CONTACT
Phone: 626-917-0040
Email: FKMissionaries@gmail.com
August 14, 1941. Fr. Maximilian Kolbe, a Franciscan Conventual Friar, was dying of starvation in the Nazi concentration camp of Auschwitz, Poland. He had spontaneously offered his own life to spare that of a fellow prisoner. Kolbe was eventually killed by a lethal injection, his body was burned in the crematorium, and his ashes scattered in the wind.
However, even with the total destruction of his physical body, the great treasure of his spiritual and apostolic legacy could not be
suppressed.
October 11, 1954. Inspired by the riches of St. Maximilian Kolbe’s spiritual doctrine, Fr. Luigi M. Faccenda, OFM Conv., a fellow Franciscan, founded the Fr. Kolbe Missionaries of the Immaculata, in Bologna, Italy. The first members were young women from the local group of the Militia of the Immaculata (MI). Their desire was that their gift of self through the total consecration to the Immaculata would be fully realized by a life totally consecrated to God with the vows, lived out in the ordinary conditions of the world. Therefore, since the very beginning we have embraced St. Maximilian’s Marian and missionary spirituality.
“Extending a hand to all and leading all men to God through the Immaculata is a mission worth living, working, suffering, and even dying for.” St. Maximilian
A Life of Consecration
Perpetual consecration to God by means of the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience recognized by the Church marks the final and decisive stage of our commitment to following the Lord Jesus and His call. Members of the Institute fulfill their vocation in a variety of forms. As consecrated-lay women, we may live either in our family of origin, alone, or in groups of fraternal life in the Houses of the Immaculata.
Today the Institute of Fr. Kolbe Missionaries of the Immaculata (consecrated to God) and the Fr. Kolbe Volunteers of the Immaculata, who are associated lay or clerical members who share in the spirituality and mission of the Institute according to their state of life.
Today the Institute of Fr. Kolbe Missionaries of the Immaculata (consecrated to God) and the Fr. Kolbe Volunteers of the Immaculata, who are associated lay or clerical members who share in the spirituality and mission of the Institute according to their state of life.
A Life of Prayer
Prayer is the inner strength, support, and nourishment of our lives. At least three hours of each day is set apart for our personal encounter with God. Daily prayer, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, meditation on the Word of God, and an intense Marian devotion enable us to live out the evangelical values to which we wish to give witness.
A Life of Communion
An important aspect of our charism is our life of communion. We endeavor to foster an atmosphere of fraternity in which each one of us is encouraged to share spiritual gifts and apostolic ideas and experiences. Within our communities we aim to recreate a setting conducive to communion and collaboration, seeking to achieve the ideal of “one heart only and one soul only”, sharing in the same goal and mission.
