Daughters of the Cross of Liège (Filles de la Croix / Dochters van het Heilig Kruis)

In Zutendaal there was also a convent of this congregation, responsible for education in the local parish. Among them were missionary sisters, including one from Zutendaal itself.

The Daughters of the Cross of Liège (Filles de la Croix / Daughters of the Cross of Liège) were founded in Liège in 1833 by Jeanne Haze (Blessed Marie-Thérèse Haze, 1782–1876), with the support of Canon Jean-Guillaume (Willem) Habets.

In Belgium, their activities focused mainly on education for girls and on charitable and social works.
As early as 1829–1833, they ran a school for poor girls in the St. Bartholomew parish (Liège).
Between 1841–1843, they took charge of a women’s prison, a rehabilitation house for “fallen women”, and a shelter for the destitute.
They later expanded their mission to schools, health care, and social work, including sanatoriums and hospitals (for example, St. Raphael Hospital in Genk, 1907–1910).

The Daughters of the Cross in Zutendaal

In 1891, the Daughters of the Cross settled in Zutendaal “to provide education in the local primary and infant schools.”
Their first residence was located at the beginning of the Stalkerweg.

The current presbytery (chaplain’s residence) in Zutendaal, built around 1886, had also served as additional housing for clergy and later became the temporary residence of the Daughters of the Cross upon their arrival from Liège in 1891.
From 1897, they moved into their new convent with adjoining chapel, and shortly afterwards they opened the permanent school building for girls and the kindergarten next to it.

Missions and international foundations

The congregation’s first community outside Belgium was established in Haus Aspel, Rees (Germany) in 1851.
Their first overseas missions followed soon after:

• India (Bombay / Calcutta, 1861–1862) – education and health care.
• United States (Louisiana, 1855) – girls’ schools and academies, led by Mother Mary Hyacinth.
• England / Ireland (1863 / 1920) – education and social care.
• Belgian Congo (1910) – schools and medical work.
• Later: the Netherlands (1924), Italy (1929), Brazil (1953), and subsequently Pakistan, Nepal, and Cameroon.

Their missionary aim was to honor Christ in “his weakest and most suffering members,” inspired by Ignatian spirituality.

Mission and activities

The sisters dedicated themselves to:

• Education, especially for poor girls
• Nursing and health care
• Care for the elderly and persons with disabilities
• Orphanages and rehabilitation homes
• Pastoral and social services

Global presence and today

At their peak, around 1975, the congregation counted about 1,500 sisters in 113 institutions worldwide.

Today, the Daughters of the Cross are present mainly in Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Germany, India, Italy, Nepal, Pakistan, and in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Their mission continues to focus on education, care for the sick and elderly, and support for people with disabilities — for example, at St. Elizabeth’s Centre (UK).