We are a clerical religious institute of pontifical right, composed of priests and candidates for the priesthood.
Our Identity
We belong, by our very constitution, to the spiritual family and apostolic body of Regnum Christi.
We are part of the Regnum Christi Federation, which is governed by its own statutes.
The purpose of the Congregation is to give glory to God and strive to have Christ reign in the lives of its members, in the hearts of people and in society.
1. Legionaries seek holiness by following Christ in professing and practicing the evangelical counsels, living fraternal life in common and undertaking ardent apostolic action.
2. they give themselves generously and passionately to the salvation of souls, serving and building up the Church through prayer, witness of life, and apostolate.
— The Constitutions of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, 2.
Experiencing Christ’s love, a Legionary understands
and feels the urgent need to:
1°
Center his entire existence on Christ through a real, personal,
manly and passionate love for him.
2°
Live authentic charity, as Christ lived and preached it in the
Gospel.
3°
Proclaim to all people God’s merciful love and bring them to
a redemptive encounter with Christ
— The Constitutions of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, 3.
Religious and Priestly Vocation
Called to the
Religious Vocation
«The faithful of Christ bind themselves to the three aforesaid counsels either by vows, or by other sacred bonds […] that person is ordained to the honor and service of God under a new and special title […] The evangelical counsels which lead to charity join their followers to the Church and its mystery in a special way”.
— Lumen Gentium, 44.
“The three evangelical counsels are a gift from God, a special path of transformation into Christ and the specific way for us to be salt of the earth”.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 101.
Called to the
Priestly Vocation
“As a member of a clerical institute, a Legionary is also a priest. There is therefore an intimate connection between his spiritual life and the fruitful exercise of his ministry.
«Priests exist and act in order to proclaim the Gospel to the world and to build up the Church in the name and person of Christ the head and shepherd». Priestly identity is expressed in the service we are called to carry out for the faithful: the priest is a minister of mercy, gives to men “the bread of God that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (John 6:33), and preaches the Word. Given that he communicates the things of God, he can only find his fulfillment if he is truly a “man of God” (2 Tim 3:17)”.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 102.
Legionary of Christ: A Particular Style
The name “Legionary of Christ,” rather than identifying the particular mission of the institute, points to a particular style that distinguishes its members
The words “of Christ” underscore that a Legionary is a disciple and friend of the Lord, with whom he knows he is united forever — as the psalm says, “I am yours” (Psalm 119:94). Far from formalism or rigidity, there is a freshness and closeness in his daily contact with Him: “I have called you friends” (John 15:15).
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 106-107.
Disciple and
friend of the Lord
“In this friendship, cultivated and deepened throughout life, seeking in all things the glory of the Father and the salvation of souls, a Legionary discovers the uniting and driving principle of his existence”.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 107.
Personal relationship
with Christ
“A Legionary has experienced the love and call of Christ Jesus and has responded by centering his life on him “through a real, personal, manly, and passionate love for him”, making Christ the standard and example of his life“.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 107.
Good soldier
of Christ
““Bear your share of hardship […] like a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:3). Religious life, as a distinguished form of Christian life, has identified itself from its beginnings as militia Christi. The Legion of Christ considers itself part of this tradition”.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 108.
Propose the
Kingdom of Christ
“Legionaries share this same mission: to invite people to accept the Kingdom of Christ into their lives and destroy the works of the evil one. That is why we put ourselves under the protection of Saint Michael the Archangel”.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 109.
Love and esteem
for obedience
“The work of the devil is disobedience and so he attempts to incite in us a spirit, not of a son, but of a slave. The word “Legionary” reminds us of the opposite attitude, prompting a particular love for the virtue and vow of obedience“.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 110.
Availability
to be sent
“When we call ourselves Legionaries, we also proclaim our willingness to be sent wherever we are needed […] A Legionary too is a man always on the move, with a missionary spirit diametrically opposed to every form of laziness”.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 111.
Militancy and
attention to time
“Attentive to the signs of the times, he works with zeal and creativity. He seeks out new paths, advances to the front lines of the Church aware that every day of fatigue for the Kingdom is a precious gift from God that will never return and that time is given to us in order to gain eternity. We call this attitude “militancy”“
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 112.
Detached, lives as
a common soldier
“Legionaries live detached from all desires to obtain positions or assignments in the Congregation. They embrace their assignments with a spirit of service, leave them with the same spirit when the time comes to serve in another mission, and live with the peace, joy and fraternity of rank-and-file soldiers“.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 114.
Sense of unity
with our brothers
“Indeed, the term “Legionary” implies a strong comradery. For Legionaries, this is expressed in our esprit de corps with our brothers, who are called by Christ to the same mission and with whom we work and pray […] Legionaries love their brothers to the point of sacrificing anything to assist them and never abandoning them, even when they have fallen”
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 114.
«Caritas Christi urget nos»
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 117.
“The love of Christ impels us” (2 Corinthians 5:14).
This expression of Saint Paul synthesizes and recalls the traits which are most characteristic of a Legionary: Christ as the center of our interior life, charity as the cohesive strength between us as brothers, and the sense of joyful urgency as our style of apostolate.
There are three traits of the legionary’s identity
that can be considered essential:
1
A passionate love for the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God made man.
2
A mission that possesses him and urges him on, that is, that directs and drives all the acts of his life.
3
A religious and priestly spirituality and communion with the Church and Regnum Christi.
— Ratio Institutionis “Christus Vita Vestra”, 67.
The international character
Our communities are to be comprised of members of different nationalities in order to foster unity, be a visible sign of the communion of Gospel life and the universality of the Kingdom of God, achieve greater personal enrichment, and enhance their apostolic efforts by living together and by the interplay of different cultural traditions.
— The Constitutions of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, 6.
Participation in the
local Church
In their apostolic activities, Legionaries are part of the local Church’s pastoral ministry. Considering the good of Church and the mission of the Congregation.
— The Constitutions of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ, 5.
What does it mean to be a Legionary?
Being a Legionary is a dynamic synthesis of many elements: it means being a man of God, a passionate apostle of hrist, a formator of apostles, a proclaimer and witness of God’s merciful love, a well rounded man, a creative evangelizer, a lively and magnanimous innovator. It means living each day, every act, as a joyful response to God’s love experienced personally in an intimate encounter with Christ.
It is a way of apostolate — per Regnum Christi — with a single aim — ad Gloriam Dei. To be a Legionary of Christ is to receive God’s call to a religious and priestly life that embraces all this and more. Therefore, a charism is a living reality that is more easily described than defined
— Ratio Institutionis «Christus Vita Vestra», 65.