Missionhurst

Missionhurst. Arlington, VA

The grounds at Missionhurst in Arlington, Virginia

Missionhurst-CICM is the organization that Dr. Jerry Galloway joined to facilitate a return to the Congo. I can imagine Jerry walking these beautiful grounds during his time in the seminary, as he prayed and meditated on his calling.

The organization was founded in 1862 by a Belgian priest from Brussels by the name of Theophile Verbist. The original purpose of Missionhurst missionaries was to evangelize in China.

CICM stands for the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Missionhurst-CICM’s origins are in Scheut, a suburb of Brussels. Sometimes they will be known as either Scheut missionaries or CICM missionaries.

In the United States the congregation is mostly known as Missionhurst. In 1946, CICM purchased an 11 acre property in Arlington, Virginia. They named the property Missionhurst. That same year, 16 missionaries arrived from Brussels. Most of them began to work in Philadelphia. The remainder of the group was sent to Columbus, Ohio to work with an African American ministry.