Cardinal Robert Prevost, the primary U.S. pope within the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church, previously led a Catholic religious order.
Prevost, 69, who selected the name Pope Leo XIV, was formerly the prior general, or leader, of the Order of St. Augustine, which was formed within the thirteenth century as a community of “mendicant” friars — dedicated to poverty, service and evangelization.
The requirements and ethos of the order are traced to the fifth century St. Augustine of Hippo, certainly one of the theological and devotional giants of early Christianity.
The Order of St. Augustine has a presence in about 50 countries, in accordance with its website. Its ethos features a contemplative spirituality, communal living and repair to others.
A core value of their rule is to “live together in harmony, being of 1 mind and one heart on the technique to God.”
A spiritual order is a community of Catholics — which might include priests, nuns, monks and even lay people — dedicated to a specific sort of mission and spirituality. Unlike diocesan priests, who work inside a specific territory, religious-order priests is perhaps assigned anywhere on this planet. At the identical time, they could handle tasks much like diocesan priests, reminiscent of being pastor of a parish.
Pope Francis was the primary pope from the Jesuit religious order, and he was the primary pope in greater than a century and a half to return from any religious order. The previous one was Gregory XVI, a Camaldolese monk (1831-1846). In all, 34 of the 266 popes have belonged to non secular orders, in accordance with America, a Jesuit magazine.
Also in accordance with the magazine, there had been six Augustinians to turn out to be pope before Leo XIV.
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