What is a religious community?
A Catholic religious community, also known as an institute of consecrated life, brings together people who have chosen to follow Christ in the manner of their founder ( St. Dominic, St. Ignatius, St. Francis of Assisi, etc.). To this end, they live a communal life by taking vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience. Catholic religious communities generally refer to what are known as “Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life,” which are governed by canon law in canons 573 through 746. In this Hozana article, discover the key facts about Catholic religious communities in France.
What are the different types of religious communities?
A religious community can be contemplative, apostolic, or mixed (both contemplative and apostolic).
Contemplative Religious Community
The charism of contemplative religious communities is primarily focused on contemplation and the search for God through prayer. Examples include the Cistercians, the Benedictines, the Carmelites, and others.
Apostolic religious community
Apostolic religious communities were founded primarily to proclaim the Gospel. This is the case with the Dominicans, the Jesuits, the Franciscans, etc.
Mixed religious community
The term “mixed religious community” does not refer here to a community composed of both men and women, but to a community that embodies both a contemplative and an apostolic spirituality. This is the case, for example, with the Franciscans, and even the Carmelites. While the charism of the Carmelites is predominantly contemplative, the Carmelite friars also carry out apostolic works outside the monastery, such as schools of prayer.
Male or Female Catholic Religious Community
Religious communities can be male or female.
The members of a male religious community may or may not include priests. Some consist overwhelmingly of religious brothers who are not priests. These include, in particular, congregations involved in education, such as the Brothers of the Christian Schools or the Marist Brothers.
There are religious communities that have as many non-priest brothers as priests. This is especially true of monastic communities, where a candidate for monastic life first enters as a monk before considering becoming a priest. A monk is, in fact, ordained a priest according to the needs of the community.
There are also male religious communities in which the majority of members are priests: think of the Dominicans or the Jesuits.
What are the main religious families and communities?
Over the centuries, various spiritual families have developed within the Church.
Among the best known are:
- The Carmelites
- The Benedictines
- The Cistercians
- The Franciscans
- The Dominicans
- The Jesuits
- The Salesian Communities
- The Lazarists
- The Augustinian Communities
- Congregations Dedicated to Teaching
- Societies of Apostolic Life
- New communities and associations of the faithful
- Etc.
Each has its own charism and a particular way of living out the Gospel.
What vows do religious take?
Religious or consecrated life is based on three vows:
- Poverty
- Chastity
- Obedience
How does one join a religious community?
Whether it is a contemplative or apostolic religious community, the steps are essentially the same:
- A period during which the candidate is a “visitor”: the candidate observes the community from the outside while continuing their studies or work.
- A period during which the candidate is a “postulant”: this period is called the postulancy and allows the candidate to discern, for about a year, their call to religious life within the community in question.
- A period during which the candidate is a “novice”: this period lasts between one and two years, depending on the congregation.
- A period during which the candidate takes temporary vows (or makes a temporary profession): this period lasts from a minimum of three years to a maximum of six years. For men, this corresponds to the period of philosophical and theological studies, which may or may not lead to priestly ordination.
- A period during which the candidate takes solemn vows (solemn profession or final commitment)
Let us pray for religious communities with Hozana
With Hozana, let us pray for all religious communities—whether contemplative or apostolic—and let us also pray for all those women and men who choose to follow Christ in religious life.
Throughout the year, Hozana offers several prayer communities, such as
- These and many others.
