Who are the Sacred Heart Society?

The Society of the Sacred Heart - also known as The Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (RSCJ) began November 21st 1800 in Amiens, France, during a time where secular ideologies were rising in the country.

The Society of the Sacred Heart also had a primary role in securing the movement of the Loret Organ to Hammersmith a century later.

Alex Dijkhuis, the Director of Communications at the Sacred Heart High School in Hammersmith gives us more information on the society "The Society of the Sacred Heart was founded by someone called Madeleine Sophie Barat"

At 20 years old, Barat (1779 - 1865) founded the society to educate young women of all class backgrounds, with a boarding school, a day school and a poor school on the site.

By the age of 25, Barat became the Superior General, and expanded the society.

In 1925, sixty years after her death, she was canonised and became St Madeleine Sophie Barat.

"By the 1900s, they had loads of convents and successful schools all over France, but also elsewhere abroad"

Madeleine Sophie Barat (credit: Thomon)

However, due to the 1905 Law Separating Church from State, this forced the society to spread further out across the world, including Europe, America, Asia and Australia.

"When France began to move to secularisation, they knew they were going to be expelled"

By the time the expulsions in France began, Barat had died and the fifth Superior General of the Society, Mother Mabel Digby, was in charge "She knew the expulsions were going to happen and the French government wanted to seize the assets of any religious orders"

"They were particularly targeting religious orders that focused on education"

"Mabel Digby organised the nuns to start shipping out important possessions"

"By the time the authorities arrived at their door to come and do an inventory, the nuns were sleeping on mattresses on the floor, there was virtually nothing there"

By the 20th Century, she was living with members of the society in Roehampton.

Today, the Society of the Sacred Heart has expanded greatly since then, with schools and colleges all over the world.

Watch the full interview with Alex Dijkhuis here

You can also read a more in-depth article on Mother Mabel Digby on our news page