The newest ‘star’ to shine in Carmel’s galaxy, that is to say, the liturgical calendar of the Carmelite saints whose holiness we celebrate from year to year is Blessed Maria Teresa of Saint Joseph Tauscher, the foundress of the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus.

The Sisters say that their spirit “comes from the faith experience of Mother Maria Teresa of St. Joseph. Anna Maria Tauscher, as she was known then, was born on June 19, 1855, in Sandow, Germany (now in Poland), and grew up in a deeply religious family. Her father, a Lutheran pastor, disowned her when she converted to the Catholic faith on October 30, 1888. Through meditating upon the Sacred Heart of Jesus, wounded and bleeding, yet burning with love for mankind, a desire was born in her to love the Sacred Heart with her whole being and make Him loved in every heart He had created. She desired to place her life in the service of God.”

The Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus in the Central Province (U.S.A.) share two web links that can help us to learn more about their Blessed foundress.

You can read a brief overview of the life of Blessed Maria Teresa Tauscher and find the prayer to ask for favors through her intercession here. In addition, you can learn more about obtaining a prayer card and relic.

If you would like to read more in-depth about Blessed Maria Teresa of St. Joseph and her work in founding the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus, visit this link. You will find several photographs of Blessed Maria Teresa and the Sisters.

In 2013, the oldest continuously serving home established in North America by Blessed Maria Teresa Tauscher—in East Chicago, Indiana—celebrated its centenary. The facility provides family and child residential treatment services. The Times of Northwest Indiana published an article about the centenary here. You can learn about the Sisters’ ministry to youth and families in need here.