The Legionaries Of Christ

[PhuturePriest]

All I know is every time I read their name I immediately want to join them.

[Maggyie]

There are many great individuals in the LC but the organization as a whole is very corrupt. Many of the leaders who covered up for Maciel are still around. Beware.

 

PS I have known many priests who wept at the Consecration or held the host aloft for ages or wore cassock and capes birettas. Some of them wound up to be quite rotten, as in abusive. The line between reverence and theatrics can be thin indeed.

[organwerke]

It is a very particular subject.

The founder was a person without any scruple and who had a life beyond any moral rule. Pope emeritus Benedict XVI said things really strong against him, he declared him a "false prophete" and a man whose life was "spoiled" and other strong things.

If you read his biography and the history of the organization you will see that the problems and, also, the doubts from the Holy See arose almost from the beginning of the life of the Institution.  The founder at the beginning of his studies was expelled from three seminaries whose bishops were all his uncles (!!) and finally he was expelled also from the jesuits! Then, at the beginning the Holy See sent an act of impedement towards the new foundation but it arrived late and the foundation started nonetheless! There were various inquieries that started even before the final one in 2006. I couldn't think of another catholic institution with a so complex history. 

Personally, I would never join an Order who had a so deviated founder. If you consider, in every order the life and the story of the founder is very important. I also ask myself: how can the Lord have given a charism to such a fool and sinner man?

It is also true that the hierarchy tried to cover the sins and the lies of the founder for more than 50 years!!

I can believe nonetheless that there are many holy priests in the organization and this is a complete mistery to me. Probably this is the sign that the Lord loves us so much that even if a sinner man used his name in a such disrespectful way, he didn't allow that those who entered with a true heart were left in the darkness of evil.

But I personally think that it would be better if the Holy See could find a way to refound completely the Order with also another name and with no boundaries with the person of the founder.

I also repeat that even if there are lots of very good priests there I personally would never enter a congregation with a so complex history and with a so ambiguous charism.

[the171]

RC is big down here. Two of my friends are in the movement (Legionaries). I have never experienced "cult-life behavior" with those in the lay and religious movement down here in the South.

[BigJon16]

Thanks for the opinions, even the negative ones! 

 

We all need Jesus, that's for sure.