Servants of the Holy Family

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Is anyone familiar with the Servants of the Holy Family (priests) and their standing in the Church?
 
Sedes. Read their “bishops” section on their web site.
 
Previous thread on the topic: forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=101921 (went to their website, knew I has seen some of the pictures before, quick search found this thread.)
They are not in union with the local ordinary, and by extension, not in union with Rome. And, the local ordinary has declared there confessions and marriages invalid.

Yours in Christ,
Thursday
 
The Servants of The Holy Family can be anything but holy. If you go to their Church, they will take you aside and ask and endless questions. If they do not find you “worthy”, they will ask you to leave. They do not care about the liturgy or Tradition. It is about of Cult to “worship” their superior, who is a rude angry man. Most of the people who later do not care to return to their cult are ostracized from the family members that those priests control. They speak ill to the Pope and Bishops. They refer to the priests who offer the Novous Ordo Mass: “Devil worshipers”. They hated John Paul II and Paul VI. They way they preach is a scary shown of anger and arrogance. Please do not go there. They are dangerous
 
Miki14 said:
The Servants of The Holy Family can be anything but holy. If you go to their Church, they will take you aside and ask and endless questions. If they do not find you “worthy”, they will ask you to leave. They do not care about the liturgy or Tradition. It is about of Cult to “worship” their superior, who is a rude angry man. Most of the people who later do not care to return to their cult are ostracized from the family members that those priests control. They speak ill to the Pope and Bishops. They refer to the priests who offer the Novous Ordo Mass: “Devil worshipers”. They hated John Paul II and Paul VI. They way they preach is a scary shown of anger and arrogance. Please do not go there. They are dangerous
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Don’t worry, I have no intention.
 
Is this the group in Colorado that’s featured on the “Sisters of Carmel” website?
 
barb_finnegan said:
Is this the group in Colorado that’s featured on the “Sisters of Carmel” website?
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Yes. Please pray that these Sisters be regularized, along with the SSPX Discalced Carmelite nuns. We miss them in the Carmelite family!

God bless,

Fr. Boyd, OCDS
 
I’m surprised at the negative responses re: the Servants of the Holy Family. I visited there recently and was pleasantly surprised at how devout and Liturgical it was. Yes, a priest asked to chat with me before Mass, but I was more than happy to receive his greeting and tell him about myself. The way things are in the Church, I didn’t blame him for talking to me to be sure I would not desecrate the Blessed Sacrament. It was clear that protecting the Eucharist and teaching the fundementals of the Catholic Faith are what they are all about. And someone in this thread said they are “excommunicated” from Rome…they are not!! I looked into it myself and the local Bishop has all their official papers and documents that certify them as being now (and having always been) in good standing with Rome. They are not *sede vicante *either, as someone erroneaously claimed. I think people posting here should get their facts straight before publishing false and possibly defamatory statements. It really puts this Catholic Forum in a terrible position of giving equality to both truth and error…a real dilemma for Catholics.
 
zena_bullock said:
I’m surprised at the negative responses re: the Servants of the Holy Family. I visited there recently and was pleasantly surprised at how devout and Liturgical it was. Yes, a priest asked to chat with me before Mass, but I was more than happy to receive his greeting and tell him about myself. The way things are in the Church, I didn’t blame him for talking to me to be sure I would not desecrate the Blessed Sacrament. It was clear that protecting the Eucharist and teaching the fundementals of the Catholic Faith are what they are all about. And someone in this thread said they are “excommunicated” from Rome…they are not!! I looked into it myself and the local Bishop has all their official papers and documents that certify them as being now (and having always been) in good standing with Rome. They are not *sede vicante *either, as someone erroneaously claimed. I think people posting here should get their facts straight before publishing false and possibly defamatory statements. It really puts this Catholic Forum in a terrible position of giving equality to both truth and error…a real dilemma for Catholics.
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My friend is right. There are mostly people who know what they are talking about, but a few who do not.

Would you believe His Excellency, the Bishop of Colrado Springs, Ms. Bullock?
diocs.org/q&a/answers.cfm?question=49servants
 
Not sure who to believe…many people wear the clothing of sheep these days. The link to the Bishop’s letter in your post was broken. Perhaps the Bishop has reconsidered his postion and taken his letter down from the Diocesan website.
 
I had a look-see around both websites (Servants of the Holy Family & Sisters of Carmel) and one thing was conspicuously absent: any mention of PP Benedict XVI. What was present were foundation dates (1977 (“Servants of the Holy Family was founded on the Feast of the Holy Family in 1977” and 1987 (“Founded in 1987 in Colorado Springs, Colorado by Carmelite Nuns”) respectively). Quite enough to give pause.

Lord, spare us from the sedes.
 
I can’t believe that such negative posts have been made regarding Servants of the Holy Family. I attended Mass at their chapel in Colorado Springs a few months back and I have never seen a more devout and kind community of people.

Their priests are wonderful. They are very fatherly and truly care about your soul. And the parishioners clearly live for God. While I was there I heard perhaps the best sermon I have ever heard in my life.

Servants of the Holy Family is most certainly not sedevecantist. I believe they keep in correspondence with the local bishop as well as they can, and they are completely loyal to the Holy Father.

Latinmasslover, if you live near Colorado Springs please do visit Servants of the Holy Family if you are able and feel so inclined. Do not worry in the least that they are sedevecantist, a cult or any other such nonsense.
 
latinmasslover said:
Is anyone familiar with the Servants of the Holy Family (priests) and their standing in the Church?
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They are most definitely Sedevacantists. The Sisters of Carmel, which they helped form, is a renegade order according to the Diocese. The Servants established their convent without permission from the diocesan bishop. 😦
 
CarmeliteGirl25 said:
They are most definitely Sedevacantists. The Sisters of Carmel, which they helped form, is a renegade order according to the Diocese. The Servants established their convent without permission from the diocesan bishop. 😦
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It is true that the bishop didn’t like them very much because they say only the Latin Mass and adhere to all the traditions of the Church.

But they do not believe the Chair of Peter is vacant. They are adamently opposed to sedevecantism and have filial love for the Holy Father. You could ask them personally if you want that confirmed.
 
From reading their website I can’t tell if they are in full communion with Rome or in an irregular status. But there were some things that struck me.
  1. They do not menion Pope Benedict XVI
  2. All the bishops whom the list as supporters are foreign. A bishop from another diocese cannot approve a community outside his diocese.
  3. Religious communities must have either diocesan approval of the bishop in the diocese where they are or Pontifical approval. They should be either religious of diocesan right or of pontifical right. They do not mention their canonical status on their site.
  4. They mention their foundation, but not their erection. There is a difference. A community is always founded and later applies for canonical erection by the local bsihop or the Holy See. They may have been canonically erected, but failed to mention it.
This does not mean that they are bad people or that one is going to be treated badly when you visit them. It calls into question their status in the Church. They do not mention the bishop of Colorado Spring or the Sacred Congregation for religious. That raises red flags.

I would advise caution.

Fraternally,

JR 🙂
 
EtheldredaMarie said:
It is true that the bishop didn’t like them very much because they say only the Latin Mass and adhere to all the traditions of the Church.

But they do not believe the Chair of Peter is vacant. They are adamently opposed to sedevecantism and have filial love for the Holy Father. You could ask them personally if you want that confirmed.
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I have heard from a reliable source that the diocese they are in does not approve of them. Maybe I am wrong about the sedavacantism stuff, but I doubt asking them would provide many answers. I’m more reliant on the diocese themselves. Just my humble opinion…
 
CarmeliteGirl25 said:
I have heard from a reliable source that the diocese they are in does not approve of them. Maybe I am wrong about the sedavacantism stuff, but I doubt asking them would provide many answers. I’m more reliant on the diocese themselves. Just my humble opinion…
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Canon law is very clear on this. Religious communities are either of Pontifical Right or Diocesan Right. Those that are of Pontifical Right are not under the jurisdiction of the local bishop.

HOWEVER . . . the local bishop is the only person who has the authority to allow a religious community to setup a house in his diocese, even if he has no jurisdiction over them. He has jurisdiction over his Church. The law says that religious communities of regualr and secular orders must be canonically erected. This means that the major superior must ask the bishop for permission to establish his community in his diocese. Once the agreements are drawn up, then the community may establish themselves within the diocesan boundaries. After that, they are under the authority of their major superior.
If they are of diocesan right, the bishop is their major superior.

If the local bishop does not approve of this community, then they are not canonically established. This means that they do not have faculties to preach, hear confession or perform marriages. You can only get those faculties from your major superior, after he and the bishop have agreed to your presence in the diocese.

There is also an issue with the vows of the religious. When religious and secular orders make profession, the vows are received by the superior, but there has to be someone with the authority to witness them in the name of the Church. If there is not such a person, the vows are private and the individual is not canonically a consecrated man or woman.

This sends too many red flags. It does not mean that the religious of this community are bad people, but it suggests that they are not in communion with the Church, regardless of how much they say that they are Catholic. It’s not up to the community to identify itself as Catholic. It’s up to the hierarchy to recognize you as such.

Unfortunately, their site does not give you much to go on.

Fraternally,

JR 🙂
 
JReducation said:
Canon law is very clear on this. Religious communities are either of Pontifical Right or Diocesan Right. Those that are of Pontifical Right are not under the jurisdiction of the local bishop.

HOWEVER . . . the local bishop is the only person who has the authority to allow a religious community to setup a house in his diocese, even if he has no jurisdiction over them. He has jurisdiction over his Church. The law says that religious communities of regualr and secular orders must be canonically erected. This means that the major superior must ask the bishop for permission to establish his community in his diocese. Once the agreements are drawn up, then the community may establish themselves within the diocesan boundaries. After that, they are under the authority of their major superior.
If they are of diocesan right, the bishop is their major superior.

If the local bishop does not approve of this community, then they are not canonically established. This means that they do not have faculties to preach, hear confession or perform marriages. You can only get those faculties from your major superior, after he and the bishop have agreed to your presence in the diocese.

There is also an issue with the vows of the religious. When religious and secular orders make profession, the vows are received by the superior, but there has to be someone with the authority to witness them in the name of the Church. If there is not such a person, the vows are private and the individual is not canonically a consecrated man or woman.

This sends too many red flags. It does not mean that the religious of this community are bad people, but it suggests that they are not in communion with the Church, regardless of how much they say that they are Catholic. It’s not up to the community to identify itself as Catholic. It’s up to the hierarchy to recognize you as such.

Unfortunately, their site does not give you much to go on.

Fraternally,

JR 🙂
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Thank you for clarifying the differences. I agree. It could be that they claim to be in contact with the bishop, but I have never heard that they have gotten approval from him. This sends up flags in my mind too. 😦
 
diocs.org/q&a/answers.cfm?question=49servants

Servants of the Holy Family in Black Forest, Colorado

Question from Dan on 24 March 2005:

Can you tell me the status of the chapel in Black Forest, run by the Servants of the Holy Family order, are they in union with Rome and the Diocese of Colorado Springs?

Answer by Peter J. Howard, S.T.L. on 24 March 2005:

Thank you for your question, Dan.
The Servants of the Holy Family are a schismatic community. They are schismatic because their founder, Fr. Anthony Ward is acting without the necessary canonical faculties of the Diocese of Colorado Springs. Hence, he is acting outside of communion with the Holy See in Rome. Since Fr. Ward and the priests of the Servants of the Holy Family do not possess canonical faculties to execute the sacraments publicly in this diocese, **all sacramental absolutions and attempted marriages witnessed by them are invalid.**To read Bishop Sheridan’s Letter of October 2004 concerning the status of the Servants of the Holy Family, click here. [link broken]
God bless you.

Copyright 2005 Diocese of Colorado Springs
 
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