The revival of monastic life in the Anglican tradition, both in England and in the United States, is a great story of vision and commitment shown in the lives of men and women responding to God’s call despite opposition and misunderstanding. One of the earliest orders, the Community of Saint John Baptist, grew out of a mission in Clewer, one of the neighborhoods of Windsor, which offered safe shelter and rehabilitation to women caught by poverty in a life of destitution and human trafficking. This work caught the imagination of Harriet Monsell, whose husband, a priest of the Church of England, had recently died. Her brother-in-law, also a priest, had settled in the area, and so the connection was made that drew her into the work that would form the basis for a new sisterhood. On Ascension Day, 1851, Harriet made her first commitment to the religious life, and within a year, two others joined her. On St Andrew’s Day, 1852, she made her profession and was installed as superior by Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of Oxford.

At this time, there were no permanent vows taken; the Bishop shared a common aversion to what was understood as a restrictive and debilitating structure. The Community had a twofold focus in both the contemplative and active life. Devotion and a full appropriation of the Daily Office was a key part of the community’s worship. They also made one of the first efforts to produce an English language version of the Breviary.

Deeply rooted in earnest prayer, Mother Harriet spoke clearly of the crucial call to active service: “I suppose the Sisters must always be ready to leave God for God...to leave God in devotion to seek God in those for whom [Christ] shed His Blood...to be ready to use broken prayer for themselves and for them.”

Mother Harriet served as superior of the order until her health made retirement a necessity in 1875. She continued to take an active interest in the work of her sisters and in the affairs of the larger world, however, and all of this was the focus of her prayer and intercession. One of the prayers she wrote for her community begins: “Grant unto us, O great and glorious God, that we may be faithful souls, fervent in prayer, still in God, zealous for souls, ardent seekers after holiness, full of love and tenderness…ever being drawn into the Divine Unity, into the fellowship of the Blessed Trinity, that we may reveal the mind of Christ…”

Mother Harriet died on Easter Day, March 26th, 1883. The community continues its ministry of prayer and service today in both the Episcopal Church and in the Church of England.