Community Of St. John: 32 Years, 500 Members & Growing

A friend of mine once stated “The only good things to come out of France were wine, cheese and Jean-Claude Van Damme!”

Of course he was wrong about that.

Jean-Claude Van Damme is from Belgium.

But these folks definately DID come from the “Elder Daughter of the Church”… And they are certainly a very GOOD thing.

Community of Saint John, founded in 1975 by five or six university students under the guidance of a Dominican priest, Fr Marie-Dominique Philippe. They are now a Congregation of diocesan right, approved by the Church, with over five hundred members, about two hundred of whom are priests; they also have contemplative sisters and sisters of apostolic life who share the same charism and spirituality.
From their FAQ: “What is the current number of Brothers in the Community of St. John?On July 31, 2006, the Brothers were 531 in number; 365 (68%) were perpetually professed Brothers (of which 221 were priests) and about 40% were in formation. The Sisters were 464 and there were more than 2,500 secular Oblates. “

In the US there web presence is: http://www.communityofstjohn.com/
From that website:
The brothers have excercised much of their apostolic activities through the Retreat Center in Laredo, Texas. Brothers living in the Laredo priory serve as University chaplains and also minister to prison inmates. The Contemplative Sisters of Saint John live adjacent to the Laredo priory.
In 2000, the Congregation opened a Novitiate House for brothers and sisters in Princeville, Illinois, where they receive their first formation to the religious life, before going to France to complete it.
In 2005-2006, the Congregation is expanding its apostolic presence by developing a Spiritual Center in Princeville, Illinois. It consists of a Conference Center and a guesthouse, and will be at the service of the Diocese of Peoria, as well as other dioceses. The funding, construction, and completion of this project is of primary importance to the community.

Should you happen to find some spare change in the bottom of the washing machine, they might have some use for it.

St. Joseph’s Priory
11223 W. Legion Hall Rd.
Princeville, IL 61559
Phone : 309-385-1193
Fax : 309-385-1830
E-mail : stjohn@ocslink.com
Building Project for the U.S.
Project Director : Br. Nathan
Fundraising : Fr. John-Therese x214
or Fr. Antoine x211

H/T: Laus Crucis Blog

This entry was posted on August 14, 2007 at 11:48 am and is filed under Growth, Photography, Religious Vocations, Seminarians. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

4 Responses to “Community Of St. John: 32 Years, 500 Members & Growing”

  1. tukikage Says:
    August 14, 2007 at 10:52 pm

    Besides I was able to open …, your blog suddenly at the start.

    A bright smile of all of photographs is splendid and thinks.

    I am impressed by your faith and smile. I live in Japan. Thank you.

  2. A Simple Sinner Says:
    August 15, 2007 at 1:55 am

    Doomo arigatou
    gozaimasu!

    (That is the end of my Japanese!)

  3. tukikage Says:
    August 17, 2007 at 11:27 pm

    In addition, I visited it.

    The same thing happened twice.

    Your blog opened when I clicked “the next blog” of the blog with a mouse.

    Is the dog of the photograph Japanese midget Shiba, ใงใ™ใ‹ …?

  4. A Simple Sinner Says:
    August 19, 2007 at 10:09 pm

    Yes, it is a Shiba Inu. I have 5 of them

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