Close to our Lady, to give thanks to God
To give thanks to God for Opus Dei’s 25 years as a Personal Prelature, Bishop Echevarría invites the Prelature’s faithful to strive to go even more fervently to the intercession of God’s Mother during this year.
Video: Bishop Alvaro del Portillo receiving the bull "Ut sit"
In 1982, with the Apostolic Constitution, "Ut sit," John Paul II erected Opus Dei as a personal prelature. The following video records the first Prelate, Msgr. Alvaro del Portillo, receiving the bull "Ut sit" in the Basilica of Saint Eugene in Rome.
What was Opus Dei before it became a prelature? How did the 1950 statutes differ from the present ones?
From its foundation on October 2, 1928, Opus Dei was already in essence, although in an embryonic state, the same as we see it today: a part of the Church, made up of faithful and structured hierarchically around a head who was at first the founder, St. Josemaría Escrivá, a priest.
How do personal prelatures resemble and how do they differ from dioceses, religious orders and movements?
One should keep in mind that all ecclesial realities share in the life and purpose of the one Church. Therefore, all are called to live in the same ecclesial communion and to foster mutual affection.
Video: Making Christ known
Welcome everyone, show them affection, do not reject anyone. So advised Opus Dei’s founder for those who want to imitate Christ, because our Lord did not reject anyone (Weekly Video 1’31”).
How is it possible that it requires a specific vocation to be a member of a prelature?
Naturally this vocational requirement is not essential to personal prelatures, which could be based on very diverse circumstances, usually linked to social bonds among its faithful.
How is a personal prelature created?
It is the Church itself, represented by the Pope, that makes the decision to create a personal prelature, after consulting the Bishops’ Conferences, in order to serve souls more effectively. Naturally this decision requires the existence of the elements that constitute a personal prelature: a community of faithful, presided over by a prelate, with a clergy that assists him in his pastoral task, and a specific ecclesial purpose.
How many personal prelatures are there at present? Why aren’t there more?
The only personal prelature currently existing is Opus Dei. The fact that others have not yet been erected is due to the newness of personal prelatures, which have to offer guarantees of ecclesial solidity and be harmoniously inserted into the dioceses in which they operate. Besides, there are other ecclesiastical circumscriptions, such as the military ordinariates, with the same type of configuration, that is to say, one that is both personal and that complements the dioceses.
Upon whom does the prelate of Opus Dei depend? Who appoints him?
The prelate of Opus Dei and the prelature itself depend on the Holy See: on the Roman Pontiff and the Congregation for the Clergy.
How is it financed?
The prelature of Opus Dei is financed in the same way as the dioceses and other future prelatures, that is, above all by the contributions of its own faithful and of other people who provide financial assistance for its mission.