Opus Dei question

  • Thread starter Thread starter ratio1
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
R

ratio1

Guest
I only know a little bit about Opus Dei.
I know there’s a lot of negativity about it, even among Catholics. I was warned by my parish priest once to be careful of them.
Now I don’t really believe in all of that so I would like to know from the Opus Dei members here what are the top 5 characteristics of Opus Dei that sets you apart from the rest of Catholics? Like what are you proud of about Opus Dei? What are the core beliefs or values?
 
Last edited:
From what I can gather, Opus dei priests tend to say very reverent Masses and they are very focussed on the Blessed Sacrament. I have heard of Opus dei priests who stop and speak to Jesus in the tabernacle as if He is there in person, which of course He is.
 
Opus Dei is a personal prelature approved by the Pope. It’s founder is a canonized saint.

I think that’s what you need to know about Opus Dei and form any other opinions based on first hand interactions with them.
 
Hi. Yes there seems to be resistance and a lot of rumors about Opus Dei.

I am a married member of Opus Dei and I heard these rumors too and ran across priests with opinions. I’ve never seen any weirdness or seen anything disturbing or wrong about what Opus Dei does or what members do.

I don’t think there’s anything really that “sets us apart”…in fact one aspect of the spirituality is to sort of “do and disappear” as St Joseph did.

We don’t hold organizational meetings or conferences, we don’t march as a group in pro-life marches, we don’t make banners, and we don’t have “Opus Dei views” on anything.

We see ourselves as a very small part of the Church with a mission to serve wherever we happen to be.

Most of our aposolates (there are a few schools in the US whose spiritual and doctrinal formation is overseen by Opus Dei) are quieter and are simply done wherever we are…at work, at home, in the neighborhood, at PTA meetings).

There are aspects of our spirit that at face value may seem quite ordinary and naturally part of the Catholic Church, but they sort of fuel and guide us.

“Divine filiation”: a deep and influential sense/knowledge of our filiation with God, God as Our Father. With God as our Father…what could we possibly be worried about! This leads to optimism, cheerfulness, glad service to Him and to the world, mostly though to the people He put us closest to…our wives, our children, our friends, our co-workers.

Sanctification of ordinary work: Turning back to God all created reality, giving everything the holy purpose that God intended for it. We strive to work very well humanly, in a spirit of happy sacrifice, doing the work with a holy intention (this task, my Father, is for my sins, for my cousin who has cancer, for peace in the world, for the Holy Father…etc.), and the work is done with the presence of and friendship with God.

Unity of Life: no separation of our spiritual life and our work life, or family life. No multiple personalities!! Always integrating our life with God, elevating all moments of our life to the order of grace, friendship with Our Father God.

Prayer and sacrifice: We strive to with God’s grace turn or convert all moments into conversational prayer. Practices of sacrifice, penance, done cheerfully in union with Jesus Christ. Keeping our senses and appetites on a tether, quietly, cheerfully, without anyone having to know that we are offering ourselves to God.

Charity: all work and time become an opportunity to serve, or acts of charity.

Hope this helps.
 
Last edited:
ratio1 said:
Now I don’t really believe in all that but I would like to know from the Opus Dei members here what are the top 5 characteristics of Opus Dei that sets you apart from the rest of Catholics? Like what are you proud of about Opus Dei? What are the core beliefs or values?
Click to expand...
Nothing extraordinary.

That’s the point. Opus Dei was set up by St. Josemaria to help people acheive holiness through carrying out the ordinary duties of everyday life with love and dilligence. There are a few additional requirements for members who are married. Daily Prayer, Daily mass where possible, and a yearly retreat and formation course. There has been a lot of negativity about them but I don’t really know why. There has been a few cases where people have had bad experiences with individual members, but as an organisation they are excellent and do excellent work.

I have sevaral members of my family who are involved with OD is various capacities and my wife and I are considering joining as married members.
 
Last edited:
Reading this with interest and trying to take what you said into my mind in a form that I can understand. So with that desire in mind, I ask you this.

Would I be correct in saying your view of Opus Dei is to do what you do as well as you can with as much reverence to God as you can while drawing the least amount of attention to yourself as you can?

My mind works best with “plain English.”
 
Last edited:
So we are told in Scripture to “pray always”.

So it must be possible, but not without practice and effort.

The formation given in Opus Dei helps us learn how to do this “spiritualizing of the material world”.

So here is an example: Your child has a diaper explosion…so do we simply clean it up annoyingly, do we let the poor child stay in their dirty diaper, or do we bring God into that moment, asking Him for generosity, for more love, for a happy spirit of sacrifice, trusting that He will immediately come to our side, and help us. We can then turn that moment into an act of charity, an act of thanksgiving ("this child You’ve given me is so beautiful and innocent, and helpless…and messy!!). So God gives you humor, love, gentleness, love in that moment, and you carry on a quiet conversation with Him. You might offer the irsksome task up for your sins, the sins of all parents, the future sins of your child, asking for graces for your child after you’ve died…endless things to talk with God about. He and you, intimacy (and great help from Him) in the ordinary.

So Opus Dei takes the word “conversion” and applies it to the ordinary. We are always being “converted” into more and more the image of God (with infinite setbacks, beginning agains), and we’re always trying to “convert” ordinary material moments into extraordinary grace with God.

That’s one way to look at the word/concept of “conversion”.
 
Yes, precisely. We all try to bring Him into every moment. We fail, we smile with Him, we begin again, with His grace.
 
Yes, you got it!

It’s quite simple. Very Scriptural.

It does take practice, some coaching, and lots of beginning again.

There is a sense of “reverence” to it, yes; I think the founder of Opus Dei would use the word: love. Putting love - the love of God - into everything.

There is also a “simplicity” in our approach to prayer…it tends to be direct, simple, familial. We do say vocal prayers (Rosary, Angelus etc.), and these are marvelous ways to spur on your running conversational prayer.

One form of prayer rests another.

And we also pray with our body…the prayer of the senses…mortification. Married members need not as much mortification as unmarried members, but we still mortify ourselves.

The preference is to squeeze all the mortification you need out of the ordinary moments: smiling more often, especially when we may not feel like it, working with a bit more intensity, perhaps working more slowly (more diligently and carefully) than we want to, passing by snacks more frequently, living a bit of a quiet but vigilant temperance, perhaps taking a cold shower now and again for a holy intention, tightening up the posture a bit, doing the dishes cheerfully, Hidden acts of love and conversation with God. And lots of hidden acts of charity for our wives, family members, co-workers to make their life more pleasant.
 
Last edited:
Maybe this person will. They’re just beginning some discovery I think.
 
ratio1 said:
I only know a little bit about Opus Dei.
Click to expand...
The popular portrayal that Opus Dei has a lot of albino monks going insane because of corporal mortification is really overstated. Most keep it a lot more together than fans of the Davinci Code might think/
 
I’m seeing the term “conversational prayer” here and, to be real honest, am not real sure I understand the term, at least as it applies here. So, would/can someone give me an easy to understand, plain English definition of the term?

Sure would help to know what “it is” as opposed to “what I think it is.”
 
Ok, sorry I might have introduced it.

It’s the type of prayer we’d have with our own parents (if it was a perfectly healthy relationship)…natural, chit chat, sincere, abandoning, in your own words, talking about your joys, sufferings, setbacks, concerns, hopes.

From St Josemaria’s “The Way”,
You write: ‘To pray is to talk with God. But about what?’ About what? About Him, about yourself: joys, sorrows, successes and failures, noble ambitions, daily worries, weaknesses! And acts of thanksgiving and petitions: and Love and reparation.

In a word: to get to know him and to get to know yourself: ‘to get acquainted!’
Click to expand...
We pray in different ways…
  • formal/vocal prayers (Our Father, Hail Mary)
  • mental prayer (going over some aspect of your life or upcoming decision, making petitions)
  • prayer of the senses or prayer of the body: fasting, acts of denial, etc.
  • short aspirations: Jesus I trust in You, Lord that I may see, etc.
we pray individually, we pray collectively, as at Holy Mass.

Conversational prayer is the chit chat one might also have in the middle of work, tasks…“Lord, how long will this task take, help me more…” Takes a nano-seconds of attention and He spurs you on to love a bit longer with Him.

For more on this topic …and for more “short punchy” points on many topics see…

http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-subject.htm

http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-chapter-3.htm
 
Last edited:
@Edward_H

Is it possible for someone to become part of Opus Dei when they live hundreds of miles from the nearest center and do not have the $$ to travel?
 
That’s a problem. “Membership” perhaps is misunderstood. Membership isn’t required to live the spirit of Opus Dei, and to receive a lot of formation from Opus Dei. It is required to give formation to others. When Opus Dei commits to forming a member it takes its obligation more seriously than most receiving members do! So if it can’t provide the level of attention, spiritual direction, instruction, etc to a member, owing to distance, shortage of numerary members, available priests, then it won’t accept new members in those areas. It wouldn’t be a service to the struggling, isolated member.

But Opus Dei still offers formation to anyone, not just members. Opus Dei runs retreats, and what are called Days or Evenings of Recollection (mini-retreats). And one can become a Cooperator of Opus Dei and receive additional formation in what are called Circles.

The best way to get a sense of the spirit and to begin to put into practice this spirit is to read the Opus Dei website or Escrivaworks on the web.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top