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| '''Opus Dei''' ("The Work of God", "The Work", "God's Work") is a |
'''Opus Dei''' ("The Work of God", "The Work", "God's Work") is a ] organization founded in ] by ], a Spanish priest. It has approximately 85,000 members in 60 countries, and is based in ]. ] made Opus Dei a personal ] in ], and ] its founder in ]. | ||
| The organization states that "the aim of Opus Dei is to contribute to evangelizing mission of the Church," and that it "encourages Christians of all social classes to live consistently with their faith, in the middle of the ordinary circumstances of their lives, especially through the sanctification of their work." The organization indicates that its activities consist in "offer spiritual formation and pastoral care to its members, as well as to many others." Its members also undertake social initiatives such as schools, medical clinics, and inner-city tutoring programs. | |||
| ] gave Opus Dei the status of his personal ] in ], and ] Josemaria Escriva in ]. Contraversy surrounds most every ] which occurs shortly after death: particularly that of contravercial figures. | |||
| Opus Dei has been criticized from the left for promoting an overly conservative vision of the Catholic faith, and from the right for supporting the Second Vatican Council's teachings on ecumenism and the role of the laity in the Church. | |||
| They are regarded by some as an extremely conservative religious ]. They effectively keep a certain secret about their activity and appear to be a compact group closed to external observation. They have however been accused to use highly developed psychological mind-control techniques to recruit and retain members. It is thought that they attempt to infiltrate and take over other organs of the Catholic Church in addition to operating behind recruitment fronts of different kinds. Their detractors accuse them of being involved with illegal practices, to be in relationships with South-American dictatorships and basically influenced by ] ideas: Escriva was certainly a supporter of ] and once declared that ''with Hitler's help Franco's government has saved Christianity from Communism''. | |||
| Some critics have gone even further, alleging that it is elitist, ], and secretive, and that it attempts to infiltrate other organs of the Catholic Church, supports South-American dictatorships, and is influenced by ] ideas. Opus Dei's supporters have described these claims as absurd, and have emphasized that the Vatican has given official approval of the organization. | |||
| Many members of the group reportedly choose careers in banking and other lucrative occupations, making substantial donations to the organisation. Through this method, it has apparently amassed considerable funds. Also, some influential politicians have been suspected of secretly belonging to the organisation, like the ] former Heads of State Oscar Luigi Scalfaro and ], and a sort of mutual "respectful attention" is suspected laying behind the relationships between the organisation and ]. They consider to be influential on "''179 universities, 630 newspaper and magazines, 52 television networks''". | |||
| Opus Dei was looked upon with |
Other critics have alleged that Opus Dei was looked upon with suspicion by ] and ], though supporters say that, in fact, those popes supported the organization. Critics and supporters alike agree that ] has been a strong supporter of Opus Dei. John Paul II's press spokesman, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, is perhaps the most famous member of the organization. | ||
| The Vatican Yearbook indicates that Opus Dei includes about 1,800 ]s. The remainder of the 85,000 members are laypersons. Approximately a quarter of Opus Dei's members are "numeraries," who have committed themselves to celibacy in order to be more available for the organization's activities. The majority of the lay members are "supernumeraries," who are involved in Opus Dei's activities but do not make a commitment of celibacy. Opus Dei additionally has many "cooperators," who assist its activities through prayer, donations, or other means. | |||
| It is esteemed that the organisation includes some 1,500 ]s. Laymen are divided into "numerari" (vowed to ] and invited to give all their earnings to the organisation), "soprannumerari" (allowed to marry and have a family) and "co-operators" (eventually belonging to other religions too). | |||
| In addition to the practice of celibacy, some of the numerary members apparently receive spiritual direction, give their surplus income to the organization and follow practices of ]. This has led some to criticize the organization and led others to compare it to a religious order. Opus Dei's supporters have said that these are all traditional Catholic practices that can be suitable for the lay state as well as religious orders, and that the organization's secular mentality and emphasis on living the Christian faith in the secular world distinguish it from a religious order. | |||
| They practice ], viewed by some as a form of ]. Josemaria Escriva is recorded as having whipped himself until the wall of the room were splattered with blood. | |||
| :"Blessed be pain. Loved be pain. Sanctified be pain. . . Glorified be pain!" | |||
| :(Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei, The Way, 208) | |||
| ==External links== | ==External links== | ||
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Revision as of 17:08, 11 February 2003
Opus Dei ("The Work of God", "The Work", "God's Work") is a Roman Catholic organization founded in 1928 by St. Josemaria Escriva, a Spanish priest. It has approximately 85,000 members in 60 countries, and is based in Rome. Pope John Paul II made Opus Dei a personal prelature in 1982, and canonized its founder in 2002.
The organization states that "the aim of Opus Dei is to contribute to evangelizing mission of the Church," and that it "encourages Christians of all social classes to live consistently with their faith, in the middle of the ordinary circumstances of their lives, especially through the sanctification of their work." The organization indicates that its activities consist in "offer spiritual formation and pastoral care to its members, as well as to many others." Its members also undertake social initiatives such as schools, medical clinics, and inner-city tutoring programs.
Opus Dei has been criticized from the left for promoting an overly conservative vision of the Catholic faith, and from the right for supporting the Second Vatican Council's teachings on ecumenism and the role of the laity in the Church.
Some critics have gone even further, alleging that it is elitist, cult-like, and secretive, and that it attempts to infiltrate other organs of the Catholic Church, supports South-American dictatorships, and is influenced by fascist ideas. Opus Dei's supporters have described these claims as absurd, and have emphasized that the Vatican has given official approval of the organization.
Other critics have alleged that Opus Dei was looked upon with suspicion by Pope John XXIII and Paul VI, though supporters say that, in fact, those popes supported the organization. Critics and supporters alike agree that Pope John Paul II has been a strong supporter of Opus Dei. John Paul II's press spokesman, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, is perhaps the most famous member of the organization.
The Vatican Yearbook indicates that Opus Dei includes about 1,800 priests. The remainder of the 85,000 members are laypersons. Approximately a quarter of Opus Dei's members are "numeraries," who have committed themselves to celibacy in order to be more available for the organization's activities. The majority of the lay members are "supernumeraries," who are involved in Opus Dei's activities but do not make a commitment of celibacy. Opus Dei additionally has many "cooperators," who assist its activities through prayer, donations, or other means.
In addition to the practice of celibacy, some of the numerary members apparently receive spiritual direction, give their surplus income to the organization and follow practices of mortification of the flesh. This has led some to criticize the organization and led others to compare it to a religious order. Opus Dei's supporters have said that these are all traditional Catholic practices that can be suitable for the lay state as well as religious orders, and that the organization's secular mentality and emphasis on living the Christian faith in the secular world distinguish it from a religious order.