Ocáriz, was not ordained to the episcopacy, perhaps a sign that Pope Francis even then intended to change Opus Dei’s structure of governance.ĭominican Father Joseph Fox, the vicar of canonical services for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, described news of the change to the Register as “jarring,” given the careful consultation that went into establishing Opus Dei as a personal prelature in 1982. However, when he assumed his office in 2017, the current prelate, Msgr. Opus Dei’s past two prelates, Javier Echevarría and Álvaro del Portillo, were made bishops during the pontificate of St. This unique status as a personal prelature has allowed Opus Dei to function effectively as a non-diocesan juridical entity within the Church’s hierarchical structure, enabling the worldwide institution to operate its own seminaries grounded in its charism and incardinate its own priests to support laypeople and diocesan clergy committed to its unique mission. The Spanish priest desired a jurisdictional structure that protected Opus Dei’s secular nature and united members, lay and clergy, in the same mission: the sanctification of work and family life. He called his group a “Work of God,” - in Latin, “Opus Dei.” Josemaría Escrivá, who, in 1928, founded an organization of laymen and women and priests dedicated to the idea that all people - not only clergy or religious - are called to personal holiness amid ordinary life. It was also consistent with the desire of St. This group of Catholics included soldiers living on ships and foreign military bases and laypeople following a particular charism. This establishment of the personal prelature seemed consistent with the Second Vatican Council’s discussions around the creation of new entities, such as prelatures, vicariates or ordinariates, which could minister to Catholics with particular needs not being met within the geographically-based diocesan structure. ![]() ![]() John Paul II issued the 1982 apostolic constitution Ut Sit, shortly before releasing the revision of the 1983 Code of Canon Law, which sought to incorporate teachings of the Second Vatican Council into Church law. Opus Dei became the first and only personal prelature in 1982, when St. And while these Church law experts said that the Pope’s motu proprio, Ad Charisma Tuendum (To Guard the Charism), wouldn’t necessarily affect the daily lives of Opus Dei’s more than 93,000 members, they questioned whether the significant changes were necessary. “We want this moment to be the occasion of going deeper into this wonderful charism that God entrusted to our founder, and we see the Pope encouraging us to do that,” Finnerty told the Register.īut while Opus Dei’s leadership accepted the modifications, which include shifting oversight of the personal prelature from the Dicastery for Bishops to the Dicastery for the Clergy, without demur, canonists contacted by the Register voiced surprise at Pope Francis’ move.
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