Biography of Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker
Reading the life history of our Mother Foundress
Important Dates & Events
In the Life of Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC (1881 – 1966)
Foundress of the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus
Personal Details
- Maiden Name: Margaret Mary Angela
- Father: Colonel Edward Walker
- Mother: Mary Josephine Walker (nee Woodhead)
- Nationality: English
- Country of Origin: England
Vital Statistics
- Date of Birth: 16th March 1881
- Place of Birth: Brighton, Sussex
- Baptism: 25th March 1881
- First Holy Communion: 16th July 1893
- Confirmation: 29th May 1894
Early Education
Margaret Mary Angela attended a school run by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus in Mayfield, Sussex, England.
Chronicle of Vocation & Mission
1901 - 1904: Entering Religious Life
21st November 1901: Margaret Angela Walker entered the Congregation of the Irish (later, Religious Sisters) Sisters of Charity at Milltown, Dublin, Ireland with the hope of going on the mission.
19th May 1902: She received the Habit of the Irish Sisters of Charity and the name: Sister Mary Charles.
26th May 1904: Sister Mary Charles made her First Religious Profession in the Congregation of the Irish Sisters of Charity. She also discovered that these Sisters of Charity were no longer a missionary congregation as they had severed all relationship with the group in Australia because of distance.
1904 - 1922: Teaching Apostolate in Ireland
From 1904 to April 1922, Sister Mary Charles was assigned to the teaching apostolate in various locations:
- Basin Lane, DublinMay 1904 – 17th July 1912
- St. Vincent, CorkSept 1912 – Sept 1915
- FoxfordSept 1915 – July 1920
- Bray – RavenswellAug 1920 – April 1921
A Scholar & Editor
- • Attended St. Mary’s College of Pedagogy and graduated with Honours in 1912.
- • Wrote The Catechism Notes, widely used in Ireland, England, Wales, and Australia.
- • Wrote Caritas Christi Urget Nos (1922), published by Superior General Mother Agnes Gertrude, RSC.
1913 - 1921: Missionary Reawakening
Sister Mary Charles experienced a missionary reawakening following a passionate appeal by Bishop Joseph Shanahan of Southern Nigeria for Sisters to work among women and children.
- Sister Mary Charles led six Sisters of Charity in volunteering for Nigeria.
- Opinions were divided: one adviser saw Nigeria as a "white man's grave," while Mother Mary Arsenius, RSC, supported the mission, citing the example of their Foundress Mother Mary Aikenhead.
- Although the 1921 RSC General Chapter did not immediately send a community, a decree on November 1st, 1921, empowered the Superior General to accept missionary works.
- 14th September 1921: Burning with zeal, Sister Mary Charles begged for a definite "Yes" or "No" from her Superior General, stating, "even at the extreme cost, my vows would remain intact."
- 9th November 1921: After receiving a discouraging response from the Archbishop of Dublin, she requested permission to appeal directly to Bishop Shanahan.
1922 - 1923: The Path to Rome & Approval
27th April 1922
Posted to the Religious Sisters’ Convent at 9 Chiswick Lane, London, under Cardinal Bourne.
Divine Inspiration
While at prayer, she received inspiration to consult Cardinal Bourne. The Cardinal encouraged her to write to the Holy Father through him.
18th October 1922
She wrote a petition to Pope Pius XI to "consecrate the rest of my life for evangelization of the Poor Blacks of the Vicariate of Southern Nigeria."
11th June 1923 - The Approval
Sister Mary Charles received a Rescript (dated 23rd May 1923) from the Sacred Congregation for Affairs of Religious, Rome. Pope Pius XI permitted her to live out of her Convent for missionary works in Nigeria.
June - September 1923: Preparation & Departure
6th June 1923
Informal letter to Mother Agnes Gertrude, RSC, about the Rescript. She noted that Bishop Shanahan wished her to use the name Sister Magdalen.
(Note: In Nigeria she used Sister Magdalen, Sister Mary Charles, and Sister Mary Charles Magdalen. The HHCJ Congregation officially addresses her as Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker.)
21st June 1923
Wrote again enclosing a copy of the Rescript.
4th July 1923
Transferred to Assumption Sisters Convent (23 Kensington Square, London) for quiet preparation.
- Got her tropical outfit and injections.
- Visited Mayfield Convent to finalize matters regarding her late sister Magdalen and late father.
12th July 1923 - Letter of Gratitude
"...What I have done I had to do, as Magdalen said to me when she was dying... Last night I asked our Lord either to arrange that I need not get it or to send me the means. Your letter with the cheque was his answer..."
Journey to Nigeria
Said goodbye to her brother Charles and family in Liverpool. Received Cardinal Bourne’s blessing. Bishop Shanahan visited and saw her off.
Embarked on the SS Akabo for Calabar.
"...The first days were rough and I was laid up... These weeks without Mass & H. Communion is a long time, but I shall get three Masses daily in Calabar..."
October 1923: Arrival in Calabar
3rd October 1923
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker landed in Calabar and was welcomed by Rev. Father Ronayne, the Parish Priest of the Sacred Heart Church, Calabar, Miss Mary Martin, an Irish Lady volunteer who was holding ford in St, Joseph Girls School, Calabar, and the good people of Calabar.
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC The Nun of Calabar
1923 – 1934: Ten Years of Uninterrupted Labour
For ten uninterrupted years, Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker laboured in the Nigerian Mission - Vicariate of Southern Nigeria - under Bishop Joseph Shanahan, CSSp, and his successor, Bishop Charles Heerey, CSSp.
St. Joseph Girls School
From 1st January 1924, she took over management, introduced the pupil/teacher system, dismissed male teachers, and initiated the Montessori System. By 1926, the school was rated A+ at Government inspection.
Foundation of Mother House
Obtained and began work on the 16 acres of land at 130 Calabar Road, which is the present HHCJ Mother House.
Healthcare & Social Work
- Fought against the killing of twins and banishment of mothers; built twinneries at Anua and Ifuho.
- Provided healthcare by nursing the sick in homes and building Dispensaries at Ikot Ene and Anua.
- Raised Anua Dispensary to a full-fledged Hospital in 1933.
Expansion to Anua
After Easter 1929, she opened St. Philomena Girls School, Our Lady of Divine Providence Convent, and a Dispensary in Anua. This became a center for further expansion into what is now Akwa Ibom State.
1929 - 1931: The Invitation extended to the Society of the Holy Child Jesus (SHCJ)
In 1929, Msgr. Arthur Hensley (later Cardinal), Apostolic Legate to East and West Africa, visited Nigeria and was amazed at the magnitude of Mother Walker's work. He insisted she get a helper. Mother Walker opted to invite the Society of the Holy Child Jesus (SHCJ).
The Seven Invitation Letters (Oct 1929 - June 1930)
She sent a series of plea letters to Mother Mary Amadeus, Superior General of SHCJ:
- 12th Oct 1929: First invitation with support from Msgr. Hinsley.
- 15th Jan, 21st Jan (Feast of St. Agnes), May 4th, May 29th, and 1st June 1930: Continued pleading and giving practical directives.
20th September 1930 - Arrival
Mother Mary Amadeus and her Vicar, Mother Mary Genevieve France, SHCJ, arrived in Calabar. Mother Walker hosted them for six months, touring her establishments.
18th October 1930 - Pioneer Missionaries
Three more SHCJ Sisters arrived: Mother Mary Edith, Mother Mary Joachim (English Province), and Mother Mary Lawrencia (American Province).
Late 1930: Sacred Events
23rd Nov 1930
Mother Walker erected a Calvary (a life-size bronze Crucifix) at 130 Calabar Road, at the center where the estate roads met. It was solemnly blessed by Bishop Heerey.
8th Dec 1930
Attended the first Priestly Ordination of the Vicariate of Southern Nigeria at Onitsha (Fr. John Cross Anjogu) with her SHCJ visitors.
15th January 1931: Founding of the Congregation
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker founded the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus.
This historic event was the culmination of a journey of discernment and preparation that began years earlier:
18th December 1924
Began to discern religious vocation in her girls. She wrote to her Superior General, Mother Agnes Gertrude Chamberlain, RSC, on the need to found a Native Congregation of women to serve as teachers and catechists.
April & June 1926
Bishop Joseph Shanahan encouraged her to foster these vocations. On 26th June, he wrote:
"...work towards the realization of the Native Sisterhood. It has the blessing of the Holy Father and therefore the blessing of God... God bless you and may His blessing extend to your spiritual daughters..."
1926: Formation of Community
She formed a Community with the girls seeking religious life. In a letter dated 4th March 1926, she described their life:
"...I follow our Rule in every detail without difficulty. Five girls make all the spiritual duties with me. At 5.20 each morning we are in the little Oratory... Followed by morning Mass at 6.am"
27th October 1927
Bishop Shanahan again assured her that she was God’s instrument:
"...God bless you and your children. May the living strength of a mother’s heart take full possession of and communicate itself in fullest measure to the spiritual daughters born to you through the grace of Jesus Christ..."
29th August 1929
Received a positive reply from Bishop Shanahan approving a distinctive dress for her daughters.
January 1931: The Final Steps
- 7th Jan: Mother Walker took four of the girls (who had lived with her for five years) to Anua.
- 9th Jan: She put them on a five-day retreat in preparation for the hooding.
- 14th Jan: She brought Mother Mary Amadeus, SHCJ, and Mother Mary Lawrencia, SHCJ, from Calabar to Anua to witness the ceremony of giving the Aspirants distinctive dress.
15th January 1931: Establishment of the Handmaids’ Family
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker gave distinctive dress to the Four Aspirants and thereby established the Handmaids’ Family.
With God’s grace, four of the teachers with whom she had lived in Community from 1926 emerged as pioneers of the new family she brought into the Church - the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus.
The Pioneers
Thus, from its very cradle, the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus had an inter-tribal and international character.
- Seated (Left to Right): Misses Lucy William (Cameroon), Agnes Ugoaru (Umuahia - Nigeria), Christiana Waturuocha (Ahiara-Mbise - Nigeria), and Kathleen Bassey (Calabar-Nigeria).
Religious names taken at clothing in 1937: Mary St. John, Mary Aloysia, Mary Gertrude, Mary Ignatia. - Standing (Left to Right): Three aspirants who also persevered as Handmaids: Sr. Margaret Mary Okpala (Owerri), Sr. Angelica Ekong (Okobo), and Sr. Magdalene Archibong (Calabar).
The First Handmaids with Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC
January - February 1931: Post-Founding Activities
17th January 1931
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker invited Bishop Joseph Shanahan to lay the foundation stone of the new chapel in the new Convent site at 130 Calabar Road. Attendance included Fathers Ronayne, Coulon, Kilmartin, and James Moynagh (later first Bishop of Calabar), the newly clothed Handmaids, the SHCJ Sisters, and the local community.
18th January 1931 - Report to Europe
Writing to Mother Mary Stanislaus, RSC (English Provincial):
"I came up here (Anua) on the 7th... On the 14th, Rev. Mother M. Amadeus and Mother M. Lawrencia came up and the next day we had a nice little ceremony of giving the Aspirants dress. We have only four to start with, but they are very gifted little souls – Sister Kathleen, Sister Lucy, Sister Christiana and Sister Agnes.”
21st January 1931
Invited the Chiefs of Henshaw Town, Calabar, to meet her visitors, presenting them as the people who granted the new site at 130 Calabar Road.
February 1931
Took her visitors on a tour of more of her establishments west of Calabar.
March - April 1931: Transitions & Farewells
19th March 1931 - Feast of St. Joseph
Celebrated as a great event, marking the first Mass in the new Chapel at Calabar Road.
A Difficult Change
Mother Amadeus, SHCJ, proposed renaming St. Joseph Girls School to Holy Child as a condition for assistance. The children protested, feeling their "flag was pulled down." Mother Walker tried to calm them, explaining that "St. Joseph was always making way for the Holy Child," though the children remained unhappy.
2nd April 1931 - Mission Superior
Mother Walker accepted to serve as mission Superior for the SHCJ sisters (Mother Mary Amadeus left three behind to learn from her).
She was now in charge of:
- People: Girls, women, teachers, Handmaids, and Holy Child Sisters.
- Works: Evangelization, catechises, literacy, health care, and social chores.
- Duty: Sending monthly reports to Mother Amadeus in Rome.
5th - 6th April 1931: Farewell
Easter Sunday (5th): Farewell party for Mother Amadeus and Mother Genevieve.
6th April: Mother Walker waved them off at dawn as they returned to Liverpool. They had spent over six months examining her missionary enterprises.
“God bless and have you in His Keeping all the way on this journey... Every day of my life I will thank Him for these months He has given us together…. I shall love and work for your precious Three as though they were the Three Blessed Exiles in Egypt.”
— Mother Walker's parting message
April 1931 - December 1933: The Mission Superior
For over two years, Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC, directed the Society of the Holy Child Jesus as its Mission Superior. This role required her to manage two distinct congregations simultaneously.
Society of the Holy Child Jesus (SHCJ)
Responsibilities:
- Posting and assigning Sisters to ministries.
- General care and well-being.
- Writing monthly reports to Superior General Mother Amadeus in Rome on their adaptation to mission life.
The Handmaids (HHCJ)
Responsibilities:
- Continuous formation.
- Enhancing religious, spiritual, apostolic, and social life.
- Organizing apostolic endeavors: teaching, catechizing, medical care, and social work.
A Clash of Charisms
This arrangement had its strengths (European companionship) but also inherent weaknesses due to differing charisms:
All-embracing apostolate: Education, medical, social, and catechetical/pastoral.
Specialized apostolate: Higher education. They were essentially class mistresses focused on one subject.
Mother Walker had to train the Holy Child Sisters in the exercise of her broader, multi-faceted apostolate.
Mother Mary Edith, SHCJ, stroking a baby orphan to sleep in its new native cot
1932 - 1933: Expansion & Spiritual Formation
Growth of the Work
2nd July 1933: In a letter to Mother de Ricci, RSC, Mother Walker described the magnitude of the mission:
“The work has grown most wonderfully, thank God… We have six boarding and day Schools, a hospital and dispensary.”
August 1933 - St. Joseph Convent Primary School, Ifuho
Opened St. Joseph Convent Primary School at Ifuho, Ikot Ekpene (now Holy Child). Sister Kathleen Bassey was sent as the pioneer Headmistress.
Sister Kathleen Bassey with pioneer staff and pupils.Note: The first kid in the first row from the left became Mother Marie Anne Iwoh, HHCJ (3rd Superior General).
Spiritual Formation of Handmaids
In 1932, Mother Walker began to focus more deeply on the spiritual formation of the Handmaids. She corresponded with Mother M. de Ricci, RSC, to obtain copies of the Constitutions, Rule, Customs, and Novices’ Guide to help formulate the HHCJ rule.
"I am so grateful to you for your two most kind letters, also for the copy of the Constitutions, the Rule, Customs and Novices’ Guide. It may interest you to see how few are the changes that will have to be made and how many are only in the form of the wording… I thank you for your sympathy and encouragement, and for your prayers."
1932 - 1933: The Push for a Novitiate & Growing Tensions
Mother Walker was determined to establish a regular Novitiate for the Handmaids, even if it meant personal sacrifice.
4th June & 7th Nov 1932
Wrote to Mother Amadeus, SHCJ, emphasizing that "every sacrifice should be made to give the Handmaids their Spiritual year." She acknowledged this would mean less revenue as their salaries would cease for two years.
5th June & 20th July 1933
Rome granted permission to Bishop Heerey for the Native Congregation, pending the Latin translation of the Constitution and approval of Novitiate buildings. Mother Walker expressed anxiety over delays, fearing "a true vocation could be tried beyond what was prudent."
The Turning Point - August 1933
9th August 1933: In a letter to Mother Amadeus, SHCJ, Mother Walker wrote:
“...I think you may take it that he [Bishop Heerey] definitely wants me to give myself to the Native Sisters for life and that there will be no question of my going to Europe...”
This phrase—"giving myself to the native Sisters and no question of my going to Europe"—was seen by Mother Amadeus as having serious repercussions on the mission of the SHCJ in Nigeria.
Late 1933: The Crisis Point & Departure
11th Sept 1933
Decision not to Join SHCJ: Mother Walker confirmed to Mother Amadeus that she would not join the Society.
"...I do not think that a six months’ Novitiate would make very much difference in character at my age."
14th Nov 1933
Refusal of Help: Received a cabled negative reply from Mother de Ricci, RSC, to her request for personnel (a Superior and Novice Mistress).
"Cannot accept."
The Ultimatum
October 1933: Mother Genevieve, SHCJ (Vicar General), arrived in Calabar with a clear message for the Bishop: "If she has refused to join us she can no longer work with us... either she goes and we stay or she stays and we go."
- Mother Walker was replaced as Superior by Mother Mary Osmond, SHCJ.
- Mother Walker offered to join the Handmaids so SHCJ would have a monopoly on her works.
- Mother Genevieve insisted on the ultimatum.
20th December 1933 - The Order to Leave
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker received an irrevocable order from Bishop Charles Heerey, CSSp, to leave the Vicariate of Southern Nigeria on 1st January 1934.
“....Your desire to live and die in the mission, I quite understand, but my order that you should leave the mission is not at all revocable. I decide that you should leave it now to relieve a situation that you know too well is most delicate.”
Reflections: A Prophecy Fulfilled
At this painful moment, Mother Walker likely recalled the prophecy of her spiritual director, Fr. Fegan.
In 1925, when Mother Walker wrote that "everything was simply perfect," Fr. Fegan replied with a prophetic warning about the future arrival of other Sisters:
“...But when the Sisters come out there may be need of some great heroic effacement or other heroic act that may send the cause on. Something like the heroic lie of the real mother in the young Solomon’s judgment. ‘No, no, it’s not my child. It is that woman’s child, - don’t hurt the little thing...’ I don’t want you or anyone to lie, but the story serves as illustrating my point.”
— Fr. Fegan, 14th September 1925
Fr. Fegan, spiritual director
December 1933: The Sacrifice
Mother Walker, the "real mother" hearing the cry "up the Cross," responded with heroic effacement. She wrote severally to Mother Mary Amadeus:
“My desire to work and die on the Foreign Mission is as great today as when I sent my petition to the Holy Father in 1922… I cannot take back the consecration I have made of my life to the Mission…As I may no longer work here … I can best fulfil my intention by devoting my life to prayer for the mission and a large share shall go to try to draw blessings on the labours of the Society (of the Holy Child Jesus) among my dear children and people here.”
And again, displaying immense charity:
“my love is unchanged, and I shall pray for you wherever I am. God comfort you… surely your work here (Nigeria) will be one of the chief objectives of my prayer. I shall try to help to water what I have been allowed to sow”
She left without any rancour, or bigotry, or bitterness, or chauvinism and God preserved her motherhood.
1934: Departure & Sojourn in Cameroon
1st January - July 1934
Mother Walker sailed from Calabar to Cameroon, intending a short rest at the Franciscan Missionary Convent at Bojongo. Instead, she stayed for six months to help the understaffed community.
"I went first to the help of a small community in West Africa... They were utterly uneducated... I worked between the two schools from 7 a.m. till 12, taught the teachers from both classes from 2 p.m. till 4 and helped the two Sisters either individually or together in the evenings. Their kindness to me I shall never forget."
— Mother Walker
July 1934 - Return to England
On her journey back to England (accompanied by her brother Charles), the boat stopped overnight in Calabar. The Holy Child Sisters invited her to stay the night in the Convent. She was welcomed with jubilation by the staff and pupils, inspected the compound, signed the School Log Book, and then continued her journey home.
1934 - 1955: The Home Mission (England)
Honoring a promise made to her former Superior General not to seek return to the RSC Congregation if the mission failed, Mother Walker reported to Westminster Cathedral.
Ministry
Assigned to St. Budeaux, Devon, to help start a Catholic School. She built the school, but after recognition, it was handed over to Notre Dame Nuns. She continued to serve in the Archdiocese of Westminster until her health broke down during WWII.
The Promise
"When Mother Agnes Gertrude helped me to get out to Nigeria... she made me promise that if I went out I would never ask to be received back... I gave her this promise."
— Letter to Sr. Mary Jarleth, 4th April 1945
A Final Request
In her 1945 letter, she humbly asked:
"What I want to know is; would it be an infringement of this promise if I asked to be received as a patient in the Hospice when I am dying?"
Despite everything, she maintained a connection of prayer: "Please give my respectful love to dear Mother General. I say many daily prayers for her and for the Congregation." (27th Nov 1946)
1948 - Early 1950s: St. Mary's Cottage
27th March 1948 - Letter from Worthing
Writing to Sister Mary Jarleth (Bursar General) from 27 Madeira Avenue, Worthing, Mother Walker thanked the Superior General for a gift of £15.
“I wish her (the Superior General) and the entire Congregation every Easter blessing and happiness. Many times daily I pray for all. Will you also give my respectful love to Mother Agnes Joseph? I will not forget her kindness to me.”
Haven at Shoreham-by-Sea
When her health declined in the early 1950s and she could no longer take responsibilities, her brothers Charles and Henry built her a house in Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, which she named St. Mary’s Cottage.
"Miss Walker" - A Hidden Saint
Known locally as "Miss Walker," her extraordinary sanctity could not be hidden. She attended Mass daily in all weather and was extremely generous to the poor.
Apostolate of the Garden
She planted flowers and fruits to give gratis to the poor. She also taught catechism to neighborhood children, preparing them for the Sacraments.
Mother Walker ("Miss Walker") in her garden at St. Mary's Cottage with neighborhood children
1950 - 1953: Deepening Ties & Loss
Mother Walker's letters to Sister Mary Jarleth reveal a deepening bond with the RSC Congregation. She regularly exchanged updates, received financial support (£26 gifts), and prayed for the Congregation's works.
16th Nov 1950
"...I love to get news of the Congregation, especially such good news. It is wonderful to think of such progress especially in these terribly difficult times."
March 23rd 1952
"I pray much for the Congregation and all its works, especially for Chikuni." (Zambia mission)
Loss of Brothers (1953)
In a letter dated Nov 7th, 1953, she recounts the death of her brothers, Charles and Henry.
"They were not religious men but both had an innate reverence... Charles gave most of his water to the wounded and dying during the Palestine Campaign."
Their declining health affected her own, as she often went 60 hours without sleep caring for them.
1953 - 1955: The Canonical Path to Return
Phase 1: Canonical Impediment? (1953)
Superior General Mother M. Bernard Carew initiated an investigation. Rev. J.R. McMahon SJ advised that readmission would be illicit unless the Holy See granted a dispensation.
Recommendation: She could be prayed for as a member upon death but not accorded privileges or buried in the habit unless treated as an extern guest.
January 6th 1955 - The Will
Learning her cottage was worth over £2,000, Mother Walker sought to leave everything to the RSC Mother General. She asked Sister Jarleth for help finding executors, fearing her family solicitors might prevent the Church from inheriting.
14th February 1955 - A Joyful Reunion
The new Superior General, Mother Teresa Anthony, and other RSC mothers visited St. Mary's Cottage.
"Mother General was so kind and easy to talk to... it was a very happy day for me."
The Door Opens
Mother Teresa Anthony's Council voted unanimously in favor of Miss Walker's return.
Archbishop Morrogh Bernard confirmed the 1923 Rescript was not a dispensation from vows. There was "nothing against her returning" and no need for a new novitiate.
1955: Archbishop McQuaid's Intervention
Mother Teresa Anthony, SG, RSC, approached Archbishop John C. McQuaid of Dublin regarding Mother Walker's return. His response was decisive and filled with charity.
The Juridical Ruling
"I should very much favour the charitable proposal to receive back Sister M. Charles into one of your houses. Juridically, she has never ceased to be a member of your Congregation, despite the quite illegal paragraph..."
No New Novitiate
When asked if she should undergo another novitiate, the Archbishop replied:
“No, under no circumstance. Have her habit made and get her into the house as soon as she comes”
— J. McQuaid, Archbishop of Dublin
1956: The Return Home
18th December 1955 - The Announcement
Mother Teresa Anthony announced the return to the RSC Family:
"sister Mary Charles Walker, RSC, is to return... His Grace’s comment was “that juridically she never ceased to be a member of the Congregation”... She seems very happy about the decision, thank God."
18th January 1956
Returned to the Congregation at Milltown, Dublin. She ceded "St. Mary's Cottage" to the RSC as a holiday resort and was assigned to work in the Sacristy.
26th June 1956
Sent on mission to Chikuni, Zambia, to take charge of the African Sisters (Handmaids of the Blessed Virgin Mary).
1956 - 1966: Zambia Mission & The Final Chapter
In Zambia, Mother Walker formed the African Sisters with such maturity that they were capable of standing on their own. She also cared for African aspirants and made altar breads for the Diocese of Monze until her death.
Spiritual Legacy & Writings
On The Soul (1960)
The soul is like a lake fed by hidden
Springs, the surface remaining still and unruffled.To desire only to please God.
To fear only to disappoint Him, means perfect peace.
On Docility
Be docile to thine Unseen Guide,
Love Him as He loves thee;
Time and obedience are enough
And thou a saint shall be.
23rd March 1962: A Letter to HHCJ
She wrote to Mother Mary Gertrude Waturuocha, HHCJ Superior General, expressing her enduring love for the Handmaids she was forced to leave:
"…though I have not written to you, you have been in my heart & prayers all these years (1934-1962)... I think of, & pray for you all, from dear Mary Bassey... to Lucy, Oga & little Mary among the youngest."
"Ever devotedly yours in J.C., Sister M. Charles"
18th March 1965: A Continued Prayer
One year before she died, Mother Mary Charles assured her daughters, the Handmaids, of her continued prayer from Heaven. Reminding Mother Mary Gertrude that 25th March would be the 85th Anniversary of her Baptism, she wrote:
"Our Lord may come for me soon but you will always have my loving prayer."
"Devotedly yours in J.C., Sister Mary Charles."
27th February 1966 - Consummatum Est
Sr. Marcella Callanan, RSC, narrates the final days: "Every afternoon we brought Sister a drink at 3.30 p.m... on the afternoon of 25th February 1966 we found Sr. M. Charles fast asleep... She was quite confused and restless, and was quite weak."
Fr. John Halloran, SJ, anointed her. On Sunday 27th February, Fr. Tom Cooney, SJ, sat and prayed with her.
"All that day she was very weak and she died peacefully at about 7.00 p.m. (RIP) surrounded by her community."
She was buried in the mission cemetery, Chikuni, after a beautiful funeral service.
Mother Mary Charles (right)
Four days before her death, she wrote "Storm on the Lake," blending her life's tempests with ultimate faith. The last stanza was truly operative:
"And so I await Thy coming, O my King
And Thou wilt to my darkness surely bring
All that I need – for my extremity
Gives to Thy love its opportunity.
My soul’s dark night in quietness shall await
The breaking of Thy dawn compassionate."
The Final Resting Place
27th February 1966
Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC, died and was buried in a single grave in the Chikuni Mission Cemetery, in the Catholic Diocese of Monze, Zambia.
Bishop James Corboy of Monze performed the last Rites.
1980: The Quest for the Remains
In 1980, the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus began the process of exhuming and bringing back the mortal remains of Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker to Nigeria for final burial. The Superior General, Mother Marie Therese Akwe, HHCJ, sent Sr. Mary Liguori Okure, HHCJ, to Chikuni, Zambia, to ascertain the facts of her death and burial.
Fact Finding Mission
Sister Mary Liguori Okure arrived at Chikuni on 1st March 1980 and confirmed:
- Died: 27th February 1966
- Buried: 1st March 1966 in Chikuni Mission Cemetery
- Last Rites: Performed by Bishop James Corboy of Monze (then an emeritus)
The Phenomenon of the Rose Petals
After a Mass for the repose of Mother Walker's soul, Sr. Mary Liguori Okure visited the cemetery with an RSC Sister. She laid a wreath of white, red, and pink roses prepared by the African RSC Sisters.
The following day, Sr. Mary Liguori returned alone to pray. A gentle breeze blew three red rose petals from the wreath onto the tombstone. She placed them back, warning the wind not to scatter the wreath.
The breeze returned, blowing the same three petals onto the tomb. As she reached to pick them, she heard the words:
"Pick as gifts for the Foundation Members."
Petrified and trembling, she eventually picked the petals and placed them in her prayer book. Upon her return, the significance became clear: although there were four Foundation Members, Mother Mary Ignatia Bassey had died in 1973, leaving exactly three survivors to receive the gifts.
"The phenomenon shows that Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC, is really with the Handmaids... She is supernaturally alive."
1981: The Mandate to Return Home
Viewing the rose petal incident as God's providential intervention to clear away all doubt, the Congregation moved forward.
In 1981, Mother Marie Therese Akwe, Superior General HHCJ, having obtained permission from Sr. Francis Rose O’Flynn, RSC (Superior General RSC), mandated Sister Mary Liguori Okure, HHCJ and Sister Antoinette Mensah, HHCJ to go to Zambia to exhume and bring back the mortal remains of the Foundress for final burial in Calabar, Nigeria.
1981: The Journey Home
2nd October 1981: The Exhumation
The remains were exhumed from the Chikuni Cemetery by Brother Patrick SJ, presided over by Rev Fr. John McDonald SJ. Fifteen years after burial in the bare earth, the skeletal remains were complete, with stocking still on the feet.
- Lying in State: Convent Chapel of the Sisters of Charity, Chikuni.
- Mass of Thanksgiving: Celebrated by Jesuit Fathers.
- Official Handover: Sr. Mary Pius Keane, RSC (Zambian Regional Superior) handed over the remains to Sr. Mary Liguori Okure, HHCJ, at the Offertory of the Mass.
3rd October - Chikuni to Lusaka
The remains left Chikuni accompanied by Sr. M. Pius Keane, RSC, and the HHCJ Sisters. They stayed overnight at the RSC Regional Headquarters in Lusaka.
9th October - Farewell to Zambia
Mother Mary Charles left Lusaka by Pan Am for Nairobi at 10:55 a.m. She was seen off by the Nigerian High Commissioner, Secretaty to the Papal Nuncio, and RSC Sisters.
10th October - Nairobi Stopover
After an overnight stop in Nairobi, Kenya, she departed for Lagos, Nigeria at 6:00 p.m.
11th October - Arrival in Nigeria
Received in Lagos by Mother Mary Gertrude Waturuocha, HHCJ.
Arrival in Calabar (7:30 p.m.): A huge reception at Margaret Ekpo International Airport. Bishop Brian Davis Usanga, Mother Marie Therese Akwe, and a large number of Sisters from across the region welcomed her.
A motorcade led her to the Sacred Heart Cathedral for a Thanksgiving Mass concelebrated by the Bishop and his Priests.
1981: A Triumphant Return Tour
12th October: Lying in State
Thanksgiving Mass and lying in state at the Sacred Heart Cathedral, Calabar. Priests, Religious, laity, and school children visited in gratitude to God for all He accomplished through her for Nigeria.
13th–15th October: Visiting Her Establishments
Tuesday, 13th October
- Oron: Welcomed at the beach by past pupils.
- Ndon Ebom: Bible Service in the Parish Church.
- Anua: Arrival at St. Joseph Parish Church and HHCJ Convent. Concelebrated Holy Mass and prayer vigil.
Wednesday, 14th October
- Edem Ekpat: Thanksgiving Bible Service where many women recalled their days with Mother.
- Ifuho (Ikot Ekpene): Stop at HHCJ Novitiate and Juniorate. Pontifical Thanksgiving High Mass at St. Anne's Cathedral by Cardinal Dominic Ekandem. The Mass was sung by over 500 Seminarians.
"Cardinal Ekandem gave an impressive sermon based on Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker’s person, personality, character, vision... all of which he said were worthy of immolation."
15th October: Back to Where it Began
Mother Mary Charles arrived at 130 Calabar Road Convent, her first establishment from where she had left Nigeria in 1934.
- Led by the Charles Walker International Nur/Primary School Band.
- Welcomed by past pupils (now grandmothers) and hundreds of Handmaids.
- In solemn procession, she was led into the Convent Chapel.
"I love everyone - people and land. My desire is to live, die and be buried here among my people."
16th October 1981: The Final Resting Place
On this historic day, Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC, Foundress of the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus, was solemnly re-interred at the HHCJ Mother House, 130 Calabar Road, Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria.
A Pontifical High Mass
The mass was concelebrated by the Ordinary of Calabar, Most Rev. Dr. Brian D. Usanga, and all the Priests present, marking the fulfillment of her wish to rest among her people.
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
A Legacy Fulfilled
In October 1981, the Final Rites for Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker were performed by Bishop Brian Davis Usanga, Catholic Bishop of Calabar (later the first Metropolitan Archbishop of Calabar Ecclesiastical Province).
"Mother M. Gertrude Waturuocha, a Foundation Member HHCJ, is fully satisfied."
The Journey of a Soul
"Here she lies in the Convent she herself established in 1932."
"This is indeed, the journey of a soul – the journey of love!"
Posthumous Honours & Legacy
26th May 2004: A Centenary of Grace
The Cross River Tourism Development Initiative (CRITODIN) celebrated the 100th anniversary of Mother Mary Charles’ 1st Religious Profession (1904-2004).
- Efforts were made to open her legacy as a tourist attraction.
- Renovations included planting flowers, repainting the resting place and Calvary crucifix, and installing interlocking stones.
30th November 2016: A Royal Encounter
Mother Leonie Martha O’Karaga, HHCJ (Superior General), met with Pope Francis at the Vatican.
- She spoke of the Congregation's foundation in 1931 and invited the Pope to the 85th Anniversary celebration in Calabar.
- Presented the book "The Journey of Love: Life and work of Mother Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC" by Sr. Dr. Mary Liguori Okure, HHCJ.
- The Pope received the book with joy, blessing Mother Leonie-Martha and the entire Congregation.
Pope Francis receiving "The Journey of Love" from Mother Leonie-Martha, HHCJ (Rome, 2016)
A Personal Interest
It was a great date for Mother Mary Charles when Pope Francis began to study her life.
In the image, the Pope, book in hand, is seeking to identify the author of "The Journey of Love" in a group of Handmaids at the General Audience. He points out Mother Leonie-Martha, HHCJ, acknowledging the work and the legacy.
Pope Francis identifying the author, Mother Leonie-Martha, HHCJ