Community of St. John
Encyclopedia
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Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
founded by Dominican
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
Father Marie-Dominique Philippe
Marie-Dominique Philippe
Marie-Dominique Philippe was a Dominican philosopher and theologian. He was ordained in 1936. He was a professor of philosophy at the University of Fribourg from 1945 to 1982. Although he remained a Dominican he founded the "Community of St. John" in 1975.- External links :**...
in 1975. The brothers of the community are called "small grays", with refers to their gray coat (it is composed of a gray tunic and a scapular
Scapular
The term scapular as used today refers to two specific, yet related, Christian Sacramentals, namely the monastic and devotional scapulars, although both forms may simply be referred to as "scapular"....
similar to the black habit of Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
), with a rosary
Rosary
The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...
to the waist. Contemplative sisters wear an additional white veil and apostolic sisters, a gray veil.
Since 1986, the Community of the Brothers of St. John has been a religious institute of diocesan right depending on the bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of Autun
Autun
Autun is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in Burgundy in eastern France. It was founded during the early Roman Empire as Augustodunum. Autun marks the easternmost extent of the Umayyad campaign in Europe.-Early history:...
(France), ie under the authority of the Catholic Church.
History
Freiburg
Freiburg im Breisgau is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. In the extreme south-west of the country, it straddles the Dreisam river, at the foot of the Schlossberg. Historically, the city has acted as the hub of the Breisgau region on the western edge of the Black Forest in the Upper Rhine Plain...
asked Marie-Dominique Philippe to be their spiritual father. On Marthe Robin
Marthe Robin
Marthe Robin was a French Roman Catholic mystic and reported stigmatist. She became bedridden when she was 21 years old, and remained so until her death. According to EWTN she reportedly ate nothing for many years except receiving Holy Eucharist.In 1928, she entered the Franciscan Third order...
's advice, he accompanied them in their desire for monastic life. In 1978, this group was ad experimentum linked to the Cistercian monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
Lérins Abbey
Lérins Abbey
Lérins Abbey is a Cistercian monastery on the island of Saint-Honorat, one of the Lérins Islands, on the French Riviera, with an active monastic community....
and was then named Community of St. John. In 1982, the first monastery was founded in Rimont
Rimont
Rimont is a commune in the Ariège department in southwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Rimont are called Rimontais....
(Bourgogne
Bourgogne
Burgundy is one of the 27 regions of France.The name comes from the Burgundians, an ancient Germanic people who settled in the area in early Middle-age. The region of Burgundy is both larger than the old Duchy of Burgundy and smaller than the area ruled by the Dukes of Burgundy, from the modern...
), and the novitiate was opened in 1983 in Saint-Jodard
Saint-Jodard
Saint-Jodard is a commune in the Loire department in central France.-References:*...
(diocese of Lyon). Until 1996, the community was expanded with many foundations in France and other countries.
From 1996 to 2004, the community had a number of difficulties, marked by departures and the obligation to restructure. In 2000, the Collège Stanislas de Paris
Collège Stanislas de Paris
Le Collège Stanislas de Paris is a private Catholic school in Paris, situated on "Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs" in the Montparnasse arrondissement. It has approximately 3,000 students, and is the largest private school in France....
was no longer under the direction of the congregation, after a decision by Cardinal Lustiger. In 2001, Father Marie-Dominique Philippe left the direction of the community to Father Jean-Pierre-Marie ; he also stopped teaching in 2003 after a request of the hierarchy. In 2004, Monseigneur Joseph Madec became the religious community's assistant. On 26 August 2006, Marie-Dominique Philippe died in Saint-Jodard (Loire) and Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
paid tribute to him.
Activities
The community is composed of three parts : Brothers, Apostolic sisters and Contemplative sisters. The community organizes numerous sessions for young people, for families, and many other spiritual retreats based on various themes. In February 2006, the community made a pilgrimage to Rome to celebrate its 30 years of birth. Marie-Dominique Philippe participated in the pilgrimage and preached, and the pilgrims met Pope Benedict XVI.Organization
In 2005, the community was composed of 930 brothers, contemplative and apostolic sisters, and over 3,000 oblateOblate
An oblate spheroid is a rotationally symmetric ellipsoid having a polar axis shorter than the diameter of the equatorial circle whose plane bisects it. Oblate spheroids stand in contrast to prolate spheroids....
s in 21 countries and 91 priories, 48 of them located in France. After a seven-year novitiate and training period, the Brothers live in these small communities named priories. Members of the community are under religious vows
Reception
Since 1996, the community has been criticized in France by several anti-cult associationsAnti-cult movement
The anti-cult movement is a term used by academics and others to refer to groups and individuals who oppose cults and new religious movements. Sociologists David G...
, including AVREF (Association Vie Religieuse et Familles), UNADFI and CCMM
Centre contre les manipulations mentales
The Centre contre les manipulations mentales , widely named CCMM or Center Ikor Roger, is a French anti-cult association....
. They accused the community of proselytizing among young adults, forcing them to cut all ties with their families, exerting psychological pressure, abandoning medical treatments and using training methods for newcomers too similar to those of cults.
For their part, the Prior General of the community, then Monsigneurs Madec and Poulain reject these criticisms.