The Augustinian Sisters of Our Lady of Consolation (ASOLC) was founded in 1883 and had its beginnings in the Beaterio de Mantelatas de San Agustin, No. 23 Hospital Street, Barcelona, Spain. Our Congregation was founded by two blood related sisters, Mother Rita and Mother Consuelo Barceló y Pagés, OSA, from Sarria, Barcelona.
As an Institute primarily dedicated to education, our Congregation was aggregated to the Order of Saint Augustine (OSA) on May 31, 1902. Thereby it became an apostolic branch of the Augustinian Order.
In 1975, the Sacred Congregation for Religious and for Secular Institutes (SCRSI) granted Pontifical Recognition to our Congregation. As an Institute of Pontifical Right, our Congregation is religious apostolic in nature.
Our CHARISM states:
“WE, the AUGUSTINIAN SISTERS OF OUR LADY OF CONSOLATION, are called to INCARNATE with LIVING FAITH the COMPASSIONATE CHRIST in a COMMUNITY of FRIENDS and in HUMBLE, ENDURING SERVICE to the NEEDS of the CHURCH, especially the POOR, through EVANGELIZATION.”
Our VISION-MISSION states:
Moved by the Spirit of the Risen Christ, we, the Augustinian Sisters of Our Lady of Consolation, as a community of women disciples, envision ourselves to become prophetic witnesses by our life of action-contemplation.
In solidarity with our people, especially the poor, we commit ourselves to Christ and His mission through renewed integral evangelization that effect personal-communal conversion for the transformation of the world and integrity of creation towards the realization of the Reign of God.
The Congregation serves the Youth in various Apostolates – Schools, Social and Special Ministries and Pastoral Works such as Campus Ministry, Dormitories for Students/Professional Boarders, Retreat Houses, center for Street Children, Desk for Women and Desk for Indigenous Peoples. Some of these ministries are subsidized from the solidarity funds pledged by benefactors.
Our Apostolate today counts 22 schools that we own and one that we administer all over the Country. Of these Schools, we have one University; 21 of these schools have Grade School Departments; 21 have High School Departments; 15 of these schools include Collegiate Level and three are with Graduate and Post Graduate School Departments. We have six Social Pastoral Ministries in Zambales, Bo. Molino, Cavite, Cagayan de Oro City, Bukidnon,Bago, Negroa Occ. and Center for Street Children in Guiguinto, Bulacan. For Special Ministries, we have three Retreat Houses in the cities of Novaliches, Caloocan, Tagaytay, and Baguio. We also serve the needs of students through 6 Dormitories. Integrated in all Ministries are Tahanan’s desk: Desk for Women, Desk for Ecology & Indigenous Peoples, and Justice & Peace.
Today, we have one Community in Sakon Nakhon, Thailand and another community in Udon Thani, Thailand. In Taiwan, we have two Communities in Hsinchu Diocese; in Italy we have two Communities in Rome and Vicenza. A mission was conducted in Australia from 2002 to 2012, and another mission was opened in Barcelona, Spain in 2006. New missions were opened in the Diocese of Vinh Long, Vietnam in 2009 and another mission in the Diocese of Larantuka, Flores Timor, Indonesia in 2011.
In collaboration with our brother-Augustinian priests, we are opening a Mission Community of Sisters in Toronto Canada this November 2012. They will serve in various ministries for retreat facilitation, responding to the needs of migrants, in parish works, on justice and peace issues related to human trafficking and teaching in school.
Upon the invitation of Bishop Prudencio Andaya Jr. of the Diocese of Kalinga, Philippines, we shall open the Marian Spring Eco – Spirituality Center in 2013, a new ministry among the indigenous community in the mountain province.
The Congregation of the Augustinian Sisters of Our Lady of Consolation shall continue to respond vibrantly where the Risen Christ leads us.
