Mission Statement
MHI offers refuge and hope to the destitute by creating homes where people of different mental abilities, social backgrounds, religions and cultures can live together in community. MHI offers a bridge back to the outside world and the confidence to cross it.
Constitution Of Magnificat Houses Inc.
We believe Magnificat House is a gift of God to be held in stewardship. We hope to form Magnificat House into a Christian community committed to promote the full development of the individual as a member of the people of God. We aim to give meaning to our lives by performing the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy in the Spirit of the Beatitudes. A goal will be to build community and to welcome the stranger. The stranger being one “who is different from,” and in diversity to develop unity. Our call then is to fellowship and to welcome.We believe the grace of commitment and being able to live it, not only with another person but also with a group of people, is a glorious gift. We assume an obligation to know the people we live with and to allow them to know us and to become friends. We attempt to deepen the bonds of communication and friendship by developing a sense of solidarity; all should be needed and a part of the community, so as to grow together. There should be shared responsibility so as to recognize the gifts that God gives to each one and to better realize it is the “other” who gives meaning to our lives. We hope to be able to really listen… to help men and women discover their gifts and thereby discover the essence of Magnificat Houses.
By the formation of a stable and deeply happy emotional environment, we hope to provide for our people an atmosphere in the house where the individuality of each can be recognized and where they can discover the love God has for them and can recognize God in each other. It is important to enfold the person in deep kindness and affection and by love and service to create the family spirit so as to protect them from the harshness of society. We hope to bring values to the work which announce God’s love for each person and our love for one another, believing only authentic love, which is always a gift of God, can open our hearts. We will strive to discern and respect, to encourage and sustain and through our work in the Magnificat House to grow in love and in our deepest being spiritually.
Magnificat House was not established to do humanitarian work, nor to solve a community problem, but to give our society a deeper and wider message of Christian witness to those values system found in the Gospels. We endeavor not to adopt the value system of the world, but by living simply to call attention to the riches of self. We avoid barriers of function, rank and recognition through salaries. We attempt to diminish the division between assistants, staff members and residents by an openness to “receive” from the other person whatever talent he has to share. We do not value the utility of a person as much as his uniqueness recognizing the intrinsic worth of each human life.
We aim to serve the most abandoned and neglected of our society and to minister to those who are seriously deprived materially, spiritually, or socially in relation to their neighbor. The disability groups will vary as the social ills of our society are reflected.
We pray for the gift of presence, a humble and gentle presence that will enable us to be visualizing and life-giving. We pray too for sensitivity to deep aspirations of the other person whether he is assistant, staff member or resident. We attempt to help each other grow humanly through work and activity and spiritually through deepening our prayer life and assuming a responsibility towards those with whom we live.
We recognize these goals will be accomplished only insofar as we strive towards love of God and fellowship with our neighbor.
"Under the principles upon which Magnificat was founded, the individual has always been our most important consideration. We soon discovered that individuals find satisfaction helping other people, and will give freelyof themselves to benefit others. A person who has joined our community needing help, who has been given help, and who wants to help others is Magnificat's best ambassador."- Rose Mary Badami, Foundress
Our community residences are the foundation of our work.
Six of our residences are located on our Midtown campus, just south of downtown Houston. The others are located in outlying areas within Houston's 610 Loop.At MHI, a community residence "belongs" to its residents. It's their home and they are responsible for all household activities; cooking, cleaning, laundry, yard-work, etc. Each house has a "resident staff member" - a resident who's made a long term commitment with MHI - who acts as the "House Parent" encouraging the housemates and enforcing the House Rules. Each residence also has a cook and laundry person. All residents share in the household chores.
Since adversity knows no socioeconomic class, race or religion, our residents make up a diverse group of people. Some have never held a job; some have been senior-level employees for major companies, some have suffeed a life-time of mental illness; others were traumatized by some catastrophic event in their lives. Somw will secure employment and move on, others will never be able to function indepenantly, but are capable of living more fulfilling and productive lives within the MHI community.
Magnificat began with one small house in southeast Houston. A benefactor offered the use of the house for up to a year. The new home filled up quickly. Less than a year later, Magnificat Houses purchased its first house - Anawim House - in east Houston.
