Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters

Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters are an international group of Catholic women living and working in more than 40 countries. They are an official "religious congregation" within the Catholic Church, with members (after some years) making a vowed commitment to the loving service of God and their sisters and brothers in need around the world.

They were founded in 1889 in Steyl, Holland by a German priest, Arnold Janssen, and two German women, Helena Stollenwerk and Hendrina Stenmanns.

From the very beginning, their vision has been to share God’s love and the knowledge of Jesus Christ with people of different nationalities and cultures, in whatever ways they can.

Their ministries cover a wide range of services in education, health care, spirituality, catechetics, evangelisation, pastoral care, community and personal development, justice, peace and environmental issues.

The Holy Spirit Sisters came to Brisbane, Australia, in 1944 as refugees (and POW's) from the war in Papua New Guinea, where many lost their lives. In 1945 they obtained a farm property in Aspley (now Carseldine) and established their Order.

In 1946 they purchased the old Lister private hospital on Wickham Terrace, central Brisbane, and set up Holy Spirit Hospital.

Many people would know of, or remember, the Holy Spirit Hospital on Wickham Terrace in Brisbane, which the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters owned from its establishment in 1946 to its recent sale in 2002. For over half a century Holy Spirit Hospital built a reputation as a leading private health care facility with a unique range of specialist medical and surgical services, combining clinical excellence with modern technology delivered with compassion, love and respect for the dignity of each person.

Through its humble missionary beginnings, the hospital set the highest standards for clinical service, patient care and mission driven specialties such as cancer services and Brisbane’s leading alcohol and drug rehabilitation unit, Damascus. During its history it has provided an essential service to Queensland responding to the varied medical and health care needs of over 20,000 people a year.  

Holy Spirit Hospital was sold in 2002 and the sisters are currently joint members of Holy Spirit Northside Hospital together with the Sisters of Charity. Brisbane’s newest Private Hospital, Holy Spirit Northside at Chermside in Brisbane’s north continues their tradition of excellence delivered with the same care and respect that has been, and is, the trademark of their culture and approach to all activities. Holy Spirit Northside is an acute care Hospital, co-located with The Prince Charles Hospital in Chermside and provides a range of medical and surgical services. The 164 bed Hospital is adjoined by a Specialist Medical Centre where many of Brisbane’s leading Specialists have their consulting rooms.

The Hospital provides care for the following specialties, which include Cardiology, Oncology, Cardiothoracic Surgery, Orthopaedics, General Surgery, Respiratory Medicine, Neurology, Urology, Neurosurgery, Vascular Surgery, and ENT

The Hospital also has a number of specialist departments including Cardiac Catheter Laboratories (2), Day Procedure Unit, Operating Theatres (8), Endoscopy Suites (3) and a 12 bed Intensive Care Unit.

In 1962 the Sisters opened Holy Spirit Home for the Aged at Carseldine. (Below)

Holy Spirit Home is now one of the largest, oldest, most innovative and most respected aged care facilities in Australia. It is one of four Queensland facilities in the Holy Spirit Care Services group.

All the entities that were established and founded by the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters are now administered and governed by lay men and women in partnership with the Sisters, commited to one shared vision and the continuation of a mission rich in tradition and the healing ministry of Jesus.

Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters carry the post nominals SSpS. The letters S.Sp.S. after a sister’s name stand for the Latin "serva spiritus sanciti" meaning servant of ‘the Holy Spirit’.

The Australian Congregation's logo (below) depicts the spirit of God (the dove) who is at the centre of all creation and within every person.

All of the institutions that have been set up and administered by the Sisters use a derivation of this logo, which was originally created by Arnold Janssen in the nineteenth century shown below.