Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate

The Assisi Sisters of Mary immaculate [ASMI] is a Franciscan congregation of the Syro- Malabar church, founded by late Msgr. Joseph.K.W. Thomas on 2^nd April, 1949 in the archdiocese of Ernakulam, at Greengardens, Cherthala, Alleppey, Kerala, India.

The congregation originated as a response to the call of God to radiate His Compassionate Love to the most rejected of the society like leprosy patients, deaf and dumb, blind, mentally handicapped, etc.

The patron of ASMI is St. Francis of Assisi and we follow the rule of the third order regular of St. Francis. We are devoted to Mother Mary Immaculate and accept her as our model. The ASMI has a rich Franciscan heritage of Gospel centered life of contemplative prayer, poverty and minority, universal brotherhood, simplicity of life, service to the needy and the suffering, spirit of sacrifice and joyful endurance in hardships, life of love and unity.  A tender love and devotion to Mary Immaculate, childlike trust and confidence in our Heavenly Father in imitation of the spiritual childhood of St. Theresa of Lisieux are also elements of our heritage.

The congregation was raised to Pontifical right on 28^th April 1986. The congregation was bifurcated in 1987 as Sacred Heart Province of North India and St. Joseph Province of South India. In 2005 the Northern province was further divided in to three provinces- Maharashtra [Sacred Heart province], Andhra Pradesh [Little Flower province] and Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal [ Nirmal Mata province]. St. Joseph province has three regions [Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Germany]. The Congregation has spread its branches to Italy and Germany too.