The DaVinci Code, which is one of the best-selling books of modern time, brought attention to
a little known Catholic institution - Opus Dei.
But many would argue that the book negatively and falsely portrays the real intentions of
the institution.
So what is Opus Dei really like?
Opus Dei means, “work of God” in Latin.
It was founded in 1928, in Madrid, by the Catholic Priest, Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer.
It follows all the practices of Catholicism, with the additional stipulation that members
should actively endeavor to be saint-like in their day-to-day lives.
And although Escriva’s ideas caused an initial stir, Opus Dei has since been accepted within
the Holy Roman Catholic Church as their first and ONLY “personal prelature”.
This means that instead of being a part of the mainstream Catholic church’s hierarchy,
Opus Dei members are instead under the jurisdiction of the highest Opus Dei priest - who is confirmed
by the Pope.
In 2002, Opus Dei’s founder was canonized by Pope John Paul II after a number of bishops
petitioned for his sainthood.
Escriva was declared an official Catholic Saint because of his reported ability to cure
rare diseases in people.
Currently, members of Opus Dei number around 90,000, and most live in Spain.
Membership is also divided into categories.
The two main ones are “Supernumeraries” and “Numeraries”.
Most members are Supernumeraries, and have relatively normal lives and families.
The more ascetic followers are Numeraries, who comprise about 20% of Opus Dei.
These members remain celibate, and contribute most of their time and money to the church.
But in recent years, Opus Dei has been criticized, and called “cult-like”.
Some ex-numeraries claim to have been taken advantage of, and forced to renounce personal
freedoms.
Additionally, Opus Dei’s portrayal in popular culture has painted their followers
as taking part in self-flagellation and being overly secretive.
But Opus Dei members deny this, and most are open about their membership.
One of their main duties is evangelizing, or spreading the word of Catholicism.
And despite reports to the contrary, self-flagellation, and other body mortification may be extremely
rare or exaggerated.
The same is true of cilices, which are worn to cause discomfort and remember penance to
God.
Today, despite criticism, Opus Dei enjoys the vocal support of two previous Popes, and
a number of public figures, reportedly including the British politician, Ruth Kelly.
Although the number of Opus Dei members, compared to the overall Catholic following constitutes
less than a percentage point, the offshoot of Catholicism has significant clout for a
relatively new religious sect.
CTA
The capital of Catholicism, and the Pope, both can be found on the Italian peninsula
in a strange but powerful micronation the Vatican.
To learn more about this interesting place, check out our video here.
Thanks for watching TestTube!