Mother Francis Bachmann (Maria Anna Boll)

First Superior General
April 9, 1855-June 30, 1863

Mother Mary Francis Bachmann, foundress of the congregation

Whether a soul turns to or from God in any given moment is, in the words of Dr. Anton Pegis, incomparably more important than the explosion of the atom bomb.  Nowhere can the significance of this observation be more clearly understood than in the history of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia.

In a moment so fraught with extraordinary consequences, Marie Anna Bachmann, on the fourteenth of September, 1851, knelt in agony of grief beside the mangled form of her young husband.  How could she know, so young there, so insignificant a figure in the crowded life of burgeoning Philadelphia, that at that moment she was poised on the crest of time. That one movement of the soul would carry her and thousands touched by her decision into history.

Maria Anna Bachmann, aged 27, poor immigrant wife of the late Anthony Bachmann and mother of four, knelt there beside her husband, mortally wounded in the quarry where he worked outside Philadelphia.  In that moment when eternity reached out to trouble her peaceful current life, Marie Anna Bachmann raised up her stricken heart to God in an act of utter abandonment.

In sympathy for her sister, Barbara Boll took up residence with Mrs. Bachmann in the simple home at 253 Apple Street in Philadelphia.  Barbara, who was interested in religious life, showed amazement mingled with joy when Mrs. Bachmann divulged that she, too, felt the call of a religious vocation. The prudent Redemptorist was slow to counsel beyond recommending much prayer to the Holy Spirit.  As a possible step in the direction of their desires, he suggested that they convert their home into a hospice or working girls’ home.

Anna Dorn joined the two and the three became the founding members of the Sisters of St. Francis. They were invested by Bishop John Neumann on April 9, 1955, with Maria Anna elected as their first superior.

Mother Francis died on June 30, 1863. Only seven of Mother Francis’ almost 39 years were spent as a Sister of St. Francis, yet in that period of time she had carried the congregation through the most difficult years of establishment and had laid out, in broad outlines, the Glen Riddle apostolate, social service, teaching, the care of orphans, the care of the sick and the aged.

Maria Anna Boll…Anna Bachmann…Mother Francis…a woman not yet 39 years old…a professed sister for only seven years…a short life, yet not an unusual life span by nineteenth century standards.  She followed the roads along which her God led her as a devoted daughter, a loving wife and mother, as a true religious, as a woman who had fulfilled the promise she made in 1851—to live as God willed.  She followed roads on which she sometimes saw her dreams, her plans, converge in lines that only the Divine can draw.  More often, she followed roads that diverged into new and uncharted territory, roads whos unseen ends required all the faith and courage she could muster, roads that led her to know firsthand the trials that tested virtue. And as she traveled, she left her stamp upon all whom she touched, her stamp of courage, of leadership, of devotion, her stamp of detachment and of self-denial.

To endure the ordeals and the trials of her life, she had to have been a woman of great courage.  In the first year of their religious life, Mother Francis and the sisters had been undeservedly taunted in St. Peter’s Parish; later there was the “whispering campaign” in St. Alphonsus, and often Mother Francis had to deal cautiously with the clergy.  However, throughout every period of stress, her courage inspired the sisters to respond and to mature as religious.  Her courage was also evident in her writings. In her instructions, she often mentioned courage and the way in which the Lord supported her. In fact, the two were inseparably linked.  She was courageous because of her untiring belief in God’s care for her. On one occasion, she claimed, “During my short experience of convent life, I have, on various occasions been astounded by the alacrity with which Heaven has responded to our prayers, even sometimes in a miraculous manner.”

Learn more about our history and see a short timeline of events here.  Stay tuned for more spotlights on other founding members and superiors.

Sources:

• The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis – Glen Riddle, Pennsylvania, 1855-1955 by Sister M. Jeanette Clare, OSF (November 1955)

• Celebrating the Journey (Volume II) – History of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia, 1855-1970, by Sister Adele Francis Gorman, OSF and edited by Sister Emily Ann Herbes, OSF (2005)