A. "Opus Dei’s main activity consists in offering its members, and other people, the spiritual means they need to live as good Christians in the midst of the world." With this formation, the individual members carry out their apostolic activity, bearing witness to Jesus Christ in their own surroundings. "You can’t have charity without justice, solidarity, family and social responsibility, poverty, joy, chastity, friendship…" Personal testimony is always the most important apostolate in Opus Dei. It is an apostolate of witness, of specific and effective help given to others, at work and in the other circumstances of daily life: a personal apostolate carried out through word and example.
For the faithful of Opus Dei, apostolic work with young students and workers is particularly important. Members dedicate such time and energy towards this apostolate as circumstances permit. The formation offered to young people emphasises the need for growth in the spiritual life and the practice of the human virtues in their work and in their service to others. It helps each one to develop his or her own personality, without creating any sort of closed or exclusive group.
B. The faithful of the prelature and the cooperators, together with many other Catholics and non-Catholics throughout the world, set up educational, charitable and cultural undertakings, with the clear aims of providing formation and of rendering a service to society. These include schools, hospitals, universities, centres for professional formation, and suchlike. The members of Opus Dei promote and sustain ventures that respond to the real needs of their country or environment, taking it upon themselves to find the necessary funding.
The prelature can assume responsibility for ensuring the Christian spirit of an undertaking by providing doctrinal guidance and pastoral care. A formal agreement to this effect is established with those in charge, in accordance with the statutes of the undertaking. All ventures of this kind fully respect the freedom of individual consciences and are open to people of all creeds, races, and social conditions. The prelature does not involve itself in any profit-making, commercial or political venture.
The Opus Dei Prelature can enter into various types of agreements with apostolic activities:
- in the case of the "corporate works" of apostolate, Opus Dei morally guarantees the Christian orientation of the activities they provide;
- in other cases, Opus Dei provides spiritual help, but without officially giving any moral guarantee as regards the formation offered. This spiritual assistance can take a variety of forms, such as priestly ministry or religion classes
Such agreements with the prelature do not modify the civil nature of these entities in any way. Responsibility for their functioning and government always rests with their directors and not with the Opus Dei Prelature.
Top
Some Corporate Undertaking of Opus Dei
www.strathmore.ac.ke
Strathmore School was founded in 1961 as the first multi-racial school in Kenya with the aim of developing the minds and consciences of students so that they can better serve society. It was inspired by Saint Josemariá Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei.
www.warrane.unsw.edu.au
Warrane has a proud history at the University of UNSW spanning the past 30 years during which time the university has developed into one of the country's best-known and most successful institutions of higher education. During that time Warrane residents have had a distinguished record of achievement in all areas, including academic, sporting, and cultural.
The name "Warrane" is based on the Aboriginal word for Sydney Cove, "Warrang".
www.unav.es/english
The University of Navarra was founded in 1952 by the Saint Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer.
It is a Corporate Work of Opus Dei (a personal prelature of the Catholic Church).
www.iese.edu
IESE Business School is the graduate school of management of the University of Navarra, located in Barcelona and Madrid. IESE offers the MBA, Global Executive MBA, Executive MBA and PhD degrees, as well as executive education programs.
www.lbs.edu.ng
Lagos Business School and Pan-African University were set
up under the inspiration of the teachings of Saint Josemaría Escrivá, founder of the Catholic institution, Opus Dei.
Top
www.unisabana.edu.co
University of Sabana
www.udep.edu.pe
Universidad de Piura
www.tajamar.es
Tajamar is a centre arranged with the Ministry of Education that imparts education in Primary (G.C.E.) Secondary (G.C.S.E.), A-Levels, and vocational training. Our pupils belong to humble backgrounds, and they mainly come from the district of Vallecas.
In 1958, Tajamar began its teaching activity with the unique aim of providing Vallecas with a social and educational centre with enough quality to promote moral and cultural values among young people in a marginal zone that had no social promotion programmes.
www.helmbridge.org
Helmbridge Study Centre was established in 1972 as a project of the Educational Cooperation Society, a registered non-profit making trust in Nigeria. Its aims are to complement the academic, moral and character training, which the students receive at home and at school.
The spiritual and moral formation is entrusted to Opus Dei, a Personal Prelature of the Catholic Church.
www.torreciudad.org
The Shrine of our Lady of Torreciudad
Torreciudad is a shrine dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, in Aragon in the north of Spain. Devotion to Our Lady of Torreciudad dates back to the eleventh century. The new Shrine, built under the guidance of the founder of Opus Dei, Saint Josemaría Escrivá, was inaugurated on 7 July 1975.
Top |
