In the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, a secular institute is a type of
institute of consecrated life
An institute of consecrated life is an association of faithful in the Catholic Church erected by canon law whose members profess the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty, and obedience by vows or other sacred bonds. They are defined in the ...
in which consecrated persons profess the Evangelical counsels of celibate-chastity, poverty and obedience while living in the world, unlike members of a religious institute who live in community. Secular institutes represent a form of consecration in secular life, not religious life. It is one of the forms of
consecrated life
Consecrated life (also known as religious life) is a state of life in the Catholic Church lived by those faithful who are called to follow Jesus Christ in a more exacting way. It includes those in institutes of consecrated life (religious and se ...
recognized in
Church law
Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...
(
1983 Code of Canon Law
The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the second and current comp ...
, Canons 710–730):
Description
Secular institutes first received
papal
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
recognition from
Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...
in
Provida Mater Ecclesia
''Provida Mater Ecclesia'' was an apostolic constitution by Pope Pius XII, that recognized secular institutes as a new form of official consecration in the Catholic Church.
Promulgated on February 2, 1947, the constitution recognized secular c ...
(1947). Secular institutes are recognized either by a
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
(diocesan right) or by the Holy See. Most are registered in the World Conference of Secular Institutes. There are nine secular institutes in the UK. These institutes belong to the National Conference of Secular Institutes (NCSI). This is an association for co-operation and mutual support of those secular institutes which have membership in the United Kingdom. The NCSI is affiliated to the Conference Mondiale des Instituts Seculiers (CMIS) which represents all secular institutes in the world.
Currently, up to 32,000 members belong to more than 184 secular institutes in the world. Most of the members of secular institutes are lay people. Some join as diocesan priests or deacons, and some institutes are founded specifically for diocesan priests who wish to take vows and lead a consecrated life while still being
incardinated
Incardination is the formal term in the Catholic Church for a clergyman being under a bishop or other ecclesiastical superior. It is also sometimes used to refer to laity who may transfer to another part of the church. Examples include transfers ...
in their diocese and working in the diocesan framework. Some secular institutes even train and incardinate their own priests.
Notable secular institutes
*
Secular Institute Pius X
The Secular Institute Pius X or Pius X Secular Institute (ISPX), is a Roman Catholic men's Clerical Secular Institute of Consecrated Life of Diocesan Right headquartered in Charlesbourg, Quebec City, Canada.
History
It was established by Henr ...
(I.S.P.X.)
*
Institute of the Maids of the Poor
The Institute of the Maids of the Poor or Society of the Maids of the Poor (MOP), is a Roman Catholic institute of consecrated life for women. It was founded by Albert Conrad De Vito, O.F.M. Cap., on 6 July 1951 in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, India ...
(M.O.P.)
*
Company of St. Ursula The Angelines, also known as the Company of Saint Ursula or officially the Secular Institute of Saint Angela Merici, is a secular institute of Consecration, consecrated women in the Catholic Church founded in 1535 by Saint Angela Merici (ca. 1474-15 ...
*
Schoenstatt Apostolic Movement
The Apostolic Movement of Schoenstatt (german: Schönstatt-Bewegung) is a Catholic Marian movement founded in Germany in 1914 by Fr Joseph Kentenich, who saw the movement as a means of spiritual renewal for the Catholic Church.
The movement i ...
*
Servite Secular Institute
Dame Joan Bartlett, S.S.I., O.B.E., D.S.G., (1 August 1911, Lancashire – 9 September 2002) was a prominent British convert to the Roman Catholic Church and the foundress of the Servite Secular Institute.
During World War II Bartlett worked i ...
(S.S.I.)
* Secular Institute Madonna della Strada
*Caritas Christi
*Institute of the Priests of the Heart of Jesus
*
Voluntas Dei Institute
In the philosophy of Baruch Spinoza, conatus (; :wikt:conatus; Latin for "effort; endeavor; impulse, inclination, tendency; undertaking; striving") is an innate inclination of a thing to continue to exist and enhance itself. This "thing" may be ...
See also
*
Religious institute
*
Society of apostolic life
*
Vocational discernment in the Catholic Church Vocational discernment is the process in which men or women in the Catholic Church discern, or recognize, their vocation in the church. The vocations are the life as layman in the world, either married or single, the ordained life and the consecrat ...
References
External links
Concerning Secular Institutes in the Code of Canon Law (1983), can. 710–730United States Conference of Secular InstitutesWorld Conference of Secular Institutesat the Vatican website
Catholic lay organisations
{{Catholic-org-stub