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Franciscan Symbols
Emblem of the Missionary Franciscan Sisters
of the Immaculate Conception
 The design of our Institute Emblem combines the Tau with the San Damiano Cross.
“Tau” the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, is used in Scripture as a sign of repentance (Ezech. 9:4). Francis adopted it after the Fourth Lateran Council as a symbol of his life of penance. He like to mark it on the wall of his dwelling place and used it to sign his letters (L.M.IV,9; Cel.3)
San Damiano Cross: In the church of San Damiano Francis heard the voice of Christ speaking to him from the crucifix: “Francis, go and repair my house. You see it is falling into ruins.” Francis responded wholeheartedly to this call and little by litte, his mission in the Church became clear to him.
We are Sisters of Penance. Our call to mission is an ongoing one which is being revealed to us by the Lord in the changing circumstances of our lives. Ours is a missionary institute whose members are “sent to serve the Church, especially in its poor and needy members” (Constitutions #1). Our Constitutions remind us that “to participate effectively in the mission of the Church, we must be sensitive to current problems of injustice ...(and) be prepared to work personally and corporately to change unjust systems that maintain peoples and societies in a condition of oppression (because) it is through the expression of love in our pursuit of justice that we will promote peace and reconciliation” (Constitutions #97).
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