What is "little sisters of the poor"

Little \Lit"tle\ (l[i^]t"t'l), a. [The regular comparative and superlative of this word, littler and littlest, are often used as comparatives of the sense small; but in the sense few, less, or, rarely, lesser is the proper comparative and least is the superlative. See Lesser. The regular form, littlest, occurs also in some of the English provinces, and occasionally in colloquial language. `` Where love is great, the littlest doubts are fear.'' --Shak.] [OE. litel, lutel, AS. l[=y]tel, l[=i]tel, l[=y]t; akin to OS. littil, D. luttel, LG. l["u]tt, OHG. luzzil, MHG. l["u]tzel; and perh. to AS. lytig deceitful, lot deceit, Goth. liuts deceitful, lut[=o]n to deceive; cf. also Icel. l[=i]till little, Sw. liten, Dan. liden, lille, Goth. leitils, which appear to have a different root vowel.]

1. Small in size or extent; not big; diminutive; -- opposed to big or large; as, a little body; a little animal; a little piece of ground; a little hill; a little distance; a little child.

   He sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.
   --Luke xix. 3.

2. Short in duration; brief; as, a little sleep.

   Best him enough: after a little time, I'll beat him too.
   --Shak.

3. Small in quantity or amount; not much; as, a little food; a little air or water.

   Conceited of their little wisdoms, and doting upon their own fancies.
   --Barrow.

4. Small in dignity, power, or importance; not great; insignificant; contemptible.

   When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes?
   --I Sam. xv. 17.

5. Small in force or efficiency; not strong; weak; slight; inconsiderable; as, little attention or exertion;little effort; little care or diligence.

   By sad experiment I know How little weight my words with thee can find.
   --Milton.

6. Small in extent of views or sympathies; narrow; shallow; contracted; mean; illiberal; ungenerous.

   The long-necked geese of the world that are ever hissing dispraise, Because their natures are little.
   --Tennyson.

   Little chief. (Zo["o]l.) See Chief hare.

   Little Englander, an Englishman opposed to territorial expansion of the British Empire. See Antiimperialism, above. Hence:

   Little Englandism.

   Little finger, the fourth and smallest finger of the hand.

   Little go (Eng. Universities), a public examination about the middle of the course, which is less strict and important than the final one; -- called also smalls. Cf. Great go, under Great.
   --Thackeray.

   Little hours (R. C. Ch.), the offices of prime, tierce, sext, and nones. Vespers and compline are sometimes included.

   Little-neck clam, or Little neck (Zo["o]l.), the quahog, or round clam.

   Little ones, young children.

   The men, and the women, and the little ones.
   --Deut. ii. 34.

   Little peach, a disease of peaches in which the fruit is much dwarfed, and the leaves grow small and thin. The cause is not known.

   Little Rhod"y, Rhode Island; -- a nickname alluding to its small size. It is the smallest State of the United States.

   Little Sisters of the Poor (R. C. Ch.), an order of women who care for old men and women and infirm poor, for whom special houses are built. It was established at St. Servan, Britany, France, in 1840, by the Abb['e] Le Pailleur.

   Little slam (Bridge Whist), the winning of 12 out of the 13 tricks. It counts 20 points on the honor score. Contrasted with grand slam.

The Little Sisters of the Poor is a Roman Catholic religious institute for women. It was founded in 1839 by Saint Jeanne Jugan. Jugan established the order to care for the elderly, having felt the need to care for the many impoverished elderly who lined the streets of French towns and cities.

The motherhouse of the order is in Saint-Pern, France. Internationally, the letters following their name are PSDP. In the United States, however, they are LSP. Today the Little Sisters of the Poor serve in 31 countries around the world (including homes in the US, Turkey, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Penang, New Zealand, and Philippines), continuing in their original purpose of caring for the elderly. As of January 1, 2014, they were one of the larger religious institutes of women in the Catholic Church, with 234 houses and 2,372 members.

Members, per the evangelical counsels, make vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience, but also a fourth, hospitality. They believe hospitality perfects the other three by bringing their religious consecration into the realities of everyday life and giving a spiritual dimension to the many humble tasks of hospitality performed throughout the day.

The Sisters continue the tradition of begging, which was set forth by their foundress, Jugan. To provide for the needs of the aged poor, she traveled the roads of France on foot seeking alms. She was recognized by the begging basket she carried. Knocking on doors, she asked for not only money but also for gifts that were needed, such as food, clothing, wood, and wool.