Fr.Arul Raj found St.Joseph’s Mission of Pandaravedu to be a fertile land for evangelization. The miseries of people in Pandaravedu were manifold ranging from economic poverty to spiritual aridity. To name a few, illiteracy, infanticide, child marriage, caste discrimination and atrocity by the rich and affluent were the order of the day. People had accepted all these things as fate. The Founder felt, God had given him a “mission” in his very hands but he also felt the need for more number of totally committed religious to reach the poor.
In those days, there were not many religious congregations that had personnel trained and motivated to be missionaries of difficult missions.A group of sisters, who came to serve the mission after a long and painful negotiation, left it without notice after a week of stay there. When all his efforts to get religious sisters to the mission failed, it was proposed to him by the late Archbishop of Madras – Mylapore Most Rev. Dr. Arulappa to explore the possibility of grouping together some volunteers.
His Grace Most Rev. Dr. Arulappa (Late) Achbishop of
Madras-Mylapore Pillar of Support during the Founding
🟣On 28th January 1984, at about 8 p.m., without any prior preparation, the Founder proposed the starting of a Society to a few girls at the Sacred Heart Convent, Punniyam village. The girls willingly volunteered, and the Society of Daughters of Mary Immaculate and Collaborators (DMI) was established under the guidance of the Spirit, in response to the various needs of the poor and Dalits living in the mission of Pandaravedu.
🟣On 25th December 1986, His Grace Most Rev. Dr. Arulappa, the late Archbishop of Madras-Mylapore, recognized the missionary spirit of the Society and granted his approval as a Pious Union from his hospital bed at Apollo Hospital, before his bypass surgery. Under the gracious guidance of Most Rev. Dr. Casmir Gnanadickam, who succeeded him as Archbishop, the Society took root among the poor in many places. A group of twelve members made their first commitment on 12.05.1987 after completing various stages of formation.
🟣The Society known as ‘Daughters of Mary Immaculate (DMI)’ thus came to be born with the Charism “Loving God in Serving the Poor to be Fully Human and Fully Alive”.The sisters started living as a simple apostolic community serving the people of Pandaravedu with absolute commitment to God. Lacking almost everything in terms of food, shelter and clothing for themselves, they lived in simplicity, served God with magnanimity and served the poor with generosity.
🟣The spirituality of DMI is centered on the cross, based on the Word of God and the Eucharist that sustains them and expressed in simplicity, generosity and magnanimity, the components of their particular spirituality called “Immanuel Spirituality.” The simple life of the Sisters and their selfless and committed service to the poorest of the poor were noticed by the ecclesiastic authorities in various parts of the country and the world and today, we are in eight countries of the world.
🟣The mission which was mainly socio-pastoral in the initial ten years was extended to the field of education and higher level education. By the year 2000, the Society had started educational institutions up to the level of Engineering Colleges. Most Rev. Dr. Arul Das James, while being the Archbishop of Madras-Mylapore was very fatherly and allowed the Society to serve abroad in African countries. The year 2003 saw the landing of DMI Sisters in Africa.
🟣Today, our missionary presence is in three continents. The most satisfying of them is the mission in the war-torn country of South Sudan where we share the lot of people with no proper facility for running water, electricity or transport and acute shortage of food. Our main focus in the war torn country of South Sudan is to bring the healing touch of God to the suffering masses.
🟣Along with the priests of MMI (a Society founded by the same founder) our sisters serve for the people of God in South Sudan, both in the refugee camps and in their poor shrubs. As our sisters impart value-based education to children and empower women through collective activities, our priests provide the sacramental support to nourish them. Together, we strive towards the holistic well-being of the people of South Sudan.
🟣 The Charism of DMI, while being authentic is also progressive and pragmatic. Hence, our services are responsive to the demands of new evangelization; and are diversified in different areas, according to the local needs. However, at heart, there is nothing but the love of God, welfare of the poor and the evangelizing mission of the Church.
🟣 Today the Society has a global presence with 391 members in the countries of
India
Tanzania
Zambia
Malawi
South Sudan
Ethiopia
Italy
Brazil
Central Africa Republic
France
Germany
Papua New Guinea
🟣 We are invited to 2 other New Countries namely Germany and Papua New Guinea.
🟣 We have sixty eight (69) communities in the following places namely(Madras-Mylapore, Chingleput, Kumbakonam,
Madurai, Salem, Thanjavur, Sivagangai, Kottar Palayamkottai, Coimbatore, Trichy, Kadalur Pondicherry, Chitoor, Patna,
Muzaffapur, Kadapa, Nagpur, Sindhudurg, Pune, Dimapur, Luguruni & Kimara, Songea, Lusaka, Chipatta, Monkochi, Juba,
Wau, Woliso, Meerut, Delhi, Ethiopia, Rome, Campo Grande, Bangui and St. Lourdes-France).
His Grace, Most Rev. Dr. A.M. Chinnappa SDB, the Archbishop of Madras-Mylapore decreed DMI as Society of Apostolic
Life of Diocesan Right on 12th of October 2008, during the grand Eucharistic Celebration at St. Thomas Mount, Chennai
after receiving the “Nihil Obstat” from the Holy See on 22nd August 2008.
🟣 The Charism of DMI, while being authentic is also progressive and pragmatic. Hence, our services are responsive to the demands of new evangelization and are diversified in different areas, according to the local needs. However, at heart, there is nothing but the love of God, welfare of the poor and the evangelizing mission of the Church.
🟣The First text of Constitutions was approved by Most Rev.Dr.Arulappa on 25th December 1986 – (Copy of the Approval letter enclosed as Annexure I)
🟣Committed to our Charism of “Loving God in Serving the Poor to be fully human and fully alive”, the first group of young volunteers under the guidance of Founder, Fr. J.E. Arul Raj began to live an apostolic life in a small village called Pandaravedu in Tiruttani District of Tamil Nadu. They started to be involved in socio – pastoral ministry among the poor villagers. Trusting in the providence of God and literally living under a mango tree and a small hut in Keechalam, the Society began its life, serving the marginalized, especially the women and children through the formation of small self-help groups.
🟣The services of the sisters and the style of leading people first to green pastures and then to the Shepherd Jesus Christ and through him to the Heavenly Father caught the attention of many. Various dioceses invited the sisters to intervene and support the struggles of the people around their parishes. We, the DMIs readily responded to such calls. Thus, the seed sown in Keechalam has branched out to Thiruvallur, Kancheepuram, Chennai, Perambalur, Salem, Pudukkottai, Dindigul, Nagapattinam and Sivagangai Districts in Tamil Nadu; Jainagar, Danapur, Tumsar and Chinder in North India. In all these places, we began serving the poor and the oppressed through women group formation, skill trainings, empowerment programmes, children parliaments and other socio-pastoral initiatives aimed at holistic development and a fully human and fully alive life.
🟣Home based care for children and the differently abled and sponsorship programme for children are also being carried out in places like Keechalam, Kavunji, Annainagar, Chettiapatti, Rajakkamanagalamthurai, Nagapattinam, Ottanthangal, Elupatti, Kodikkotai, Thomas Mount and Saswad. Also in Thekkampattu, Valikandapuram, Perambakkam, Trisulam, Jainagar, Danapur, Tumsar and Chinder.
🟣While socio-pastoral and child welfare ministry have always been in the full bloom, we felt around the year 2000, that the Church needed to do more in the field of higher level Technical Education. So, we started Engineering Colleges with the noble intention of equipping rural children with professional skills. We have today 7 Engineering Colleges in Chennai, Tanjore, Nagercoil, Coimbatore and Tiruneveli, 2 Arts and Science Colleges in Chennai and Tirunelveli, 3 Colleges of education in Chennai, Tirunelveli and Rajapalayam. The list includes a Polytechnic College and teachers training institute in Rajapalayam apart from the schools run in various places. 19 Schools are also being run by us. A Catholic University by name St. Joseph University is being run by our Sisters in Nagaland.
🟣In the year 2003, the African mission was thus unfolded. Today, apart from the socio-pastoral initiatives and child development programmes of the DMI sisters in various places of Africa, there are 3 full-fledged universities in Tanzania, Zambia and Malawi offering regular and virtual education. We also have a college of Medical and Allied Sciences in Tanzania. Huge medical missions in Ethiopia and Tanzania, a great re-evangelization mission and peace and reconciliation efforts are being undertaken in the war-torn country of South Sudan. Besides, we have our presence in Rome and Brazil as well.