principals, authors, artists, musicians, interpreters, clerical and support staff.  We currently serve in Pennsylvania in the Dioceses of Harrisburg and Scranton; as well as Bridgeport, CT; Gary, IN; Syracuse, NY; Charleston, SC; and the archdioceses of Chicago, IL; New York, NY; and San Antonio, TX.  We live out our call and charism with a collective yearning to witness to, proclaim, and build the Kingdom of God.  We treasure our legacy of prayer and ministry dedicated to evangelization, education, elder care, and ecumenism.

Celebrating a centennial has allowed us the time to look back in gratitude, forward with vision, and to live joyfully in the present.  For more information on our congregation, to learn more about becoming an Associate member, a benefactor, or to inquire about initial formation to become a Sister of Saints Cyril and Methodius, please visit our website at www.sscm.org or call 570-275-1093. 

A Brief History of the SSCMs

Return to top
Written by Sister John Vianney, SS.C.M.

As immigrants from Slovakia came to the United States, there was a great need to provide for the Christian education of the children.  A dedicated priest, Father Matthew Jankola sought the assistance of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and their General Superior, Mother Mary Cyril Conway, to start a new congregation of religious women.  In 1903 the first aspirants began their initial formation at Mount St. Mary in Scranton, Pennsylvania.  Three young women were accepted as postulants in 1906 and received into the novitiate that same year.  Their religious names were Sisters Mary, Joseph, and Emmanuel.

Canonical approval of the Congregation was granted by St. Pope Pius X in June, 1909. The purpose of the Congregation was to educate children of Slovak immigrants; establish homes for orphans and the elderly; and to pray daily for the reunion of the Eastern and Western Churches.  The first three Sisters professed their vows before Bishop Michael Hoban on September 11, 1909, and celebrated the founding of the congregation.

Immaculate Conception (Jednota) Home in Middletown, established in 1914, met the needs of orphaned children.  It also served as a temporary Motherhouse for the Congregation.   It was providential that the Sisters were in Middletown when the Bennett Estate in Danville, vacant for fourteen years, was placed on the market in 1918.  Father Juliius Foin, a Danville native, then pastor in Middletown, and Father Thomas Dougherty, pastor of St. Joseph in Danville notified Bishop Philip R. McDevitt of the availability of the property.  On the Feast of Corpus Christi, June 19, 1919 the Sisters occupied the property and renamed it Villa Sacred Heart.  By 1920, the Slovak Girls Academy was started, which was later renamed Saint Cyril Academy.

Over the decades, true to their tradition, the Sisters continue to meet needs. The threads of Evangelization and Ecumenism are interwoven with those of Education and Eldercare.  Expansions in Danville include:  St. Cyril Academy (1929), The Motherhouse Chapel  (1939), St. Methodius Convent and St. Philomena Addition (1957),  Maria Joseph Manor (1962), Jankola Library and Slovak Museum (1969),  Villa Music Conservatory  (1971), Maria Hall (1970), Villa Pre-School (1977), Villa Kindergarten (1978), Saint Cyril Spiritual Center (1992), The Meadows (1993), Emmanuel Center (2000), Perpetual Adoration Chapel (2001), Trinity Towers (2003), and Nazareth Memory Center (2003).

Through prayer, study, reflection, and service; through the strength of life lived in community, the Sisters trust that God’s Providence will lead, guide, and sustain them as they meet the new needs awaiting them as they begin their second century.