History
During WWII, a group of Protestant women met for regular prayers in Darmstadt, Germany. A few years later, in 1947 both the founders and the first seven sisters became nuns and founded the “Ökumenische Marienschwesternschaft”. [1] From then on, Dr. Klara Schlink called herself Mother Basilea and Erika Madaus adopted the name of Mother Martyria.
In 1966, the sisters in Germany completed building work and opened the Kanaan Motherhouse; some of the stones of the building came from a demolished Nazi army barracks. [2]
In addition to their ministry in Germany and abroad, the Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary also established a significant presence in the Holy Land. In 1961, they founded Abraham’s House (Beit Avraham) in Jerusalem, as a guesthouse and a place of hospitality for Holocaust survivors and pilgrims.
Over several decades, the Sisterhood placed devotional plaques in various pilgrimage sites — such as the Mount of Beatitudes, Tabgha, the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem — bearing biblical verses and short meditations. These plaques are signed with the initials “MB” (for Mutter Basilea), and serve as silent witnesses of faith, repentance, and reconciliation.
As the survivor population aged, and those still living too frail to come visit, In 2014, the sisters decided it was time to close the house. [3] Since the house was in need of extensive renovation, the property was sold, and the sisters relocated to a smaller residence in Ein Karem. [4]
The sisters travelled around the world and they arrived in Britain in 1969. [5] The Canadian Branch was founded in 1980. [6] In 1981, the community established a presence in Australia. [7]
Mother Basilea published several books, including;
- Patmos - When the Heavens Opened [8]
- You Will Never Be the Same [9] and
- Father of comfort (Daily Reflections on the God Who Cares)
As of 2023, the Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary had eleven subdivisions across 4 continents, [10] with approximately 400 sisters. [11] Approximately 130 of the sisters live at the motherhouse in Darmstadt, [4] where Shabbat candles are lit every Friday evening in the chapel “as a constant reminder of the guilt of the Third Reich and as a summons to pray for Israel.” There is no formal training for one to become a sister. [12]
There is a men's branch, the Evangelische Kanaan Franziskus-Bruderschaft (Kanaan Franciscan Brothers). [13]
