In 1940, Clarke sought permission from Cardinal
William Henry O'Connell, Archbishop of
Boston, to establish an educational center near
Harvard University. Cardinal O'Connell granted her permission, and so she started
Saint Benedict Center in
Harvard Square,
Cambridge. She led the center with the help of
Avery Dulles, then a Harvard law student, and Christopher Huntington, a Harvard dean. Saint Benedict's provided religious instruction to Catholic students at Harvard and
Radcliffe College. Dulles, who would later become a
Cardinal, asked Clarke to serve as his
godmother upon his conversion to Catholicism. In 1942, Father
Leonard Feeney, a
Jesuit priest, became associated with the center. Clarke invited him to serve as the spiritual director of the center in 1943. Clarke, as one of the teachers, gave weekly evening lectures on church history at the center. On January 17, 1949, Clarke, Father Feeney, and Fakhri Maluf founding the
Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a
Traditionalist Catholic religious community. The community adopted
Louis de Montfort as their
patron saint. Families associated with the St. Benedict Center moved to the religious community. Clarke served as a community leader of the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and taught the children at the community's school. She followed
Feeneyism, a doctrinal position taught by Father Feeney that took the Catholic doctrine
Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus literally, believing that there is no salvation outside of the Catholic Church. In one of her books, Clarke wrote that "in absolute literalness, we must admit that it is possible for a human being to lose his soul without being guilty of any sin committed by himself." She also reportedly taught that "
martyrdom is the surest way to get into Heaven." Clarke died from complications related to cancer on May 8, 1968. == Allegations of abuse ==