In gratitude for the life of Sister Jean Fallon, MM
Sister Jean died on Saturday, March 8, after 77 years as a Maryknoll Sister.
The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns offers sincere sympathy to the Maryknoll Sisters and extended family and friends on the death of Sister Jean Fallon, M.M. at the Maryknoll Sisters Center in Ossining, NY on March 8. Sister Jean was 94 years old and a Maryknoll Sister for 77 years. Her missionary life took her to Japan, where she was deeply affected by the witness of the survivors of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. During her 50 years in Japan and subsequent years in New York, she joined many campaigns for nuclear disarmament and spent decades advocating for and educating about the critical need to end the production and use of nuclear weapons.
Attuned to hearing the cries of vulnerable people on the margins of society, Sister Jean also responded to calls for solidarity with Palestinian communities. From 2007-2013, she was a member of what is now known as Community Peacemaker Teams, accompanying Palestinian communities in Hebron in the Occupied Territories.
We are profoundly grateful for the life and ministry of Sister Jean, particularly her service as Associate Representative of the Maryknoll Sisters in the New York office of the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
Whether listening to the stories of suffering by the hibakusha in Japan or displaced people in Palestine, advocating for nuclear disarmament at the United Nations or lobbying to promote peace in the Holy Land at the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C., Sister Jean’s life exemplified the highest ideals of the Christian faith. Her humble, peaceful spirit made a strong impact wherever she served.
In 2022, Pax Christi USA named Sister Jean an Ambassador of Peace for her faithful witness for peace. Her death strengthens our resolve to stand in solidarity with all vulnerable, marginalized peoples and with all of Creation.
We wish to share an excerpt from a reflection Sister Jean Fallon wrote on the First Sunday in Lent in 2020. The reflection in its entirety is available on our website:
Here we are today in this violent, destructive age of endless wars against nations and peoples! Jesus as the Chosen One is teaching us today that power is not to be used just because we have it! We are to use our power as Jesus was called to, to free others nonviolently and to heal them.
One day, after a session at the United Nations, I found myself eating lunch with an officer of the UN Peacekeeping Force. At one point in the conversation, I said to him, “Wouldn’t it be a breakthrough if all the armies of the world were transformed to help those overwhelmed by natural disasters, rescuing people, re-building destroyed areas and towns?” To my surprise, he agreed with me. Let’s imagine a world in which nonviolent armies are taught not to kill and destroy, but to restore life and assist in new ways of living.”
Sister Jean Fallon, M.M.
May 7, 1930 – March 8, 2025
