Our History

The Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts

We, the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, are a religious congregation of priests and brothers, dedicated to serving the needs of God's family while witnessing the great love present in the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

Our Founder:
His Life and Mission

Saint Gaetano Errico, founder of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, was ordained a secular priest in Naples, Italy, in 1815.

Saint Gaetano Errico longed to share his burning love for the Hearts of Jesus and Mary and to lead others to know of the boundless love their precious hearts possessed for all mankind.

After a series of apparitions of St. Alphonsus, he founded the Congregation of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary in 1836 in Secondigliano, Italy.

The new congregation, under the sign of Our Lady of Sorrows, held to his mission of dedicating its work to the honor and love of the Sacred Hearts.

In the introduction to the rules for his missionary congregation, Saint Gaetano Errico writes, "The Eternal Father, in bestowing His divine Love on the hearts of all, chose before all others the most Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary... Therefore, the first goal of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts is to toil to make known to all people the most ardent love of the Sacred Hearts for us, and to kindle this holy and divine Love in the hearts of all humanity."

Proclaimed Blessed by Pope John Paul II in April 2002, a second miracle was confirmed within five years. On October 12, 2008, Pope Benedict XV presided at the canonization of St. Gaetano Errico.

His Mission Continues

Today, the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts live and work in Italy, the United States, Argentina, India, Slovakia, Nigeria, and Indonesia.

Although a small congregation, 100 worldwide, the consecrated witness of the priests and brothers answers the needs of contemporary Christianity. Our mission, spreading the love of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary to all, especially the poor and abandoned, continues to be as vital today as it was in the 19th century.